Mum suggested today that, since I am just getting started, maybe I could use one of her articles as a starting point. That seems like a plan. So this blog post may be lengthy – it’s a true story, with a message. She’s going to do the work of course. I am busy carting around a huge paper ball in my mouth.
So here goes.
Not Too Late – Not Too Far
The telephone ringing interrupted the conversation I was having with a prospective volunteer. She wanted to volunteer at the Mae Bachur Animal Shelter to help assuage the loss of her beloved cat, who had gone missing during a move from Watson Lake to Whitehorse, the middle of that winter. The cat would have been on its own for several weeks by this time.
“Have you checked at Whitehorse By-Law? – OK, what type of cat? – Long or short hair? – Colour? Male or female? – Was it wearing a collar? – And it’s missing from where?” “OK, this will go on the pet report and will be in the papers tomorrow and on the radio. If you find your cat, please let us know and we’ll get it off the report. Good luck.”
These calls are all too frequent and sad. The percentage of recovered missing pets is very small and the numbers nationally, are even worse. The Pet Report was one of the first community services provided by Humane Society Yukon and continues to this day. And it does sometimes re-unite pets with owners.
My prospective volunteer was listening with interest. “Could I do that?” she asked. “Even after all this time?”
“Can’t think why not! Who knows? Give me your info and we’ll see.”
She gave me very detailed information on her cat who had disappeared just before she was due to start a new job in Whitehorse. Her cat had some distinctive features, including very exaggerated tufted ears that were noted on the Pet Report. It is always a sickening experience to have to leave a pet behind, and worse if the pet is lost. Animals have a sense when change is imminent and they don’t like change any more than we human animals do. They will often disappear at times like this. It’s good to be aware of this and take precautions.
The Pet Report was sent off about six o’clock that evening and was published the next day in both local papers. Two days after that, the volunteer came in to the shelter with tears in her eyes to let me know that she’d had a call from Watson Lake from a man who said that only the day before he had found a cat of that description – those ears – under his porch and skinny, but alive and glad to have been found. She was re-united with her cat soon after.
The moral is – make no assumptions; do everything you can think of to let as many people as possible know, that you are looking for a particular animal. Give as much detail as you can, regarding appearance and distinguishing marks or features. And don’t think it’s too late ever. For this lady and her cat, it was not too late – or too far.
Copyright – Barb Harris 2005
Andythecat 