Second Hand Purrs

Today I stopped at Second Hand Purrs which is a no-kill shelter for kitties. I googled rescue shelters quite a while back on a day when I was contemplating the idea of a second cat. The amazing thing was that this shelter popped to the top of the list that is very close to my home. In fact, it's between work and home which makes it a convenient stop. Jeff consistently protests the idea of another cat. He says I pay less attention to him since I got the first one so he is resistant to the idea of a second one. I try to explain that with a second cat, the firs cat would be entertained, less needy and less lonely (hopefully, well maybe).

I've been revisiting the idea lately as a means to fill the emptiness and sadness in my heart. Not that it can really go away but it could be a distraction. So as I perused the website, secondhandpurrs.org . I looked through the available rescuees. I do have my heart set on a Garfield-like kitty, very orange striped but not necessarily fat. Fat cats are too difficult to hold in my arms. They are all so adorable but I really did not want to do something that Jeff doesn't like so I thought maybe I could volunteer my time and bring them donations of the items they desperately needed. But they do have this guy named Orion who is orange but kind of skinny. Since they are only open to the public on Thursday evenings and Saturdays, I picked up some laundry detergent and disinfectant wipes that were on thier list earlier in the week.

I didn't know what to expect on my way over. I was thinking about how these poor animals were tragically dumped off, abandoned, or I imagined various other terrible circumstances that brought them to the shelter. I was pleasantly surprised that the place was cheery and full of life. All these cute little kitties were greeted by visitors who were excited about the prospect of bringing a new family member home. Older couples were carefully viewing their prospects and children were giddy with delight over the idea of getting to take any one of them home.

I was greeted by a volunteer who was thrilled at the sight of the laundry detergent and wipes. I asked if I could look around and she said, of course. I secretly was looking for Orion so I could check him out up close. He was adorable but then they all were. I asked to take him out of his cage. The rule is to use hand sanitizer before picking up a cat, so I was applying it as the volunteer, Ann got him out. There are private rooms to take the cats into so you can spend some quiet time getting to know each other. This little guy was pretty small. My cat weighs 10 pounds and I think Orion was probably 7 and a half at best. He was shy but he warmed up after a while. Funny, how you just know though, that he probably wouldn't be a good fit at my house anyway as any new cat would have to be able to stand up to Toby. I just sensed he wasn't the one.

So I gave him back and continued to look around. Once really comfortable, I asked about volunteering. I was handed a form and I filled it out. I had to circle my available days and I asked if they would call me if they thought I was suitable. I was told, no just please come in on Tuesday evening. Coincidentally, the day I chose as available was the day they desperately needed help. I am really excited that I can look forward to offering some help. And maybe they will help me in return.