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Duffy's 4th annifursary (long)
Tomorrow (Jan. 31) is the fourth anniversary of the day I adopted Duffy. It's
hard to believe that four years have gone by, and he is a true treasure. He is the dearest, sweetest, most wonderful little guy I could ever imagine. Most of you already know that Duffy has been blind since birth, but he does almost everything that a sighted cat can do. He even has his own "fan club" among some of the readers of this newsgroup. Duffy gets around so well that I thought he might have a small amount of vision. If I move a chair, he will be sitting in it a few minutes later - there is no need to keep furniture in a fixed location for him. I arranged for an evaluation by an ophthalmologist at Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine because I wanted to see if there was some sight (and, if so, what I should do to preserve it). There I learned that Duffy is completely blind and that he has a condition known as "anterior cleavage syndrome." There should be space between the iris and the cornea. In Duffy's case, the two components are pressed together, and there is no space between them. This probably happened before birth and possibly was caused by infection in the mother. I want to thank Megan because she is the one who made all this possible. I was trying to help a friend find a cat to adopt. I had been communicating with Megan about another matter and told her about it. She suggested that we look at Petfinder.com. We did, and there was a picture of Duffy. He looked like a sad little waif in the picture the shelter had posted. In fact, I thought he was a very old cat from his picture, but he was actually estimated to be 3-5 years old at the time. It was heartrending when I saw that Duffy was blind, had been returned by someone else after two years (and this was a *kill* shelter), and had been in the shelter for several months. My friend simply wasn't interested in a blind cat and would not even consider adopting, and I was really fearful of adopting another cat because Holly had a history of aggressively attacking any other cat in my presence. We even called her "the black tornado" because of the way she would hurl herself at other cats. She was my dear little shadow and followed me everywhere, but she would not tolerate having another cat around. Megan kept prodding me to adopt, or even to foster for awhile. She told me that she would help me throughout the process and was positive that we *could* get Holly and Duffy to adjust to each other. Well, she kept that promise. She walked me through every step of the slow, careful introduction. Every time I would think about speeding things up, she would remind me to be patient and take it slow and easy (excellent advice for anyone adopting a cat because I think this is the reason so many people have trouble getting their new adoptees and their resident cats to accept each other). She made numerous long-distance calls at her own expense, and she always seemed to recognize exactly what I was describing in the relationship and knew precisely what would work. I will also say that I was a "good student." I followed her advice every step of the way, and the result is that I have two loving companions instead of the jealous reaction from Holly that I had always seen previously. Getting back to the ad on Petfinder.com...the notice looked so old (and the shelter only promised to keep animals for 14 days) that I really thought it was probably too late and that Duffy was gone. It was Megan who kept insisting that I give them a call. "You need to check," she said; "You can't just assume that he isn't there." Ironically, I did call and was told that he had already been adopted. "Check further," she said; "Send them an e-mail." So I sent an e-mail to the director of the shelter - and learned that Duffy was still there. I have no idea what the first person was talking about or how she could have been confused about a blind cat named Duffy, but he was still in a cage at the shelter! Kitten season was approaching, and space would soon be at a premium. I really believe they could not have kept him for much longer. He is such a sweet, loving cat that I simply cannot comprehend how someone else could have had him for two years and then returned him to a kill shelter (and especially not for they ridiculous reason she gave - she said he had learned to get to her birds and was teach her sighted cat to do the same thing). That cruel decision turned out to be my good fortune (and Duffy's and Holly's) because he now has a forever home with us and I have truly been blessed. MaryL Photos of Duffy: 'o' Duffy: http://tinyurl.com/cslwf Duffy and Holly together: http://tinyurl.com/8b47e Duffy and the Christmas tree: http://tinyurl.com/clal7 |
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Duffy's 4th annifursary (long)
Wonderful storey. Every time I hear someone say what a trial blind cats can
