Finally: MiMi the cat goes to Mexico!

Here is a guest article written by a friend of mine who is living out her dream. She tells a story of transition, courage and wonderment. Using her cat as a frame of reference, Benne  Rockett gives us a glimps of her exciting new, self directed life.  

Six months ago I packed my car and moved to the Yucatan.  That’s in Mexico ya’ll!  My little toaster car, a 2005 Scion XB, can hold almost as much as a 5’x5’x10’ storage space.  I managed to bring an IKEA futon by deconstructing the frame and sucking the life out of the cushions.  Thank You Space Bags!  I packed towels, bed linens, kitchen supplies, and a few personal items into three green 20 gallon plastic totes.   Under front seats, I slid two packaged sun shade cloths, jewelry placed in a cupcake covered pan, and a canister filled with Non-GMOs from Humble Seed.  Filling the backseat floorboard, was  my beautiful mandolin, my grandfather’s Singer sewing machine, a crate full of tools, a divided tote with art supply do-dads’, and two 4’ multi-drawer towers filled with cookware and spices.   My dear friend, Jessi, was squished into the front seat.  Her bags, a kitty litter box and a tote for cat food, were placed on either side of the backseat items.   Finally, Mimi the Cat, who rode inside a soft, luxurious crate, was wedged securely between the two front seats.   This configuration was well rehearsed weeks in advance.  Still, I barely managed to squeeze three changes of clothes into the mix. 

Mimi the Cat has achieved international notoriety.  She may not be the first kitten to sleep in a sex motel, but she is certainly one of the first house cats to do so.    Her first evening was spent behind the security walls of a no-tell-motel in Matehula, MX.  Given a half dose of cat Benedryl, she came out of her carrier with the grace of a sea sick ships’ captain.  By the time we turned in for a nights rest in the single king sized bed built for twenty people, she was back to her fluffy fur ball self.

For her second night in Mexico, Mimi the Cat elected to stay in a very posh and super expensive hotel, the former home to one of the Pre-Revolutionary Spanish governors of Puebla, Mexico.   And why not!  Puebla is home to more churches per captita than any other city in all of the Americas and houses the first ever library on this continent.  Mimi the Cat loves shinny things and prefers sleeping on any book I am reading, thus, Puebla made her “A” list.  After a pleasant evening spent with spinning frescoed angels, gilded concrete molding, and a quick shower in the fully converted contemporary bathroom lounge, she was ready to hit the road.  

Not one to miss an opportunity to hear the magnificent tales of NAFTA truck drives, she bought a bottle of tequila, stored it neatly alongside her Ziploc packet of Benydryl, both tucked into her Hello Kitty backpack, and made it all the way to Villahermosa, MX.   Looking particularly glamorous after a head to tail-tip brushing, Mimi the Cat was ready for the shimmering sleaze of a red hot night in her second no-tell-motel.   Behind paper thin walls, fellow flea baggers enjoyed her night of singing a beautiful rendition of “Don’t Cry For Me, Argentina”, a favorite of her mother.   In the morning she apologized for not having song “Las Mañanitas” to the very handsome Pero Gãrgola, the rooftop watch dog .

Finally arriving in the Yucatan, she was challenged by a two Mexican Federales.  While one searched her papers, the other taunted her by calling her a tiger – he put his hand up like he was going to claw her and let out a low growl.  Mimi the Cat remained calm.  Once at the beach, she shed her coat, and gazed at the magnificence of the Gulf waters.  After a leisurely week of tanning, she finally met the village idiots.  Not afraid of their dogged attempts to steal her fur coat, she casually approached the leader, the local garbage man and leader of the deadly La Basura gang, lifted her paw to his muzzle, and challenged him to a dual.  Some members of La Basura were so fearful that their shaking caused imediate loss of fur and teeth.  One poor fellow lost the tip of his tail.

