Residents

Some of the cats who find their way to us are unable to be placed up for adoption for reasons due to age, possibly their medical condition or sometimes due to their emotinal fragility. These cats are simply given a collar to denote they are “residents,” and the rescue center becomes their permanent home. Some have been here for nearly all their lives. Some are only with us a short time. All are loved and given the best care possible so that the time they spend with us, however long it may be, is a time of comfort and contentment.

Abba and Aponi Est. DOB 06/28/2023 Arrived 07/28/2023 Age at arrival: 1 month Abba and Aponi, brother and sister brown tigers, were found outside in someone’s yard. They had advanced eye infections that left them both totally blind. Aponi was found first and brought to the center in the morning. Later that day, her brother Abba was found and brought in. As soon as they were put together, they were so happy to be reunited that they actually hugged each other! They have adapted well to their blindness and are playful, sweet, and adventurous cats.

Alma Est. DOB 02/22/2013 Arrived 02/22/2014 Age at arrival: 1 year Is there a more determined girl than our Alma? Alma arrived from a vet office in PA. She lived for months in a cage until she came to FFRC and she hasn’t been in a cage since then! Alma has severe CH and cannot actually get up and walk. But…..she’s so smart! She’s figured out how to do the things she wants and how to get around. Between her flips, falls, leaning, and flops, she has worked out a way to move! And she also lets us know what she wants by different meows that she does! Her wish is our command! She’s a beautiful grey tiger girl.

Butterbean Est. DOB 05/06/2023 Arrived 05/08/2023 Age at arrival: 2 days Butterbean and her siblings were born in a shed on the FFRC farm. A mom cat (later named Millie) had been hanging around the farm and was thought to be pregnant, but avoided being caught. One morning, she appeared to be slimmer so Cindy searched and found her four babies in a shed. The babies (later named Achoo, Butterbean, Cheerio, and Squizzle) were put inside a humane trap and Millie went in to nurse them. Millie took good care of her kittens in the center, but she wasn’t comfortable around so many cats, so she became a Porchie once the kittens were weaned. Butterbean is a sweet, loving, brown tiger, but she absolutely does not like to be held—not for meds, nail trims, or even a cuddle. She wants to be loved on her own terms and that’s fine with us.

Dagda Est. DOB 05/11/2022  Arrived 06/03/2022 Age at arrival: 3 weeks Oh what a mess Dagda was when he arrived!  A Good Samaritan found him roaming by himself in the country. He came in with terrible ear mites, fleas, a bad right eye, and was missing his back left leg from the knee down. With lots of love and care, the mites and fleas are gone, his bad eye was removed, and his back left leg was amputated. And oh my goodness, he’s the happiest little guy for all he’s been through. He races around the center, enjoys life, and is a friend to everyone—cats and humans alike.

Derecho Est. DOB 05/16/2012 Arrived 07/04/2012 Age at arrival: 7 weeks Derecho arrived at the same time that we were hit by a derecho storm. He was just a kitten of seven weeks upon arrival. We immediately noticed that Derecho had a balance problem. It was determined that he had Cerebellar Hypoplasia (CH). He was born with this condition, due to an illness his mama had. This is a lifelong disorder. But he’s happy and he has it all figured out! He can go wherever he wants, whenever he wants to. We may consider this a handicap, but Derecho doesn’t! He has a huge heart of love to give to everyone. He is sometimes referred to as D-Man. Derecho was our first CH cat and has opened the door to other CH cats here at FFRC.

Lena Est. DOB 06/10/2018 Arrived 08/09/2019 Age at arrival: 1 year It took months trying to catch Lena. She was living in the garden area of the Meijer’s store, but when she became pregnant, we got a call from Meijer’s asking us to try to catch her again. Two days before she was caught, she had a litter of 5 kittens. Her bed—a couple pieces of paper—but her kitties were clean and round. Her bed was between the wall and pop machine. FFRC found loving homes for all of Lena’s babies, but Lena decided she wanted to stay at FFRC. She loves head rubs, ear scratches, and back scratches too! Lena is named after Fred Meijer’s wife who is 100 years old. The employees of Defiance Meijer’s gave her that name and we had to keep it!

Lucie Est. DOB 07/29/2015 Arrived 07/08/2017 Age at arrival: 2 years Lucie was transferred here to FFRC, from Illinois. Lucie is a severe CH cat but she doesn’t know any limitations! She’s very determined and lives a happy life. She is a gorgeous black cat with beautiful eyes. She has special meows for different things she wants! Lucie is one of the sweetest cats ever–she truly loves lap times!

Magic Est. DOB 12/06/2014 Arrived 01/18/2015 Age at arrival: 6 weeks What a handsome fella Magic is with big round eyes! Magic came from Nashville TN. A rescue there received him and couldn’t keep him long term. FFRC said yes to taking this boy on. He was so tiny when he arrived–6 weeks old but only weighed 14 ounces. His rear legs were permanently “pretzeled” up. It was so severe that it was difficult for him to potty. So in April 2015, he had his two rear legs removed. He quickly took lessons from Trucker and was crazy fast! He can go faster than we can walk fast! He loves those glitter pom pom balls and will play forever with them. He so loves people. His best friend was Trucker.

Marilyn Est. DOB 05/19/2017 Arrived 07/07/2017 Age at arrival: 7 weeks Marilyn was just 7 weeks old upon arrival. Upon arrival, she was noted to have a moderate heart murmur, large hernia, and splayed rear legs. Her rear legs quickly rightened, her hernia was repaired, and her heart murmur went away as she got older. We all love this spicey girl! She was actually adopted twice but returned both times–the new families thought she was sad and felt sorry for her. After her second return, we felt she had talked to Kiara about how to be able to stay at FFRC. So….Marilyn became a resident!

Nyota Est. DOB 11/14/2016 Arrived 05/08/2018 Age at arrival: 1.5 years We received a phone call from the Sheriff that a burned cat needed help. We went to get her–she was so very scared and hurt. After weeks of treatments though, her burns started to heal and so did her well being. Nyota still bears some scars from her wounds, but her well being is a happy cat. She trusts us now and would like to stay at FFRC where her comfort level is good.

Pania DOB 04/12/2012 Arrived 11/19/2012 Age at arrival: 7 months Pania–what a gorgeous Siamese. She was found outside by a person who realized that she needed help with her eyes. Our Pania is blind. She arrived here with two very bulging eyes. One had to be removed. She still has her left eye but cannot see out of it. No trouble to her though! She goes wherever she wants to go! She loves the bench right by the door–that way she gets first dibs on the pettings from incoming people! A very confident girl!

Ramsay DOB 05/19/2017 Arrived 08/11/2017 Age at arrival: 3 months Ramsay is his name and sweetness is his game. He is a Siamese with severe CH. Such a friendly boy with super determination. He loves everyone and all the other cats. Such a gentle soul. While he needs help with many things, he just wants to be treated as a regular cat! We give him choices of what/where he wants to go. That’s what is so important–to let these handicapable cats be their own selves.

Spiker Est. DOB 07/28/2016  Arrived 12/01/2016 Age at arrival: 4 months Spiker arrived here at FFRC when he was 4 months old. He originally came from Illinois.  He is a moderate CH boy. He actually tried to go home with a family but he decided that was not the life he wanted.  He wanted FFRC.  Spiker is happy and so very much loves his cat couch!  He also lets the kittens play with his tail!