be and all the stuff they have to do I want to wack someone. Cats, like people adapt to what is around them. All it takes is patience and love and you have plenty of that. "MaryL" -OUT-THE-LITTER wrote in message . .. Tomorrow (Jan. 31) is the fourth anniversary of the day I adopted Duffy. It's hard to believe that four years have gone by, and he is a true treasure. He is the dearest, sweetest, most wonderful little guy I could ever imagine. Most of you already know that Duffy has been blind since birth, but he does almost everything that a sighted cat can do. He even has his own "fan club" among some of the readers of this newsgroup. Duffy gets around so well that I thought he might have a small amount of vision. If I move a chair, he will be sitting in it a few minutes later - there is no need to keep furniture in a fixed location for him. I arranged for an evaluation by an ophthalmologist at Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine because I wanted to see if there was some sight (and, if so, what I should do to preserve it). There I learned that Duffy is completely blind and that he has a condition known as "anterior cleavage syndrome." There should be space between the iris and the cornea. In Duffy's case, the two components are pressed together, and there is no space between them. This probably happened before birth and possibly was caused by infection in the mother. I want to thank Megan because she is the one who made all this possible. I was trying to help a friend find a cat to adopt. I had been communicating with Megan about another matter and told her about it. She suggested that we look at Petfinder.com. We did, and there was a picture of Duffy. He looked like a sad little waif in the picture the shelter had posted. In fact, I thought he was a very old cat from his picture, but he was actually estimated to be 3-5 years old at the time. It was heartrending when I saw that Duffy was blind, had been returned by someone else after two years (and this was a *kill* shelter), and had been in the shelter for several months. My friend simply wasn't interested in a blind cat and would not even consider adopting, and I was really fearful of adopting another cat because Holly had a history of aggressively attacking any other cat in my presence. We even called her "the black tornado" because of the way she would hurl herself at other cats. She was my dear little shadow and followed me everywhere, but she would not tolerate having another cat around. Megan kept prodding me to adopt, or even to foster for awhile. She told me that she would help me throughout the process and was positive that we *could* get Holly and Duffy to adjust to each other. Well, she kept that promise. She walked me through every step of the slow, careful introduction. Every time I would think about speeding things up, she would remind me to be patient and take it slow and easy (excellent advice for anyone adopting a cat because I think this is the reason so many people have trouble getting their new adoptees and their resident cats to accept each other). She made numerous long-distance calls at her own expense, and she always seemed to recognize exactly what I was describing in the relationship and knew precisely what would work. I will also say that I was a "good student." I followed her advice every step of the way, and the result is that I have two loving companions instead of the jealous reaction from Holly that I had always seen previously. Getting back to the ad on Petfinder.com...the notice looked so old (and the shelter only promised to keep animals for 14 days) that I really thought it was probably too late and that Duffy was gone. It was Megan who kept insisting that I give them a call. "You need to check," she said; "You can't just assume that he isn't there." Ironically, I did call and was told that he had already been adopted. "Check further," she said; "Send them an e-mail." So I sent an e-mail to the director of the shelter - and learned that Duffy was still there. I have no idea what the first person was talking about or how she could have been confused about a blind cat named Duffy, but he was still in a cage at the shelter! Kitten season was approaching, and space would soon be at a premium. I really believe they could not have kept him for much longer. He is such a sweet, loving cat that I simply cannot comprehend how someone else could have had him for two years and then returned him to a kill shelter (and especially not for they ridiculous reason she gave - she said he had learned to get to her birds and was teach her sighted cat to do the same thing). That cruel decision turned out to be my good fortune (and Duffy's and Holly's) because he now has a forever home with us and I have truly been blessed. MaryL Photos of Duffy: 'o' Duffy: http://tinyurl.com/cslwf Duffy and Holly together: http://tinyurl.com/8b47e Duffy and the Christmas tree: http://tinyurl.com/clal7 |
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Duffy's 4th annifursary (long)
MaryL wrote:
