Rowena
Imagine you’re homeless and pregnant, trying to find shelter in the middle of a Maine winter. You find
food where you can, and you sleep fitfully each night – cold, hungry and wondering if you’re safe. You
don’t trust anyone. One day in the middle of March, you’re caught and brought to a new place. There
are people there, and a lot of cats, and a lot of strange smells. But it’s warm and you get regular meals.
The people are nice but you still don’t trust them. You’d hide if you could but there’s nowhere to hide.
The people feel your belly and you don’t know what’s going to happen. One day they put you in a plastic
cage and a nice lady takes you to her house. She takes you inside and gives you a room of your own with lots of places to hide and comfy places to lie down. You can tell other cats have been there before. A few days later, your baby is born. Just one perfect little kitty. You get to nurse her and cuddle with her
and be a mom, and the nice lady makes sure everything is okay. You get to play with your kitten; you haven’t played in a very long time. Slowly you start to trust the lady a little bit, then a little bit more. But
the nice lady has to take in other mama kitties and help them like she helped you. It’s what she does. So
it’s time for you and your kitten to go back to the place with the cages.
Your kitten gets bigger and it’s time for her to start her own life. She gets to go live with a family who loves her. People come in from outside and look at all the cats in the cages. They all walk right past you.
You’re still scared and would still like to hide, but sometimes you feel a little braver. And then it happens
more often, you’re feeling braver and better more and more. And you start to trust the people, and it feels good when they pet you. And you’re feeling healthy and strong now, and you think about how good it was in your foster home and how you’d like to have a home again. And you feel so much more relaxed, and you start going to the front of your cage to get attention. But the people who come in from outside still don’t look at you. They look at the kitties that are different colors, or younger, or fluffier, or flashier. You wish they’d take the time to get to know you. You are a kitty with a story to tell, and love to give. Your name is Rowena and you deserve a home of your own and someone who loves you. Rowena has been with us since the beginning of March. She has been through a lot and has come a long way, and she’s only about a year and a half old! She has become so much more trusting and friendly and we know she will fully blossom in a loving home. We think she would do fine with another cat, or by herself.
Do you have room in your heart for Rowena? You can visit her during our open hours (Fri/Sat/Sun 12-4 p.m., or by appointment on other days. Fill out our adoption application at www.responsiblepetcare.org/cats for more information.
Responsible Pet Care of Oxford Hills is a no-kill, non-profit shelter and adoption center for cats and dogs, and the holding area for stray dogs for 12 towns in Oxford County. The shelter is located at 9 Swallow Road in Paris. For answers to questions about adopting or fostering a pet, or to make an inquiry about a lost animal, call RPC after noon at 743-8679.
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