A brief history of our foster cats: Part 1

We signed up to start fostering in Feb. There was an application and interview process, and a home visit. These were all very quick, and it seems we passed the test, because in mid-March we received the call that there were two cats that needed to be fostered as a part of the shelters domestic abuse program—through which victims of domestic abuse who are transitioning to new, safe housing and in need of a safe haven for their pets during the transition. We were told it was probably a month-long commitment. We agreed and picked them up as soon as we were back in town.

The two cats, Mouse and Oreo, were obviously timid. They spent much time hiding under the bed. Oreo was terribly ambivalent. We could tell he wanted to have attention lavished on him, but was held back by his fear.

My husband's patience for cats came in very handy. He came home from work every evening and laid on the floor next to the bed, with his hand outstretched, trying to get them used to our smell. For the first two weeks, he probably fell asleep like that (face down, half shoved under the bed) on at least four occasions.

Eventually the persistence paid off. They slowly began to trust us more and spent more time out in their room than under the bed. (P.S. We are fortunate enough to have an extra bedroom that we devote entirely to the foster cats. We have found this to be an ideal arrangement.)

Then my husband noticed that Mouse had what looked like grains of rice stuck to her rear. Some internet searches and a call to the shelter later, she most likely had a case of tapeworm. We panicked, thinking that our girls would all get it. However, according to our vet, the tapeworm really needs a host pest in order to go from egg to contagion. Depending on the species of tapeworm, this host pest would be either a flea or a mouse. So, going on the information that Mouse and Oreo were indoor-outdoor cats at their owner's house, and were indoor only at our house, the likelihood of passing it along to our girls was slim. Indeed, not even Oreo ever seemed to have been infected, though both of them went in to the shelter and were treated for tapeworm, which was a quick, one-day dose of medication, from what I was told. We thoroughly cleaned out their room, vacuumed, and washed the bedding, and it never became any more of a problem.

Things were fairly normal after that. After we were sure the tapeworm had passed, we slowly introduced them to our girls and to the rest of the house. Oreo relished being out and about. Mouse stuck to their room most of the time. She was also very afraid of ceiling fans, and summer was reaching its height, so that probably contributed to her desire to stay away from most of the rooms in our house.

One month turned into two, which turned into three. We began to be afraid that perhaps their owner decided that two cats was more of a hassle than she could handle at this point in her life, and maybe she was trying to slowly and quietly relinquish them.

After about three and a half months, we received the phone call that Oreo and Mouse's mom was settled in and ready to have her babies back. We were so thrilled to know that our fear for their abandonment was unfounded. But we were also sad to say goodbye to two cats who had grown to be a part of our family.

Their last day at the house, I said goodbye to them before heading off to work. Oreo was sitting in the window watching me leave, and know that was the last time I'd see him, I cried on the drive into work.

I was so glad I had decided to take [a lot] of pictures of them, and vowed to do so for all of our fosters.