snip He is such a sweet, loving cat that I simply cannot comprehend how someone else could have had him for two years and then returned him to a kill shelter (and especially not for they ridiculous reason she gave - she said he had learned to get to her birds and was teach her sighted cat to do the same thing). That cruel decision turned out to be my good fortune (and Duffy's and Holly's) because he now has a forever home with us and I have truly been blessed. Congratulations to you both for your anniversary! It was the same thing wityh Frank - he'd been in a couple of homes before he came to me. He was such a sweetheart that I can't understand why anyone would have wanted to give him up, but it was their loss and my gain. I got to spend over 17 wonderful years with my Franky-Lanky. I hope you and Duffy (and Holly) have many, many happy years ahead of you. -- Marina, Miranda and Caliban. In loving memory of Frank and Nikki. |
#4
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Duffy's 4th annifursary (long)
MaryL wrote:
Tomorrow (Jan. 31) is the fourth anniversary of the day I adopted Duffy. It's hard to believe that four years have gone by, and he is a true treasure. He is the dearest, sweetest, most wonderful little guy I could ever imagine. Most of you already know that Duffy has been blind since birth, but he does almost everything that a sighted cat can do. He even has his own "fan club" among some of the readers of this newsgroup. Duffy gets around so well that I thought he might have a small amount of vision. If I move a chair, he will be sitting in it a few minutes later - there is no need to keep furniture in a fixed location for him. I arranged for an evaluation by an ophthalmologist at Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine because I wanted to see if there was some sight (and, if so, what I should do to preserve it). There I learned that Duffy is completely blind and that he has a condition known as "anterior cleavage syndrome." There should be space between the iris and the cornea. In Duffy's case, the two components are pressed together, and there is no space between them. This probably happened before birth and possibly was caused by infection in the mother. Happy anniversary, Duffy. -- Adrian (Owned by Snoopy & Bagheera) Cats leave pawprints on your heart http://community.webshots.com/user/clowderuk |
#5
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Duffy's 4th annifursary (long)
piggybacking here because for some reason I missed the OP
Congrats on the anniversary. -- Steve Touchstone, faithful servant of Sammy, Little Bit, Spot, Princess and Furby with loving memories of Rocky (RB) video clips at http://tinyurl.com/29o8ck photos at http://tinyurl.com/22pfn8 |
#6
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Duffy's 4th annifursary (long)
"MaryL" -OUT-THE-LITTER wrote in message . .. Tomorrow (Jan. 31) is the fourth anniversary of the day I adopted Duffy. It's hard to believe that four years have gone by, and he is a true treasure. He is the dearest, sweetest, most wonderful little guy I could ever imagine. Most of you already know that Duffy has been blind since birth, but he does almost everything that a sighted cat can do. He even has his own "fan club" among some of the readers of this newsgroup. Duffy gets around so well that I thought he might have a small amount of vision. If I move a chair, he will be sitting in it a few minutes later - there is no need to keep furniture in a fixed location for him. I arranged for an evaluation by an ophthalmologist at Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine because I wanted to see if there was some sight (and, if so, what I should do to preserve it). There I learned that Duffy is completely blind and that he has a condition known as "anterior cleavage syndrome." There should be space between the iris and the cornea. In Duffy's case, the two components are pressed together, and there is no space between them. This probably happened before birth and possibly was caused by infection in the mother. I want to thank Megan because she is the one who made all this possible. I was trying to help a friend find a cat to adopt. I had been communicating with Megan about another matter and told her about it. She suggested that we look at Petfinder.com. We did, and there was a picture of Duffy. He looked like a sad little waif in the picture the shelter had posted. In fact, I thought he was a very old cat from his picture, but he was actually estimated to be 3-5 years old at the time. It was heartrending when I saw that Duffy was blind, had been returned by someone else after two years (and this was a *kill* shelter), and had been in the shelter for several months. My friend simply wasn't interested in a blind cat and would not even consider adopting, and I was really fearful of adopting another cat because Holly had a history of aggressively attacking any other cat in my presence. We even called her "the black tornado" because of the way she would hurl herself at other