Now, the village idiots are persuaded that Mimi the Cat is an extraterrestrial raccoon, sent down by the Mayan gods to change their fate.   Images of her likeness have been posted on the sides of many fishing boats at the Ria, and fisher man from all around bribe her with tasty morsels.   Life is Good in Mexico.

http://www.newsfromabroad-online.blogspot.com/

What Benne does not mention in the article is that she is a very savvy and talented mental health professional who is now using her experience to assist other ex-patriot woman in the huge adjustment (and sometimes the hazards) of moving to a new culture. Be sure to click on the link at the end of the article and check out her site. It makes a good uplifting read.

Serendipity at the animal shelter

Some of you know that I am a very spiritual creature by nature. I am also a therapist. Over the years I have gathered many tools of the trade. One of them is the use of vision boards. The idea is that you create a board that has images that remind you of what you want, and of course my image board has many images related to Downsy Dude Rescue Ranch. However I am going to write about this image that I did not initially relate to the project but rather to meeting like minded people.  Little did I realize just how this would manifest.

My most recent visit to the shelter was to finish my cat personality analysis training. I was to do a personality inventory on a shelter cat while under the watchful eye of a trainer. This way the shelter could allow me to then do cat  personality inventories on my own.

I went in an hour early to spend some time with a few kitties I have identified as frightened. One little new shy kitty caught my attention because she was missing about  a third of her fur. It appeared that she had been shaved in several locations on her body. Sometimes cats come in with mats or debris stuck to them and the kindest way to remove it is to shave them. This poor little kitty only had the name of "Six" indicating that she came in from a home or location where there were too many cats. She actually looked almost exactly like one of my tortoise calicoes, which is very interesting, given what happened next. If you have read my blog before you know that I have a Down's syndrome son who has a favorite kitty named Daisy. Daisy is the torti.

While I was setting on the floor in the cat suite, a Down's syndrome young man came in and sat on the bench very quietly. We said hello and he just smiled at me, not quite knowing what to say next. He was beaming with positive energy and it showed on his face. Before I know it Six was on his lap, closed her eyes and went to sleep purring. He quietly stroked the kitty, bald spots and all, with out ever commenting on the condition of her fur.

The door opened and the Young man's mother stepped in. I gave her a knowing smile and just went back to my work. After a while I shared with the mom that I also had a son with Down's. We talked about the many gifts that come with it and we both agreed that the extra chromosome that both our son's were born with should be called "the love Gene." We laughed in a way that only two mom's of Down's kids could do. As we talked we discovered that we had more and more in common. Both of us had recent terrifying experiences with illness, both are at a cross roads in our lives. I told her my plans for Downsy Dude Ranch and she nearly cried. She told me that she can not continue at her current job and has been praying for answers about what she was to do next. As I explained the concepts I was basing Downsy Dude Ranch on, you could just see the light bulb come on in her eyes. We agreed to stay in touch and exchange email information. She thanked me for the inspiration and then she told her son they had to go look at kitties in a few more locations before deciding on an adoption.

Her son spoke up and said "this one likes me, I want this one." I have to tell you it was very hard to not burst into tears at the sight of this young fella holding this ragged little cat with half her fur gone. He never noticed the fur. He only noticed that the cat instinctively knew she should belong to him. He knew, and the cat knew.

When I asked the universe to surround me with like minded people, I never dreamed I would be in the right place at the right time to see this very special, nonjudgmental young man demonstrate what I feel in my heart. I never dreamed I would meet his mother who needed the message I had for her. The experience has filled me with gratitude and affirmed my belief in the use of vision boards.

If you are interested in reading more about how I use my Vision board, and how to create one for yourself,  you can look here : Vision Boards

Shy Kitties at the shelter

As you know I love Wednesdays because that is the day that Lewis and I go to the pound to give TLC to the animals there who are waiting for their forever homes. Yesterday we spent time with 3 kitties. One who wants to hide behind a structure, one who is choosing to live inside a fabric igloo and one who just needed a warm lap and some kindness.

