Everyone Deserves a Home

Author: Samantha M.

Black cats are half as likely to get adopted as cats of other colors. Some face even larger challenges like Silly and Missy who were surrendered to a local shelter when their owner became too ill to care for them.

One of the most amazing things that two loving adopters discovered about Silly is that although he can’t see, he is incredibly trusting while Missy enjoys some quiet time perched in the window. Isn’t she stunning in her forever home?

Last month Petfinder ran their “Adopt-a-Less-Adoptable-Pet” campaign in an effort to give those animals who might be overlooked a second chance. We share those “she’s just not adoptable” stories about Black Cat Rescue cats every day, but on September 20, 2011 we posted the following question on our Facebook page: “Do YOU have a pet that would be considered ‘unadoptable’ by some?”

We are so touched by the stories – so many and so personal – that have been posted in response to this simple question, we’re sharing them here. Thank you to EVERYONE who has given a homeless pet a second chance and a special thanks to our fans who have grown to love these “unadoptable” beauties.

Lorelei W. posted:

Yes, a 16 year old grumpy puss with thyroid issues and diabetes.

Sarah C. posted:

Not currently, but used to have a cat that hated to be petted and would bite like he meant it, because he did.

Tina S. posted:

Yes, a black feral female 1 year old that had babies at one time. She is all mine!  A 20 year old brown tabby with kidney disease and arthritis. But to me both my girls are the best but I know in a shelter they may not have a chance.

Peach K. posted:

Possibly…a sweet black female that I think has a recurring (very mild) viral respiratory infection. (Not disclosed by humane society.) Fortunately my existing cat is vaccinated and, hopefully, safe.

Natasha S. posted:

I actually had a black cat that was deemed unadoptable. She was a feral kitten and incredibly shy and afraid. Her siblings were the complete opposite. I had fostered her briefly until my cat Jack (icon) got sick from the stress of having her and her siblings around. After her siblings were adopted the rescue thought it would be difficult to place her. They knew how much I loved black cats so they offered to let me have her and I agreed. At the start of the summer of 2010 she and my cat Jack went to stay with my parents while I went on a road trip/vacation. My mom fell in absolute love with her and she fell in love with my mom. She still runs away from people, except my mom. They hang out together constantly.

Melinda B. posted:

Not now, but when I was in college I found a stray kitten who was beautiful, but never used the litter box, no matter how clean I kept it. Every day I would clean up after her. It was a chore, but she was a lovable little girl. Sadly cancer took her when she was 6.

Kerri S. posted:

I have a very temperamental black cat who is almost impossible to bring to the vet. She doesn’t like to be restrained in any way. She had been in the shelter for almost a year when I adopted her this summer.

Molly A. posted:

My girls are 9 & 10 and not always social, especially with strangers, but they’re my babies!

Twala E. posted:

Yes, I have a foster, boxer/pit mix. He has ”issues” and he has been with me since 12/27/10 I love him and he will stay with me forever. He may be considered ‘unadoptable’ but he is SUPER LOVABLE! ♥

Grommitt E. posted:

I’m almost 15, missing an eye and a tail.

Ferol J. posted:

Yes, I recently adopted an all black cat who had been at the shelter at Nevins for months and months. I love the fact that he’s all black and think it’s so sad that for some that makes him less desirable.

Jennifer K. posted:

I’ve got a 17-year old black gentleman with kidney failure who gets a subcutaneous fluid infusion every other day. I’ve had him since he was a 2 pound kitten!

Siru L. posted:

I have two semi-ferals who could not be adopted as they are so afraid of humans. They come to me, touch my face & roll in front of me to show their affection, but I’m not allowed to touch them. If I move my hand towards them, they run away (and come back after some seconds). They hiss at people they don’t know. People want cats that they can cuddle, so these two would never be chosen. And BTW, they are HUGE and one of them is black.

My late cat would have been adopted for her beauty & sociability, but she also would have been returned very quickly as she was a totalitarian dominant & jealous of her human & demanding with a loud voice & not hesitating peeing anywhere else but the toilet if I stayed away for a bit longer. She died of brain cancer at age 16 years 9 months.

The companion of the previous is 18 years old & has CRF, so if she was at a shelter, nobody would take her…

I love all my cats & will make sure they will never be offered for adoption. They’re forever home is with me.

Jennifer G. posted:

Yes, Freddy is afraid of everything and everyone, though at the age of 4, he is starting to calm down… a little.