cats. She was my dear little shadow and followed me everywhere, but she would not tolerate having another cat around. Megan kept prodding me to adopt, or even to foster for awhile. She told me that she would help me throughout the process and was positive that we *could* get Holly and Duffy to adjust to each other. Well, she kept that promise. She walked me through every step of the slow, careful introduction. Every time I would think about speeding things up, she would remind me to be patient and take it slow and easy (excellent advice for anyone adopting a cat because I think this is the reason so many people have trouble getting their new adoptees and their resident cats to accept each other). She made numerous long-distance calls at her own expense, and she always seemed to recognize exactly what I was describing in the relationship and knew precisely what would work. I will also say that I was a "good student." I followed her advice every step of the way, and the result is that I have two loving companions instead of the jealous reaction from Holly that I had always seen previously. Getting back to the ad on Petfinder.com...the notice looked so old (and the shelter only promised to keep animals for 14 days) that I really thought it was probably too late and that Duffy was gone. It was Megan who kept insisting that I give them a call. "You need to check," she said; "You can't just assume that he isn't there." Ironically, I did call and was told that he had already been adopted. "Check further," she said; "Send them an e-mail." So I sent an e-mail to the director of the shelter - and learned that Duffy was still there. I have no idea what the first person was talking about or how she could have been confused about a blind cat named Duffy, but he was still in a cage at the shelter! Kitten season was approaching, and space would soon be at a premium. I really believe they could not have kept him for much longer. He is such a sweet, loving cat that I simply cannot comprehend how someone else could have had him for two years and then returned him to a kill shelter (and especially not for they ridiculous reason she gave - she said he had learned to get to her birds and was teach her sighted cat to do the same thing). That cruel decision turned out to be my good fortune (and Duffy's and Holly's) because he now has a forever home with us and I have truly been blessed. MaryL We are in awe of Duffy, and of you, too! |
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Duffy's 4th annifursary (long)
you know I often wonder what was with Chester in his before life... he is a
perfect cat among cats, and was at the pound, and then at the shelter for several months, I can only figure that bast intended him for our house and am grateful so I know how you feel, Lee MaryL -OUT-THE-LITTER wrote in message . .. Tomorrow (Jan. 31) is the fourth anniversary of the day I adopted Duffy. It's hard to believe that four years have gone by, and he is a true treasure. He is the dearest, sweetest, most wonderful little guy I could ever imagine. Most of you already know that Duffy has been blind since birth, but he does almost everything that a sighted cat can do. He even has his own "fan club" among some of the readers of this newsgroup. Duffy gets around so well that I thought he might have a small amount of vision. If I move a chair, he will be sitting in it a few minutes later - there is no need to keep furniture in a fixed location for him. I arranged for an evaluation by an ophthalmologist at Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine because I wanted to see if there was some sight (and, if so, what I should do to preserve it). There I learned that Duffy is completely blind and that he has a condition known as "anterior cleavage syndrome." There should be space between the iris and the cornea. In Duffy's case, the two components are pressed together, and there is no space between them. This probably happened before birth and possibly was caused by infection in the mother. I want to thank Megan because she is the one who made all this possible. I was trying to help a friend find a cat to adopt. I had been communicating with Megan about another matter and told her about it. She suggested that we look at Petfinder.com. We did, and there was a picture of Duffy. He looked like a sad little waif in the picture the shelter had posted. In fact, I thought he was a very old cat from his picture, but he was actually estimated to be 3-5 years old at the time. It was heartrending when I saw that Duffy was blind, had been returned by someone else after two years (and this was a *kill* shelter), and had been in the shelter for several months. My friend simply wasn't interested in a blind cat and would not even consider adopting, and I was really fearful of adopting another cat because Holly had a history of aggressively attacking any other cat in my presence. We even called her "the black tornado" because of the way she would hurl herself at other cats. She was