Crazy cat lady chronicles
We’ve all heard of them, the crazy lady down the street with a seemingly endless surplus of cats.
Some of these instances could be an animal hoarding situation. Such cases, when not handled carefully, can quickly become a detriment for both the cats and the human counterparts involved, making life in a home virtually uninhabitable.
Not all people who keep and care for a large number of cats are actually animal hoarders. Some, myself included, are involved in animal rescue and fostering. The expression ‘crazy cat lady’ is often times used as a blanket term for anyone who fancies felines, regardless of whether the situation is truly one of animal hoarding, or whether it is one of animal helping.
Therefore, I am indeed considered, among all who know me, a crazy cat lady. How the animals are kept and cared for is the distinguishing point that discerns animal hoarding from a rescue situation. For a person like myself who is involved in animal rescue, all of the animals I take in and foster are first sterilized and fully vetted. Likewise, those who meet the proper health and attitudinal requirements are then placed in an adoption program through the non-profit group where I volunteer.
It is important to understand that animal hoarders suffer from unresolved deep-seated psychological issues, which have largely contributed to the culmination of such a state. Hoarding often occurs when a person has undergone a significant loss or has experienced great trauma.
Furthermore, those who hoard animals usually neither start out with the intention of such an injurious outcome nor do they, in turn, possess the necessary faculties to control and maintain the situation. Therefore most animal hoarding circumstances require professional intervention, which typically combines a team of people including a trained psychologist, who work together to control and amend the situation.
I am not sure what sort of psychological make-up defines an animal rescuer, but for as long as I can remember, I havealways had a fondness for animals and strangely have always seemed to possess an uncanny ability to connect with cats. Perhaps that can be attributed to my first pet, a fluffy black cat named Cinder.
At five-years-old, I was initially like ‘Elmira’ from the “Tiny Toon Adventures” cartoon of the ‘90s – I loved to squish and hug him and make him do all those fun things he didn’t want to do, like ride in strollers and wear doll clothing.
I can remember the moment when I realized I had to be careful and gentle with the cat that I loved because he was, as all sentient beings are, a living creature capable of feeling a wide range of emotions, including pain.
I had forcibly placed Cinder into a blanket, as I often did, and wrapped up the edges so I could spin him around. It was my version of a kitty coaster ride, and I just knew he loved it even though he acted as if he didn’t.
On the last occasion of ever playing kitty coaster with Cinder, I was swinging him around at a good pace, when it happened. One of the edges of the blanket slipped out of my grip, and there Cinder went flying into the wall of our basement living room.
I learned from this incident an important lesson that would carry on with me into adulthood, to keep the animals to meet their needs, rather than just keeping them to meet my own.
Now, more than two decades later, along with being a mother, wife, and full-time student, I keep and care for a large amount of cats in my home. The total number is always changing due to adoptions of fosters, but let’s just say the total amount of cats I have currently is over 10, which is considered excessive and deemed “illegal” most everywhere, including the city in which I reside.
It’s not a lifestyle for everyone. In fact being immersed in the world of animal rescue can often times be more painful than it is rewarding. A lot of obligation and commitment is involved and like most multi-tasking moms, I must be careful to balance the many different roles I play in my life.
It never gets less emotional when a foster of mine gets adopted either. When you’ve given your love and connected with an animal, you get attached. And since I’m already a pretty emotional person, I’m always fighting back the tears when I hand them off to their new family.
I never intended to become a crazy cat lady and, in fact, at times I wish I wasn’t, but it’s not something I can get away from either. Cats are just a part of my life.
What a sweet article to read, Leah! Keep up the great work with the rescues. I have a friend who is involved with dog rescues as well and I can see the passion you have for animals in this article. I like to volunteer at animal shelters too, where do you go? I go to League City’s animal shelter.