Day 24: Working in a Cat House - Part 2 - Aimless

July 4, 2013

Day 24: Working in a Cat House - Part 2

...After lunch I reported to Cat World Headquarters for duty.

...where I was greeted by a cat in a sweatshirt...I didn't ask silly questions, like, "why is that cat in a sweatshirt?" I simply excepted the fact that at Cat HQ, sometimes cats are in sweatshirts.

I was also greeted by the receptionist, who sat me in front of the required video everyone must watch before working with the cats, where you learn things like don't leave the doors open to the cat rooms, don't try to break up cat fights and don't let cats use you as a scratching post.

Apparently I passed the video watching portion of my training with flying colors because I was immediately given my first assignment.

"I have a job for you, if you don't mind," she said. "We have two kittens that need to be socialized. Is that okay with you?"

It sounded like a grueling task, but it was obviously an important job that needed to be done. So, my first assignment would be to play with kittens.

These two would be my first clients...

Hey, Kitty. I once had a cat that looked just like you!

I know, this is a little out of focus, but I couldn't resist posting it anyway.

After a half hour with them I moved on to some other cats. Rasha did not like other cats but she sure seemed to like me, or at least people in general.

Did I mention they deliver? They will fly the animals to you, or sometimes they get volunteers to drive them... In case someone wants to adopt Rasha, or another animal, that is...

Rasha had a thing for my shoelaces, very unusual in a cat, dont you think?

Rasha. She needs a home, if anyone is interested.

The receptionist asked if I minded staying at HQ. Most volunteers work in the building with cats who are more socialized to people and each other. Many of the ones at HQ had some behavioral, physical or emotional issues.

The truth is that I could see that some of these cats may not be adopted. Some were too shy, or too old. One seemed to have a problem with her mouth. She was older and had trouble grooming herself, so I gave her a good brushing, which she clearly enjoyed. Still, it was nice to know that these animals would at least have a home at the shelter. They were clearly well taken care of, with sparkling clean rooms with indoor and outdoor areas, lots of toys, and climbing equipment. Most of all the people around them really cared, These animals are loved.

At 4pm my shift was done and I changed into my riding clothes to ride a ways. It was then that the rains came...

And this is what happens in Utah when it rains for the first time in ages.

The final surprise of the day came at a little tiny hotel, straight out of Mayberry, in Mt. Carmel, about 20 miles, and along climb, down the road from the Animal Shelter.

The RV part did not offer tent sites and I was too tired to argue. But mostly I saw the list of rooms and said, "well I'll take one of your 45 dollar rooms then."

Except for some reason she gave me a discount and charged me only 40 dollars.

"Do you sell food here?" I asked.

"No, but I made some homemade soup and you can have some leftovers," the owner said.

"Well I can pay for it."

"No," she said. "Go to room 4 and I will bring you some soup." Then she walked over to her house right next door.

"What about a room key?" I asked.

"The door is open. The key is hanging on a hook next to the door." Just like Mayberry don't you thing?

A few minutes later there was a knock on the door, and the woman brought in a feast, and would take nothing for it!

I thanked her and dug in. The room was clean and comfortable. At $40, a bargain.

What a day. One of the best of the trip, and one I will always remember.

Today's ride: 28 miles (45 km)
Total: 1,170 miles (1,883 km)

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