Rosa Gets Adopted!

I am happy to report that Rosa just got adopted!


And before she got adopted, I was happy that I was able to work with her enough so that she was comfortable with me doing TTouch on her, and I also worked up to picking her up and putting her on my lap. I did this by following suggestions which I saw on a DVD set I have been watching recently, Feline Feral to Feline Friendly, by Dr. Rosalez-Ruiz and Angela Rentfro, which is a great seminar and very interesting approach to helping fearful and feral cats. Further along in the dvd, they acclimate the cat to being picked up by chunking the motion down -- starting out with just putting your hands on either side of the middle of the body, then gently lifting slightly off the ground, etc, then working up to lifting off the ground. This worked quite well with Rosa. I wanted to do this gradually because she can easily be startled and frightened by sudden motions. I was surprised at how quickly I was able to work up to this, and once I got her in my lap, she settled right in, as though this was something she was very comfortable with. I did TTouch on her in my lap, and she was very relaxed.


Then I got to the next question -- I wasn't sure how she preferred to get down or be let down from my lap. I was sitting on a stepladder with my feet on the ground, so was not far from the ground. I gradually bent my knees so that they were approaching the floor, and she actually hopped right off :)

So on to talking about her adopter. He is a very kind young man who has had Chihuahuas before, and when I showed him how to best introduce himself to and approach Rosa, he totally understood, and she seemed to take to him right away. Even in the midst of a very hectic day at the shelter, I could feel that he had a very calm energy with her. Unfortunately, we discovered when we put a leash on her that she was very sensitive about the contact with her neck area (she probably had an owner previously who pulled and dragged her around, who knows?), so I suggested that when it seemed comfortable and appropriate to try a harness, that would be a good idea. I know he will take good care of her and I wish them well!!