FURever Home Friday!

It was just a matter of time before Chyna found her FURever home. And this is the story as to how it all came about...

Once upon a time, a nice young couple came to PAWS to find an adult cat of their very own. As they were escorted through the shelter's cat rooms, they met a myriad of adult kitties, including Chyna. The couple really liked our sweet Chyna, but ultimately decided to adopt Cyrus (another great adult kitty).

It was a bittersweet moment ... we were certainly happy that an older cat was adopted, but a little sad it wasn't our dear, sweet Chyna. Especially because she had been at PAWS quite a bit longer than Cyrus. Could it be, we wondered, that Chyna was passed over because of her more reserved nature? We sort of decided then and there that we would try even harder to get this wonderful girl adopted as soon as possible, before she got too used to the shelter.

Well, Chyna's luck took a turn for the better the very next day when a family came to the shelter looking for an adult cat who loved laps and quiet surroundings, but who would also do well with children. Who could possibly meet such a diverse set of criteria? Why, our Miss Chyna, of course! The rest, as they say, is history.

We love you Chyna, and wish you many hugs from the kids and lots of lap time in your new FURever home. :)

Our Girl Named Chyna

Our sweet Chyna is a beautiful, blue-eyed, gray tabby female who is 8 1/2 years old and a total lap cat.

Her former owners brought her to PAWS because their dogs constantly were herding Chyna.

While she seems to have acclimated pretty well to shelter life, you can tell Chyna is very curious about the world that is outside her room.

Chyna would be a very positive addition to anyone's home.

Really Thankful Thursday

And just what are we thankful for? Well ... since our last adoption update, we've had some great adoptions and received really heartwarming follow-up notes from some adoptive families. :)

The adoptions include five kitties we've covered previously on our blog: Babe (pictured above), Chyna, Oliver, Pip and Shaq. Also joining the ranks of official PAWS alumni are: Alexa, Almond, Cap'n Crunch, Cashew, Chester, Cutie Pie & Faith, Earl the Girl, Flower, Graham, Hank (to foster), Itchy & Scratchy, Jax, Jellybean (to live with Frenchie!), Kix & Trix, Ladybug, Lapis, Layla, Leif, Lolita, Ludwig (to foster), Macaroni, Magenta & Joon, Maya & Savannah, Mr. Friendly, Mr. Meow, Petal, Pisces, Polly, Queen Bee & her daughter, Quinn, Sweet Pea & Pesto, Tigor, and Tikka & Charlie.

As for the follow-up notes, here are a couple that we hope make you smile as much as they did us...

"Prince is doing well. He and I were MADE for each other. He is SUCH a lovey-bear! He now sleeps with me every night and lays on the foot of my recliner sometimes (especially if I am not feeling well). He likes to wake me up very early on weekend mornings to feed him by sneaking up next to my face and touching his little nose to mine and purring so loud you'd think a Harley Davidson was in my bedroom ... it's just too cute! He loves tummy-rubs and ear-scritching and if he had his way I would do it 24/7. When I talk to him ... he totally understands what I’m saying and acts on it. He greets me with much kitty-chatter when I come home at night and at bedtime! I just adore him!”

"Sherwood (who is now named Massimo) is doing great and has fully acclimated into our family. My older cat Bella has finally accepted him. It took close to 6 months, but it looks like we are there. They are now feeding together, and just the other day, Massimo had finished eating and as he turned the corner to leave the room he was face to face with Bella. They stopped and looked at each other. He then proceeded to lick her neck/chest area and nuzzled his head into her neck. It was the first time I witnessed a display of affection between them and frankly cutest thing I've ever seen them do! He's great with our kids - still a little skittish as they are a little loud for his taste and he keeps a low profile when we have guests (especially children). He kills all of the bugs too! He loves to get groomed and have his nails trimmed. Thanks again for helping us pick out and rescue the perfect addition to our family! We could not be happier. He truly is a gentle giant!"

Have a great day, everyone! :)

A Really Beautiful Award :)

A few weeks ago, our friends at Tekorin the Neko gave us a really cool "Beautiful Blogger" award. Thank you to Tekorin, Beat Sensei and Ku-suke Chan, and their mommy ... we are truly honored! Volunteering at PAWS is incredibly rewarding for us, and we love sharing with all of you about our cat friends who live there. So to receive an award for this is, well ... beautiful. :)

The rules for the award say we're supposed to share seven things about ourselves. But since this is a blog about the cats at PAWS, we'll include some things about them, too! Here we go...

1. Tracey (aka "PAWSvolunteer") and Kevin (aka "meowmeowmans") used to work at the same company many years ago. Our paths crossed again when Tracey began volunteering at PAWS about seven years ago (I had already been volunteering for a number of years). To make a long story short, love blossomed. We are now happily married and still volunteer together every weekend. :)

2. Some of our very best human friends are fellow PAWS volunteers.

3. Growing up, all of our families' pets were rescues, or came from shelters.

4. Our furry kids are Sammy, Moosey and Maggie (that's them in our blog header!).

5. Our angel cats -- Bitsy, Graphite and Lady Madonna -- were all adopted from shelters.

6. PAWS cats Gadget, Claire, Chyna (who, unfortunately was returned to PAWS through no fault of her own), Minnie, Sweetheart, and Shaq are all lapcats.

7. PAWS cats Pip and Jasmine love to have their tummies rubbed. :)

We're supposed to give this award to seven other bloggers, but we're going to "color outside the lines" this time, and give this award to ALL of our blogging friends. After all, we think you're ALL beautiful!