The Granny Cat Flat

If there’s one thing that’s constant at Paradise Ranch, it is change.  The cats are loving their new outside digs.  The new cat-trium is so spacious, and the cats really seem to enjoy having more room to play, bask in the sun, and run! The day after the cat-trium was completed, I began a new project finishing a Granny Cat Flat for my oldest rescue, Miss Jinxy.  Miss Jinxy is very advanced in her years and quite overweight.  However, one should never underestimate an athlete, no matter how much they weigh.  Miss Jinxy reminds me of a Broadway Musical character I marveled at many years ago.  He was extremely overweight, and totally surprised me by dancing throughout the play with great ease, abundant energy, and a lightness to his step. He seemed to defy gravity!  Well, Miss Jinxy is quite the same. She is so hefty it appears she would have difficulty walking, but Miss Jinxy’s agility defies all logic.

I tried my best to socialize Miss Jinxy with the other cats when I rescued her.  I tried countless combinations of cats and locations around my home in the hopes of finding a suitable companion for her.  Miss Jinxy loved human contact, but she wanted nothing to do with any of my ten other felines.  My teenage cats retaliated against her aloofness by taunting and teasing her, so I was forced to move Miss Jinxy out of the main cat area.  I brought her up to my bedroom to join an older kitty who has resided there for many years. Miss Jinxy proceeded to do what the teenage cats had done to her, she aggressively teased and taunted my cat Zoe.  A few nights when I went upstairs to bed, I found Zoe’s potty accidents awaiting me.  Given these accidents were just a few feet from her litter box, it was clear to me that Zoe was unhappy.  Almost as unhappy as I was cleaning up smelly kitty messes before retiring at the end of the day!

So I have now come to the conclusion that Miss Jinxy must have her own space.  Two rooms with a view! Given she is older and overweight, if put into a public shelter, she would be euthanized in a heartbeat, clearly not an option I would consider. Which brings me to a very important point...

California Governor Jerry Brown has proposed a repeal of Hayden’s Law, an action that would endanger the lives of all animals entering California’s pounds and shelters. Since its introduction in 1998, Hayden’s Law has successfully raised humane standards in California’s pounds and shelters and worked to reduce the number of animals killed. Repealing this law would undo progressive legislation and return California’s animal shelters to killing tens of thousands more animals each year. Three days in the shelters and they would be euthanized. Repealing this law would mean pounds and shelters would not be required to provide prompt and necessary veterinary care. It would mean they would not be required to hold animals for an extended period to increase their chances of adoption, being returned to their owners, or being transferred to a rescue group. It would mean that the minimal reporting that keeps Californians informed of what’s going on in their shelters would be lost.

Please contact Governor Jerry Brown today to tell him that you oppose the proposed repeal of Hayden’s Law.  It is so very important that we take action now.  Please watch this You Tube.

I am so grateful that I can play my small part in helping to rescue cats and dogs. And to be able to give my young cats a new playground and Miss Jinxy a comfortable new place of her own. She is indeed the queen of her own granny cat flat, complete with carpeting, comfortable beds and couches, and playthings. Sometimes it pays to be a granny!

 God Bless All Living things and please sign the petition to prevent this from happening.