Kelty H. posted:

Same thing as Jennifer above, but with a black female I named Runty. She is ten years old and chubby now. Such a sweet, and meek, temperament.

Dana B. posted:

Yes. I rescued a one-eyed feral kitten literally from the middle of the street where cars were driving over her! It was three months before she ever let me touch her. I couldn’t turn her in because I knew she would be put down because of her fear of humans. Luckily, I had just adopted two other kittens the day before we found her and she bonded with them and was happy to be in our house. I am still the only human she will let touch her or come near her but she is very loving a devoted to me. I’m glad we kept her. ♥

Tammy D. posted:

Yes, three black cats. One is the best cat ever, however. Another is awesome with me, but is generally skittish around other people. And the third is just an idiot, but I love her anyway. All three are a ‘foster fail’ where I fostered pregnant mommy cat and ended up keeping her and 2 of the kittens after homes weren’t easily found (and I sorta got too attached…).

Emily H. posted:

My lovely BeeGee that I adopted last year – 16, one eye, and diabetic 🙂 And Herbie, my senior snowshoe with FIV and tumors…my foster Tristan is VERY adoptable, he’s been adopted 4 times in the last 2 years…(poops outside the litter box and is declawed, so he can’t be an outside kitty).

… Oh, I forgot my two house ferals – even I can’t touch them!

Bill E. posted:

We adopted a beautiful black cat last year. When we first saw him, I thought it wasn’t a good idea because our other cats would pick on him. He has clubbed feet that did not fully develop in the back and waddles when he walks. He has two claws on one side and three on the other. We tried it, and he fit right in with our four males. We’re so glad we gave Charles a chance. He’s been with us for over a year and has no problem keeping up with the other boys. We love him.

Theresa M. posted:

I have a soft spot for black cats. My latest arrived at a mere 3 ounces and was bottle fed for over a month. He went wherever I went for that entire month. When I got him, he was on his way to the local (high-kill) animal shelter after his mama was hit and killed by a car. There was no way I was going to let that happen – he would not have made it to closing time. He’s almost 5 months old now, 6.5 pounds, and just got fixed last week. Terrorizing the older cats and shredding mini blinds. But, he’s still a keeper.

Sue G. posted:

We have several- that is partly why we started doing rescue. We have a few kitties who love other cats, but really don’t care for people. Panther lost an eye. Kepi was very emotionally fragile after an abusive start in life. Merlin had bouts of diarrhea that stumped the vets. Titi and Osiris were 14 when we took them in. Arthur had CH. The list goes on…we love them all.

Wendy A. posted:

My old Patch, sadly departed last year with thyroid problems, the tablets slowed her BP down and the vet couldn’t do any more for her :(. She was a feisty feral. A sweet girl with me, what I call a one woman cat. She loved me and the dog and hated the other cats. Still miss the old girl. I had to litter box train her once I had lured her in off the street with nightly coaxing with tasty tidbits. My bed was watered and my bedding was in the machine every day until the magic day she used the tray :). No more morning scrub downs in the bath for me, lol. She was the most loving girl, she appreciated home comforts so much as she had been sleeping under cars before i tamed her, her white fur was black with dirt. She was ever so pretty once I got the layer of street grime off her though. Feisty cats are the best. X

Lashana S. posted:

My last cat, carrot, who sadly died this last June at the age of four had idiopathic epilepsy. She had developed it at the age of 9 months and we gave her the best life we could. In the end it wasn’t even the epilepsy which took her out, but rather a stroke.

Vickie G. posted:

Two Black cats and a little goofball pitbull. We also have a wonderful shepherd / chow mix that is a little neurotic with loud noises. They are all amazing and make our home complete ♥

Karin T. posted:

My monkey (Black stray/feral) I found and took over a year (of one on one work) to get him to be the loveable boy he is today – but back when I found him not many people who have taken as much time as I did to tame him – but he was WELL WORTH IT!

Jes A. posted:

YES! A wonderful cat born incontinent but otherwise healthy. She’s great, and we diaper her for part of the day and give her a bath/break in a room we have just for her. It’s a solution that works for us and her (she’s super bonded to us and very social, so a sanctuary wouldn’t have worked for her. I don’t think I would’ve been able to do it, anyway).