Dede is in Suite one. She is very stressed and wants to hide behind  a shelf structure. Last week I was able to coax her out with treats but this week she was not willing to come out. I moved the structure and got behind it with her . She enjoyed the company and allowed me to comfort her. Dede likes other kitties and often will have one or two others in her hidy place with her for snuggles.

Bella is the igloo kitty who has claimed a fabric igloo as her safe place. I could not coax Bella out of her igloo so I picked the entire thing up and set it and her on my lap on the floor. I slowly peeled down the side to expose her and she allowed me to pet her for a few minutes but had the kind of nervous purr a cat gets when they are very stressed. She let me know when she had enough and I set her down. I stayed in the suite and in a few minutes she emerged from her igloo to get some additional love and a few treats I had in my pocket. Progress is such a heart warming thing to experience.

Millie is a sweet little fuzzball. Just look at the length of the fur on her cheeks! Millie had a rough start at the pound with another kitty attacking her when she came in. She is clearly traumatized from her  changes in her life and just needed a kind lap. She allowed me to groom her with a glove that has a rubber side. She enjoyed the petting, and buried her head in the crook of my elbow as if she just wanted to forget where she was, and if she didn't see it, maybe it was a bad dream. I think she would have stayed in my arms indefinitely if I had more time.

Lewis spent time playing with the kitties that  were more outgoing. He managed to give every cat in the 3 suites at least a few minutes. I also met another volunteer who is willing to coordinate efforts with me in regard to the shy kitties. I am so loving the experience of comforting these little underdogs (or undercats as the case may be). I am also enjoying making new friends who share my values regarding animals. I love that  I have the time to share myself with these shy shelter kitties

Happy news

Here is some good news. The two kitties that Lewis and I worked with last week have both been adopted.
The next three days we will be in training. Two more involving dogs and then Saturday we begin training on how to evaluate a cat. I can't wait.

The other big news is that we may have found a property for the Downsy Dude Rescue Ranch. Miss Ashley will be seeing in on Monday. I will post it if it looks like we found the right spot. Wish us luck!

Cats know what time it is

People who know me know that I am a morning person. I love to get up while it is still dark, check out the moon and watch the sun rise. Generally, I am up by 5am. Heaven for bid I sleep longer than that! At least according to my cats. Every morning I wake up to 2 of them setting on my bed waiting for any indication that I may be waking. For example, one of them can detect a blink. And the moment it happens she literally leaps for joy, usually from some where by my feet to the top of the bed where my head is. This is the signal for her sister to start parading like a tight rope walker on the wooden headboard next to my pillow. This of coarse causes just enough worry, about an accidental slip onto my head with toe nails as a catching  tool, to rouse me. By now they have me aroused enough to speak, trying to break the circus clown of her act.  I might say something like "stop that!," which brings a third kitty zooming into the room with the zeal of a lotto winner. What's the prize? Breakfast.

The next event in the house is a procession to  the kitchen with all motors buzzing and plenty of drive by lovings on my ankles while trying to navigate sleepily in the dark. My only hope of declinging them is to bust out a can of cat food and divvy it up. Only then do I get to have my coffee in peace. Oh yes, cats can tell time!

Cat love-a Purrrrrfect day at the shelter with the Downsy dude

Today we spent another afternoon at the shelter. Lewis  decided we would focus on the cats for now so we started in the kitten nursery. Our job was to coax the kittens to the front of the cage. We had toys and canned food on a tongue depressor as tools. Kittens who hide are rarely adopted so it is important to create a desire for human interaction. Today there were six cages of kittens with the youngest being 12 weeks. These are pretty big kittens and the bigger they get the less apt to become adopted they are. We had so much fun with the kittens (and them with us) that all the kittens were at the front of the cages by the time we were done. One smart kitten even learned how to give a high five in less than ten minutes.

