This is a guest blog by Leeann Berry, Cat Ranger at Cat Safari.
Several weeks ago one of our long time Cat Safari clients came to me with heavy hearts and a sad conclusion. He knew his beloved cat, Kavalier, would be better off being rehomed and asked for our help. He loved Kavalier dearly, but felt that with his growing human family and the inevitable shrinking home space that accompanies a toddler and a newborn, Kavalier would be happier in a cat-centric lifestyle where his purrsonal needs were a priority. He also stated clearly it had to be the perfect situation by his standards for rehoming a pet, or he couldn’t move forward. This was not a hard task to me; in my mind I knew the purrfect family.
Another longstanding client of the Pet Camp family had lost one of their adored feline boys. It had been a long illness in which they tenderly nursed Rudy and managed to give him a very good quality of life regardless of chronic illness. When they lost Rudy they knew it would take a special cat to come into their home, but they were open and willing to adopt and I had an idea brewing.
Many times over the years when Rudy and Kavalier crossed paths here at Cat Safari, their respective cat parents were often not able to tell who was who on the nightly camper cameo blog. With their thick, shiny red coats, they were hard to distinguish. The very first time that Harry — the feline sibling of the late and great Rudy — had come into Cat Safari alone, Kavalier happened to be here with us as well. The universe was aligning. The two families exchanged numbers, set a date, and the rest is Cat Safari history.
We all love what we do here at Pet Camp, we love the animals we are entrusted with and care for. We all have a personal stake in their well-being and happiness. When we can help, I am happy to say that we all band together to get things done.
Most people might think that the job of rehoming a pet would fall to Virginia, our esteemed former Camp Director, now Director of San Francisco Animal Care and Control. She has clearly influenced Mark and the entire extended Pet Camp family by setting a great example on how to take initiative in solving issues with compassion and empathy within our workplace family.
Next week will be the first time we have Kavalier and his new feline brother, Harry, staying with us in their new family dynamic. As you can see, I have been receiving updates and pictures on the assimilation of Kavalier into his new family, and he looks very happy and very much the center of his new family’s attention. We are all thrilled here at Cat Safari that we still see Kavalier when he camps here, and that we can continue to see how he thrives in his new environment. We all think it’s the cat pajamas!
Successfully rehoming a pet is all in a day’s work when you love what you do.
Thanks for reading!