Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor

Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free;
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,
Send these, the homeless,
Tempest-tossed to me
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!

Statute of Liberty song...  Its befitting of this morning.  Because guess what, I nabbed another one.  From Stout.  She/he (is already eartipped, and if it was a male, they did a good job de-sexing it.   :)    I had every intention of nabbing this one because when I saw it yesterday, at the same location that I had seen it, and had fed it, during this horrible winter we had, and have not seen it since, it was like a skeleton.  It can't weigh more than five pounds.   Skin and bone, but surely an adult cat.  When I fed it last year and through half the winter, it was a heavier kitty.  I am not sure what happened.  Was it trapped somewhere?  Is it sick?  Is it a very old cat and losing its weight, like most do?  I let it out of its carrier in the bathroom just now, and its very friendly.  I am wondering if it has leukemia.  I will have it tested at the clinic when it opens tomorrow.  I can't just ignore sickly looking cats like this.  This was the last thing I wanted, or needed, right now.  I just got Candy/Greta adopted this weekend, Celia adopted a few weeks ago.  I was down to my own manageable brood.  Forgot to mention, Fraser is still not adopted!!  Now I have another in my bathroom.  I will put it out there, if someone can help me foster this one, if its healthy, just malnourished, I would be so appreciative, until we can find it a good home!  Update, it used the litterbox!  Picture coming soon.



Sandy and Monkey

Another great update:  Sandy and Monkey.  "Big Red" I fed for YEARS on the porch of a boarded up house on Garson Ave near Chamberlain St.  I had shelters set up, and I fed so many cats on that porch.  Big Red waited for me every day.  He had so many injuries over the course of time.  I finally had the opportunity to rescue him after my dear friend Maree offered to take him and get him off the street. I did.  It was a truly grateful moment for me because it took so long for him to gain my trust and allow me to finally pet him.  After he went to the vet, and tested positive for FIV, Maree decided to keep him separate from the rest of her brood, and he became a permanent resident of her back enclosed porch area.  I had been feeding, and posting about another cat on Second Street, who at the time was very young, maybe 8 months, and this black and white kitty had a curly tail, so I named her Monkey.  She finally learned to trust me after a bit, and after writing about her, Maree said she would take her also, and she would be a perfect companion for lonely Big Red, who was later renamed Sandy, after Hurricane Sandy, which was belting away the east coast at the time Maree adopted him. They are a pair, the two of them.  They instantly bonded and are now best buds.  Click on the pic to zoom in.

I Have Done Something

I looked at all the homeless, helpless animals on the streets...the cast-offs of human society.

I saw in their eyes love and hope, fear and dread, sadness, and betrayal. And I was angry.

"God," I said, "this is terrible! Why don't you do something?"

God was silent for a moment, and then He spoke softly, "I have done something," he replied.

"I created you."

-- Author Unknown

"Saving the life of one animal may not change the world, but the world will surely change for that one animal"