As we were leaving that area a young couple came it and spotted two of the kittens still frolicking full of energy from our play session. Guess who went to their forever homes today.

Next we moved into the grown cat area. There are suites there were several cats are allowed to play in larger areas. Lewis loves the '"cat rooms" and spent a good deal of time in there just playing with the cats. I was summons to a cage by a small gray howler. She was clearly distressed. I opened the cage and she quickly climbed into my arms. For a few minutes she tried to climb all over me, even on my head. When she would calm down and just let me hold her I would slip her a cat treat. She very quickly adjusted her behavior to maximize her treat experience. She was so happy and grateful to be held that she started giving me hugs- literally put her paws around my neck and planted her cheek on mine. She settled into my arms and fell asleep purring like a maniac.

 Time and attention is such a simple gift to give to a needy animal. In return I had a per-fect afternoon and came home with cat love all over me.

Next post: Wait till you hear what I saw a pit bull do today, it will warm your heart

Animal behavior training with the Downsy dude

Yesterday Lewis and I went to our first animal behavior training at our local animal shelter. The goal of the program is to train volunteers to help train animals waiting for their forever homes. Experience has shown that well trained animals are more apt to be adopted and stay in there new adopted homes.

One example  of what we will be doing is taking  tongue depressor and placing cat food on the end of it to entice cats and kittens to get in the habit of coming to the front of their cages when they see people.

We will also be learning how to clicker train dogs. Clickers are used to reinforce desirable behaviors such as following a command or keeping all four paws on the ground. The clicker creates a universal sign for the dog that can be easily transferred to the new owner. Often the differences in voice pitches between trainer and new owner can confuse a dog and make it less likely to obey a command. The clicker eliminates that confusion.

Lewis preferred to work with cats yesterday so we spent most of our day teaching grown cats how to give a high five in exchange for a cat treat. Lewis seems to be a natural at this and has taught all four cats at home this trick. He has also taught one of our cats to fetch a ball. Yesterday he had pretty good luck with two cats learning this trick after just a few tries.

We ended our day with a visit to the kitten nursery where we were able to take two very frightened
 6-8 week old kittens and play with them in a visitation room. The goal was to get the kittens to associate humans with fun cuddles and play, rather than hunkering down and hiding in the back of their cages. So far we love the animal behavior training.

Animals & stress- A zoologist reflects on her experiences

The following was submitted By Ashley Eastway. Ashley holds a BA in Zoology from Michigan State University. She is currently working in her field in Gatlinburge Tennesee.

For me animal therapy has always been a part of my life. The first example of this that I can remember was when we got our first cats Luna and Moses. They were both thrown out into the desert by some ranch owner because they had defects. Luna had a T-shaped tail and Moses had a stub tail and extra toes. They were so young that we had to bottle feed them both for them to live. Because of this they were both very bonded to us. I had never before had an animal that needed me and over the years they returned the favor. Moses could always tell when I was upset and would always find me if I was crying. I can't tell you the number of times I cried into his fur and could hear him purr.  There was a feeling of relief I felt just knowing that he loved me as much as I loved him.

Since then I have had many pets and worked with all sorts of animals for my career. The one thing I can say that all these animals have in common is their ability to make me laugh. The greatest thing I get from working with animals is their ability to lift my mood when I am down.

My current rescue cat, Tabasco Kitten, I found at the zoo I was working at. We pulled her out of a hole in the ground that was behind my turtle exhibit. She was covered in fleas and starving. I knew as soon as I saw her that she would be mine. I got her home and cleaned up and have now had her for a few months. She is my little alarm clock and every morning motivates me to wake up. It may sound crazy, but when I have a bad day I can think of her, and just know that everything will be ok, because she will be in my home, happy and ready for cuddles when I get there. Animals just make the home so full of energy. This, I guess, is how my animals have made my life better and have aided me in coping with life.