500 Days in the Shelter- Our Cat Room’s Longest Resident Needs a Savior!
When gorgeous, outgoing Starlet arrived at the shelter sixteen months ago, none of us could ever have guessed that she’d be the one nobody wanted.
She’s amazing. She jumps right up to greet people, loves to play, and is interested in checking everything out. She’s quiet and undemanding. She’s a wonderful, wonderful cat. But Starlet is extremely unhappy in a shelter environment. She is not a fan of other cats. Dogs are fine- she doesn’t react to them at all, really. But other cats… nope. Starlet spends all day every day in a state of sensory overload. There’s SO much going on at the shelter all the time. And, even though she has her own safe apartment, she’s surrounded by dozens of other cats all the time. And also, spending so much time in her apartment is stressful on its own! She doesn’t get that quiet, safe human companionship that comes with just living with someone. Imagine being that lonely and that overwhelmed at the same time. As a result, Starlet doesn’t show well. None of us would be at our best after being stressed to our limit for more than a year straight, right? She enjoys attention, but then becomes overstimulated and lashes out. She is on high alert all the time. It must be exhausting. And the longer she stays, the worse it gets. And the worse it gets, the less likely it is that anyone will see past the effects of shelter stress and give her a chance.
Even just a temporary foster situation for a month or so would be enormously helpful to Starlet. It would allow us to show and tell potential adopters what she’s really like outside of the shelter environment. It would allow her to take a mental and physical break and give her a chance to exhale for the first time in sixteen months. And once someone sees how great she really is, maybe it could turn into an adoption.
Starlet needs a home with no other cats and, at this point, no tiny kids (although that may be different after she spends some time away from here). She’s gregarious and adaptable, gorgeous, young (only two and a half years old) and a lot of fun to be around. She just needs the chance to show it.
If you don’t have the right setup for Starlet, but still want to help, please help us spread the word! Starlet needs us. Starlet is two years old and spayed, up to date on shots, and fully vetted. If you’re interested in fostering her, please e-mail Amanda at cats@odas.org. To fill out an application for adoption, please go to odas.org/feline or just come in and meet her.
