Open your mind to possibility

This article is reproduced with kind permission from Mayo Cat Rescue.

So many rescued cats and kittens are waiting right now for that special someone to give them a home, a bed, food, love. They can't help the way they look or whether they have only three legs or one eye, or what colour they are or their age or sex. All they know is they are stuck in a cage, pen or chalet for days, weeks, months on end... waiting...waiting...waiting for the day someone comes along and gives them what they want most; to snooze on a soft bed, to eat tasty food and treats of chicken or fish, to cuddle on a couch, play with a toy or hunt in the fields, to enjoy belly rubs and headbutts. This is what every cat wants regardless of its appearance.

“We want a kitten.”
“I don't want an older cat.”
“We want a friendly cat”
“I don't like black cats.”
“We don't want a female cat.”
“I'd love a longhaired cat.”

I hear all of the above or variations on a regular basis. And it makes me want to scream. Why do people have to be so fussy when there are SO MANY cats and kittens in desperate need of homes right now?

I sometimes think the public must think we BREED cats to order. We don't. We RESCUE them. WE don't notice what age, colour or sex a cat is, or what kind of personality it has or whether it has long or short hair for that matter. WE're too busy noticing the jutting bones, the skeletal body, the dirty fur, the smell, the sick eyes, the wheezing chest, the neglect, the disease or the fact it's “owner” is making it very clear they no longer want anything to do with the cat ever again.

We rescue cats because they need to be removed from dire situations, from starvation, from danger, from people who should never have a cat in the first place. We rescue them because they are unwanted, unloved, forgotten. Because they need help.

Can you imagine if we were as fussy as the public? “Oh, let's not rescue black cats, older cats, shorthaired cats.” It's a preposterous thought.

When contacting us to home a cat or kitten, PLEASE realise you are not making a lifestyle choice, you are not choosing a car or curtains, you are giving a rescued animal a new home, a second chance.

You are saving an animal's life. So does it really matter then what they look like? Remember if you home a cat from us, it frees up space for us to take another. So, in effect, you are saving TWO lives. If you look at our Facebook page or our website, you'll see we need space for many many cats.

So, PLEASE see beyond an animals appearance. Instead look into their eyes, see the suffering they've been through, listen to the gentle purr, hear the quiet meow, reach out a comforting hand, touch the soft fur and open your heart to love....whatever age or colour it is, or whatever number of legs it has, you'll be richly rewarded.