How Jennifur Came To Live With Us
We were so happy with Panther that we became in our brother-in-law’s words, “cat-crazy”. Two months after adopting Panther, we began looking for a youngish female as a companion for him. Through a no-kill shelter (operating out of a PetSmart store) we found Jennifur. We talked at length with the woman whose house she was living in. We were happy to find a shy female who would get along with our calm, regal Panther.
Boy, were we in for a surprise!
According to the shelter person, Jennifur had a rough start in life. Born July 4, 2000 under a mobile home near a school to a feral mother, she had been at the bottom of the feline social hierarchy in the shelter home. Jenni had had her shots and been spayed, and the shelter had verified she was free of any disease or ticks. We had her checked by a veterinarian, and brought her home.
It took three days before she would crawl out from under our bed to eat more than one bite at a time. She ate fast, barely chewing her food. She only ate if we stood by her to “guard her”. Jennifur was very thin, her coat rough. Every noise frightened her. Jenni would often make mistakes when jumping and miss an easy perch and fall. We called the woman whose house she had lived in many times to ask about various behaviors and problems. A few times in the first month, we talked of giving her back to the shelter because we thought she was starving and neurologically damaged and beyond our ability to help her live.
Jennifur decided to bond with David first. They both kept late hours, he working on the computer, Jennifur prowling the big office. She ate a bit more food than before. Then she starting drinking out of David’s glass of water. In 6 months Jenni no longer ran in terror if one of us entered a room. Very slowly Jennifur reached her current weight of 9 lbs. She rarely misses a jump now and her coat is glossy.
Three years later Jennifur is calmly lying by the screened window on a shelf, next to me as I write this.
Jennifur has taught us endurance, fortitude and the power of forgiveness.
