I once described my dream cat as a long-haired, black cat with thumbs. Thumbs? Yes, thumbs. These cats are polydactyl or more commonly known as Hemingway cats because Ernest Hemingway had a bunch of them.
Well, that dream cat ended up at Camp Kitty at the end of September. Stella started out as a boarder at the camp. Her human got a job up in New York and was unable to take her so his plan was to board her while he tried to find a new home for her via Craigslist. (If you ever need to rehome your pet please be very cautious of Craigslist especially if you plan on giving away your pet. Craigslist is notorious for shady dealings. People will take free pets and then sell them to laboratories for research.) Of course, this made me cringe not only because of the fact that she may be sold for research purposes, but also it was the month of October and I didn’t want anyone to harm the black cat before Halloween.
Weeks went by and poor Stella was absolutely terrified. At first, she was frozen in fear as I petted her. Then, she started hissing and swatting as I fed her and cleaned out her litterbox. You have to understand that Stella spent 10 years of her life, ever since she was a kitten, with one human. She lived with one other cat briefly. Her life was turned upside down. She lost her human and her home, and was now living in a place with a stranger and multiple cats. My heart broke for her and I totally understood why she was lashing out.
Over time and with some play therapy she began to trust me. We are at the point where she greets me in the morning and she lets me give her kisses on the forehead.
While Stella was getting used to me and her new home I debated whether or not to make her an AARF cat. I didn’t want her human to get off the hook so easily. He really f*cked up her emotions and mental state. Frankly, he really pissed me off. I couldn’t punish the cat because I disliked the human.
Sweet, adorable Stella is now an official AARF cat. She likes to play fetch and bat around feathers. She loves to eat table scraps. Her favorites include cheese, salami, and pork tenderloin. Yesterday, I had leftover grilled shrimp for lunch. After I was done eating I set the plate next to me. Stella jumped up and started eating the shrimp shell! Oddly enough, she doesn’t like grilled salmon.
Stella doesn’t really care for the other cats. She tolerates them, but will swat at them when they annoy her. She’ll have to go to a home where she can have a human all to herself.
You’re probably asking yourself “Gwen, if Stella is your dream cat why don’t you adopt her?” I wish I could, but there is one huge obstacle and her name is Birdie, my 5-year-old cat. If wasn’t certain she and Stella would murder each other I would definitely beg my husband to keep Stella. But, Stella and Birdie are both equally sassy. Sassy + sassy = TROUBLE. Instead, I will care for Stella until a forever home that will love and cherish her comes along.





Stella is not yet on the AARF website because I’ve been pretty slack in emailing her pictures and profile over to the AARF web goddess. If you are interested in meeting her, please pop by the camp.
Also, please don’t get any ideas on abandoning your cat at Camp Kitty. I know my regular blog readers would never abandon their feline family members. I’m talking to those who have stumbled onto this blog or who have googled “best places to abandon loving cat.” Not cool.