Saturday, December 04, 2010

Long distance adoptions



So I got two inquiries on Longfellow this week. One didn't respond after I sent back the application. This  usually means the person has found another cat, or is looking for an indoor-outdoor cat, or is thinking about declawing (which we don't permit). The other line of inquiry continued---from New York City, near Central Park.

It's always interesting when I get emails asking about cats. I always expect the folks to be right next door---people from Owego or Spencer, wanting to adopt a cat. Often, after I reply, it will come to light that the person is 4-6 hours away.

Most are at least 40 minutes to an hour away.

There are Wildrun cats in Germany, France, California, and Florida, but I didn't adopt them to those states. They were adopted close by, and their adopters moved to those remote locations. I have adopted directly to PA, NJ, NYC, and Maryland.

As a control freak, I have natural concerns about long distance adoptions. What if it doesn't work out? What if the people turn out to not be as they seem? What if they were to lose the cat--so far away, how could I look for her or him?

This was Longfellow we were talking about. Longfellow who has been curling up in my elbow for over a year now. Patting my face, purring at my back in my bed, making me laugh with his graceful bounding around the house. I was just looking at Wiggles and Longfellow this week, wondering...are they here for good? Are they another Squeak and Nell--kittens that never left?

Wiggles had visitors this summer, but they ended up adopting a kitten. When they came and Wiggles began lobbying, I realized she would be much happier in a home where she receive the attention a pet cat ought to. Personally, I don't believe a cat ought to have to compete with five other cats for attention. One to four cats is optimal. After that, the love gets hard to spread around.

So after a moment of angst when I saw Longfellow's name in the subject line of two messages, I thought "Yes, he deserves his own home."

So both Longfellow (and Wiggles) are off to the vet next week. They are due to their vaccinations today, actually, and then they'll be good for three years.

And we'll see how it goes with the New York City possibility, for Longfellow.

3 comments:

Northmoon said...

Best wishes for both of them.

Sharyn Ekbergh said...

Harper and Ramona are "thousand milers". I saw HBoy on the net and it was love at first sight. Then saw Ramona, his sister, and didn't want the boy to be lonely. They were at Paradise Gardens in NY and we did the drive in one day to bring them home.
We say they're worth every mile. So you never know. They are five years old in Feb, adored and spoiled rotten. Yes, it was a crazy thing to do but why not.

Susan Greene said...

Zuleme, where have you been? I've been worried about you/missed you since you stopped blogging. Are you blogging somewhere else, or did it just become just too much with so many other things that are vital? We should go visit Paradise Gardens together sometimes and take them boxes of presents.Seriously. They are such good people and I love their cat enclosure for their ferals.