At 45 years old, I have a few sad stories of former pets that have been either put down or found dead. I choose not to concentrate on those stories. I’ve never owned a dog. I am allergic to them. For some reason, I can have cats.

After Fuzznuts was put to sleep with thyroid problem, and Panther was put to sleep a year later for an illness that escapes me at the moment… I couldn’t have another cat for almost a year afterwards. Even then, I didn’t want to “own” a cat after 16 and 13 years of Fuzznuts and Panther.

I heard about a Siamese cat rescue organization, purrssiameserescue.com in my area. Apparently Siamese cats do not do well in traditional animal shelters and either become withdrawn or hostile.

I volunteered as a “Foster Family” for cats. Sometimes I would bring a cat to Detroit for an older lady, sometimes I’d pick up kittens in rural areas of Michigan. Most of the time, people would come to my house and adopt cats. In 8 months of fostering I had about 10 foster cats adopted.

But one cat never got adopted. It would always hide under the bed when people came over. A sweet flame-point Siamese. I finally figured out her problem when she was on my bed and I threw my socks over her into the laundry basket and she took off running.

A prior owner used to beat her.

I adopted her around the time of Hurricane Katrina, thus her name is Katrina. But “Fraidy Cat” would better suit her. She is getting bolder after all these years.

When the vet became concerned about her weight… I got PITA (Pain In The A__) on 7/4/07. A 6-week old kitten to keep Katrina company.

Based on my medical bills since July (cellulites from claws, slipping on the kitchen floor from spilled water bowls), she has lived up to her name!

If you are between animals, consider fostering.

James from MI