Owner goes into nursing home and no one can take her elderly Birmans so they were relinquished with great heartache at a shelter. Euthanasia was discussed.

We don’t know the cats’ now former owner but I would gently suggest that she is an elderly lady who had to go into a nursing home and leave her adored, elderly Birman cats behind. The owner’s children could not or were unable to take the cats. She had to relinquish them to the Friends of Arundel County Animal Care and Control Inc.. I am indebted to the information on this organisation’s Facebook page and the photographs.

Photo: Friends of Arundel County Animal Care and Control Inc. This is Zipper (the two cats are pretty much the same color — they look different in the pictures because of the light).

In another twist to this story, we are told that a veterinarian refused to euthanise the pair of cats. They are in good health except for their teeth which needed to be cleaned.

“A veterinarian refused to euthanize the pair, who appear to be in good health except that their teeth need to be cleaned…”

The fact that a veterinarian refused to euthanise the cats must mean that someone asked for the cats to be euthanised. That person would normally have to be the owner. This is part of the story which does not come through in the Facebook post of the Friends of Arundel County Animal Care and Control Inc.. Perhaps there was a discussion about euthanasia due to their age.

Missy. Photo: Friends of Arundel County Animal Care and Control Inc.

The shelter staff were happy to take these two beautiful Birman cats whose names, incidentally, are Zipper and Missy. While at the shelter they were housed in a larger-than-usual cage in the main cat room.

Of course they are both senior cats and the intention was that they were adopted as a pair. In a post dated March 31st the shelter said that they should live in a quiet home. Detailed notes were left to help in making sure the cats got what they liked which you can see in the photograph below. Comment: it seems to me that the handwriting is that of a younger person and not the cats’ former owner.

“At night they get to eat Cool Whip off your finger. Zipper gets 5 fingers full, Missy gets 4 fingers full…Keep together…Missy skittish…Zipper likes his food served in a mound…chop Missy’s food.”

Note for the cats’ caretaking

In an update to the shelter’s Facebook page they were happy to announce that both Zipper and Missy have been adopted. They will provide more details later.

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