Sunday, August 30, 2009

Rick James

We have been lucky to get to know a wonderful range of kitty personalities. Some of the kitties we have fostered have been very girly girls. Katie and Trixie were girly girls, all dainty and cute. Others, such as Stella and Sally have been very laidback and just liked to hang out. There were also the pretty boys- the floofy Oscar boys come to mind. They were most concerned with posing and keeping their furs neat and tidy. Or the clever kitties, Evie being the prime example.

Then you have this little boy. Rick James. The best way to describe him is as a real man's cat. He was rough, tough and ready to rumble! I had a ball with him! When he first came to our house, he wasn't too happy. He was an only kitten (we have only ever had a single foster at a time four times, and those four times were all in a row!). He didn't get a wonderful start. The 'people' who owned his mumcat had kept him in a box most of the time. They tried to sell him through the paper, but weren't able to. When they dropped him off at the shelter, they said if they couldn't leave him there, they would get rid of him themselves. It horrifies us to think people like that are walking the streets. As a result, he wasn't very well socialised, and wasn't the healthiest of kittens.
For us, Rick was a lesson in the resilience of kittens. For the first day he was with us, he stayed on a blanket on the couch and barely moved a muscle. With the dawning of the next day, however, he seemed to realise that he had a new life now. And my how he decided to embrace it! He would have to be one of the most joyful, enthusiastic kittens that we knew.
Rick and my dad became great mates. Rick liked to shadow him around and try and be involved in whatever dad was up to. If dad had let him go to work with him, Rick would have been thrilled! He even wanted to help dad with the ironing!!!This is when Rick crawled into the pocket on dad's jumper. Yep. They were buddies those two.
After he learned to relax and eat well, Rick got a lot healthier. He was stronger and more energetic, and his coat took on a new shine and softness.
One of the best things was the chance to show Rick how to play, and have fun! We used to have such fun wrasslin'. He liked playing rough, which was fine with me! We had a great time together, and he always came back for more. He was always really gentle with people though, which was cool. This video shows us having a great rumble. The quality of the video is not great, but it shows what a tough little nut he is:)

Rick went to a great Forever Home:) Have a happy week!

13 comments:

Kate (Pablo's mum) said...

Rick James... he's suprefreaky! Thanks for turning his life around.

Anonymous said...

What an awesome video! That little Rick James was a spitfire!

Mom says the movie of Rick James and FuiFui playing reminds her of when she first got Gandalf and Grayson. Gandalf was only 3 weeks old and Grayson was a year old. When Mom finally took Gandalf away from sleeping with his litter mates at 8 weeks and put him in full-time with Grayson that is exactly how they played! Except Grayson like to bunnykick... a bunch!

Huffle Mawson said...

He was a gorgeous little boy! I'm glad he found a good home.

The Island Cats said...

We're happy you all taught Rick James that life could be good! And we are so happy to see that he flourished! And went to a great furever home!!!

Unknown said...

It's beans like yer mom and dad dat make the world better! We wish dere was more of them around. Rick was certainly a fighter and won in the end.

Cory said...

Fui, what a good boy to teach little Rick James how to play. What a champion player he was!!! Love to see a kitten flinging himself through the air!

Forever Dad said...

Tricky Ricky!

Great video hon. It's nice to have documentary evidence that Fui's not just part of the couch.

See you soon.

xxx

Ariel said...

Awww I love the video.Rick is an adorable tough guy :)

Angel, Kirby and Max said...

It is so fun to watch a kitten playing and attaching a bigger full grown cat! They really had fun together!

borisandgracie said...

Momma says Rick's story reminds her of what it was like when Gracie was a little kitty. Gracie had a total crush on dad as a kitten. Wherever dad was was where Gracie wanted to be. When she was tiny, Gracie would try to crawl into daddy's shoes that he wasn't wearing for the day and sleep in there while she was waiting for him to come home. She couldn't fit, so she'd decide to sleep on top of them.

I loved that I got my momma all to myself, but momma was jealous of dad a little bit. Anyway, kudos and cat rubs to your dad for being patient and loving with little Rick James (yes, I can just tell from the picture where he let Rick help with the ironing), I'm sure it meant the world to the little one. :)

- Boris

Tama-Chan, Benny, Vidock, Violette, Ollie, Heloise, Momo, Ryu said...

Yet another little guy who got a proper chance in life thanks to your dedication and caring!

Amy & the house of cats said...

That is so great that Rick had a good life thanks to you. Reading about those awful people made me very mad but reading about how you helped Rick made me happy that there are great people out there who care about animals.

Angel MoMo and Charlotte said...

Rick was such a fun and adorable kitty. Thanks for introducing him to a better life than he was born to. Some people are just plain heartless and awful!

I really don't know how you could bear to part with your fosters, especially this one.

So glad he is in a good furrever home.