Outside of Social Tees today, I ran into Lulu, the dog pictured above, who was recently adopted from Social Tees http://socialtees.com. She was being walked by her former foster mom, and she looks great - she's about twice as big as she was when she arrived at Social Tees. It was great to see her, she jumped into my arms and gave me a kiss!
There's a full house at Social Tees, a few dogs and many cats, in every color, size and shape, all up for adoption. There have been a lot of adoptions lately, and some new animals coming in to fill their spots. Among other animals, the grey cat who always liked to sit on the refridgerator was adopted. I wish her well in her new home! Also adopted were two little black kittens who were very bonded and went to a friend of a friend of mine who was specifically seeking two black kittens. A perfect match!
The dear cat pictured below has been a little shy with me, but I found that a treat changed her attitude. I had brought in some extra-yummy canned food to tempt a cat who has not had much of an appetite, and I had some left over so I gave it to this little cat. She was very appreciative, and let me more readily do TTouch on her after the food, and then has been more friendly with me the days I have been there since. I do gentle TTouch first on her head and ears, then very soft abalone touches, chimp touches or Noah's march with the back of my hand on her body. She is very delicate in size and very sensitive, in addition to being shy, so I use light pressure. Doesn't she have a pretty face?
The gorgeous cat below was brought to us recently in a carrier, and she was terrified, so before we transferred her to a cage, I did very gentle TTouch on her head with a feather, which calmed her down a great deal. She got scared again when we transferred her, but has quickly become very friendly. The first time I went back to do TTouch on her in her cage, I opened the cage and softly called to her. She came shyly forward and bumped her head against my hand. I began to do a little TTouch on her head, giving frequent breaks, letting her come back to me for more. That way we quickly built up trust, and I was soon able to do some Noah's march w/the back of my hand, some hair slides on her nice long fur and some connected chimp touches down her body. She has a very dear personality and seems SO wanting to go home with a nice person soon.
Below is my pal who I have been working on for a while who is missing part of one of his hind legs. He doesn't have a name yet, so for the time being, I'm going to call him Joey. I connected with him right away and whenever he sees me, he calls to me for TTouch. He is quite sensitive on his lower back, probably because it is hard for him to walk without his hind foot, but I have been able to do some TTouch on there in increasing amounts as I work with him. The past couple of times I used a jelly scrubber to brush him and to do some TTouches on him. He had a couple of small mats in his fur in his lower back area which I was able to untangle w/the jelly scrubber, plus it was a great way to brush him gently in that sensitive area. He responded very well to it, and lately when he sits up, I have noticed that he sits very evenly on both legs, it is very cute because he sits up so straight and tall. But of course, in addition to being cute, it is lovely to see him in a more balanced position. I believe the TTouch is giving him better awareness of his lower back and hindquarter area.
The little cat below is quite a character, as you can see. I have to be slow and easy with this cat, as it can easily get over-stimulated and start to swat, though it appears to crave the contact so much. I have been doing some TTouch on him using a paintbrush, some with a feather, and a bit of touch with my hand, which I mostly do on his head using the back of my hand. When I feel him getting revved up and about to swat, I stop and give him a break, and either wait a bit before going back to him or work on another cat for a while then come back to him. As you can see, this cat has a lot of personality and is very appealing, it just feels like he needs to figure out how his energy level can come down so he can receive the touch that he seems to crave.
Below is my darling little kitten friend - as my friend Este, who volunteers in Social Tees as well (and took this picture after I had done TTouch on this kitten), says, she always looks like she's sunbathing. She loves to lie on her side or on her back all stretched out when she takes her naps. She was shy when I first started to work on her, and is still a little shy but much more receptive to touch. She is very tiny, so I do gentle raccoon touches on her head, gentle ear strokes, and then very slow abalone touches on her body.
The big boy below just arrived last time I was there, and was such a good sport. Right after having the stress of being transported in a carrier, then put into the cage, he was still very friendly. I didn't want to overwhelm him, so I just spoke to him very softly, reassuring him that he was going to be all right and I stroked his ears and did some raccoon touches on his head. I look forward to seeing him again soon. He looks like he could be the brother to the other handsome orange and white boy there.
Last but far from least, I would like to speak about the little kitten below.
Sometimes you meet a kitten who seems wise beyond his years and seems to be so thoughtful, which is the case with this little guy below. I have been calling him "Grandpa kitten" because he is so dear and so wise. He was very shy when he first came in, but he was one of those delightful cases where I did some very gentle quiet work with him one time and ever since that, he has gone from flinching away from people to coming to the front of the cage and seeking contact. I started with some gentle touches on his head with the back of my finger, some gentle strokes on his head and Noah's march down the sides of his body, and gradually worked in some chimp touches on his body, etc. During this first session, as I worked, he started coming more and more to the front of the cage to receive more touch, and now he seems to recognize me when I come in and to seek out more contact. He has been appearing in my dreams, as have a lot of these other creatures. I wish them all well.
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