my dear little shadow and followed me everywhere, but she would not tolerate having another cat around. Megan kept prodding me to adopt, or even to foster for awhile. She told me that she would help me throughout the process and was positive that we *could* get Holly and Duffy to adjust to each other. Well, she kept that promise. She walked me through every step of the slow, careful introduction. Every time I would think about speeding things up, she would remind me to be patient and take it slow and easy (excellent advice for anyone adopting a cat because I think this is the reason so many people have trouble getting their new adoptees and their resident cats to accept each other). She made numerous long-distance calls at her own expense, and she always seemed to recognize exactly what I was describing in the relationship and knew precisely what would work. I will also say that I was a "good student." I followed her advice every step of the way, and the result is that I have two loving companions instead of the jealous reaction from Holly that I had always seen previously. Getting back to the ad on Petfinder.com...the notice looked so old (and the shelter only promised to keep animals for 14 days) that I really thought it was probably too late and that Duffy was gone. It was Megan who kept insisting that I give them a call. "You need to check," she said; "You can't just assume that he isn't there." Ironically, I did call and was told that he had already been adopted. "Check further," she said; "Send them an e-mail." So I sent an e-mail to the director of the shelter - and learned that Duffy was still there. I have no idea what the first person was talking about or how she could have been confused about a blind cat named Duffy, but he was still in a cage at the shelter! Kitten season was approaching, and space would soon be at a premium. I really believe they could not have kept him for much longer. He is such a sweet, loving cat that I simply cannot comprehend how someone else could have had him for two years and then returned him to a kill shelter (and especially not for they ridiculous reason she gave - she said he had learned to get to her birds and was teach her sighted cat to do the same thing). That cruel decision turned out to be my good fortune (and Duffy's and Holly's) because he now has a forever home with us and I have truly been blessed. MaryL Photos of Duffy: 'o' Duffy: http://tinyurl.com/cslwf Duffy and Holly together: http://tinyurl.com/8b47e Duffy and the Christmas tree: http://tinyurl.com/clal7 |
#8
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Duffy's 4th annifursary (long)
MaryL wrote:
Tomorrow (Jan. 31) is the fourth anniversary of the day I adopted Duffy. It's hard to believe that four years have gone by, and he is a true treasure. He is the dearest, sweetest, most wonderful little guy I could ever imagine. Most of you already know that Duffy has been blind since birth, but he does almost everything that a sighted cat can do. He even has his own "fan club" among some of the readers of this newsgroup. I am definitely a Duffy fan, Mary, and it was a great thing you did to adopt him. I wish more people would give disabled cats a chance. I can see that Kitty Farmcat's eyes are starting to cloud over just in the last few weeks - and why wouldn't they since she is over 20 years old? I am sure she will manage as she knows the house very well and where her litterboxes are (one downstairs and one up.) I pick her up to put her in another room to get her food now. Boyfie is greedy and scarfs his up in no time and will knock her off hers given the chance. She seems that she would like to eat alongside him like she has always done, so it does take ages while she leaves her food to beg to go back into the kitchen to him and I say no, and then she eats some more. She gets far more "posh" food than Boyfie does, so he is always desperate to get to it ;-) ATM she is eating quite well, much better than she was a few weeks ago. (I hardly dare to say it..) She just loves the lactose-free milk I added a tablespoon of cream to. She has never been able to meow, I don't know why. When I open the fridge she says a very quiet "wah" that means gimme or look at me for instructions ;-) Tweed |
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Duffy's 4th annifursary (long)
I can see that Kitty Farmcat's eyes are starting to cloud over just in the last few weeks - and why wouldn't they since she is over 20 years old? I am sure she will manage as she knows the house very well and where her litterboxes are (one downstairs and one up.)///// I was telling my TED about KFC when HEFL and I went to see him on Monday. He laughted and said he wasn't suprised when I told him that KFC was a tiny ex-feral who knew her own mind! ;o) He said the feisty ones always survive the longest with care and love. ) Helen M |
#10
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Duffy's 4th annifursary (long)
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