Julia W. posted:

A semi feral that loves only me :-D, a one eyed cat, a cat with chronic URI, a dane that was aggressive as a youngster, another dane that is a tad destructive..lol, and a poodle that has ”split” personalities and has to be on meds!! and yes I’m into rescue…hahaha!!

Kristy H. posted:

My newest has a dead eye, so many shied away. Their loss! He is a handsome boy with such a shiny coat. Think he is part Russian Blue. AND a love bug to boot!!!!

Jacquie B. posted:

Yes, a couple of cats that I call street strays, others call feral, who are perfect house cats, but you can’t pick them up and they don’t curl up on your lap. Otherwise, they like to be pet and they purr and they are very sweet.

Jill S. posted:

Yes, a 10 year old brindle pittie who has severe allergies. I give him allergy shots 1x week.

Lisa Z. posted:

Yes indeed!! My little black kitty we adopted from a shelter, had seizures, probably a tumor/heart attack, digestive issues… she requires 2x/day medication now 🙂 She went blind for a while and lost her coordination. She’s OK now and still the sweetest most affectionate cat ever!!

Tina O. posted:

Yes A 2 year old female who attacks my other cats randomly. None of my other cats like her.

Laura C. posted:

Lilo, my black cat I found abandoned when he was about 2weeks old. He has missed placed emotions, but normally he’s a sweet kitty.

Carol R. posted:

I have a kitty that was labeled “unsocialable”. He is now my most lovey dovey one.

Melissa B. posted:

I rescued a Yorkie abused as a stud to make puppies and horribly mistreated. He’s a nasty little dog, but he loves me for some reason, and hates everyone else.

Stevie Cat (pictured to the right) posted:

Well, I’m a blind black kitty, and my sister is a deaf, half-blind kitty. My mom adopts rescues.

Fee-Saskia F. posted:

As soon as the tiniest change occurs, my black cat “marks” everything and we have tried everything so far. Still, we wouldn’t want to miss her and neither would our two tabbies.

Francesca D. posted:

How’s a one eyed neuro -impaired cat, or a one eared snaggle toothed, giant cat who occasionally jumps on visitors backs to hug and kiss them, and sprays when he’s nervous? Then there’s the 16 year old, deaf, selectively housebroken, beats up on big dogs Jack Russell Terrier….or my boyfriend’s cat who will attack like a dog if you look him in the eye.. But we love them all and wouldn’t trade any of them for the world.

Amy B. posted:

Probably not, but one of my kitty girls is timid and when we first got her she would hide. She has come into her own now and I have considered finding a special needs cat, but I’m a little afraid to shake up the household.

Raven S. posted:

I have 2 handicapped cats (severe) and 2 black cats.

Chris B. posted:

I have a sweet, loving black cat with only one eye. Every black cat I have ever had was loving, faithful and sweet. I love them!

Ariana P. posted:

Two, Purgatory a stray we found starving. Very bossy. This cat would tell me what was going to happen (lol) and another black cat that’s elderly (declawed) and “mean” according to others. Doesn’t like me much, prefers guys but we get on fine as long as I give her space. (lol)

Kat S. posted:

Yes. My DLH black Sonni has asthma, IBD, pancreatitis, and diabetes. We treat her for all of them and are keeping her as healthy and happy for as long as possible. She’s 10, and we love her so much.

Tobias B. posted:

Yes, my little tuxedo cat Parsifal is a very snarky boy who demands fresh food every 20 minutes (which he demands very loudly) and refuses to let his claws be trimmed almost to the point of breaking his own legs to struggle free (we have to wrap him up in a towel to even attempt it) and is “mean” in that he bites/claws anybody except the ‘chosen one’ if they try to pet him. No physical medical problems, but definite personality issues.

Stephanie W. posted:

Yes- Our cat Oliver who adopted us and has a biting problem but we are working with it and he is doing much better over time.

Also we own two ferals (mom and son) Mom does not want to be touched the son is sweet yet quirky–we have had them both since the son was kitten–they are now elderly, the son is 14–not sure of mom’s age but she looks great!

Laura S. posted:

Black cat with a broken tail.

Joan D. posted:

I have had 2 “difficult cats” both female torties … I had one for many (15 +) years and then when she passed on, got the new one … both girls were not too social — my current Lola growls when you pick her up, and will only let you pet her for a short while before she bites you … I think some cats are wired differently … but I love (loved) both of them!!

Marcella H. posted:

Most of my love muffins have been unadoptable except by crazy people like me & my husband.