Dart

My story

COURTESY POSTING: Dart - Domestic short-hair tabby cat - male/neutered - young (3-4 years vet’s best guess) - 10 pounds Dart is a character. A beautiful fellow - his coat is a blend of beige and grey and soft brown. Dart would never make this claim about himself, but, for the purposes of adoptive placement, he is a “special needs cat” due to testing positive for FIV. From all other perspectives, he is a healthy cat with a robust appetite, fastidious manners with respect to his litter box, and a comically transparent personality. His greatest need is a home. BACK STORY Dart was dropped off in the woods across from our farm sometime in February, and at first, we caught only glimpses of him. We did our best to keep a lookout for him. We realized that during the infrequent times, he presented himself to us, he always paused for a moment of full eye contact with us before he darted off (hence his name), and we decided that he was watching us as intently as we were watching him. We made it a point to place kibble and water in the most theatrical manner possible - under the eaves of our workshop, and in the barn, where we also placed a warm bed inside a felt hut. We hoped that Dart had watched our performances and would avail himself of shelter and food. Which he did, and eventually he abandoned wherever he had been living in the woods and moved across the street to our farm. He continued to keep us under careful, close observation, but, over time, he allowed the distance he kept from us to shorten, and the time he spent staring at us before he darted away to lengthen. We began to call to him softly, “Kitty kitty kitty," Finally, we felt it was the right time to place a humane trap near one of his feeding sites, and hope for the best. He surrendered to it within 5 minutes, and when we approached him to bring him inside, he did not thrash about or seem afraid. It occurred to us that Dart had been directing the entire proceedings of the past few weeks, and we had been slow-witted actors who finally understood our parts. At any rate, Dart was clearly quite relieved to be safely indoors. He seemed very tired, and just grateful to be warm and under cover. We were fortunate to get a veterinary appointment the following day. Of course, we were disappointed to learn that he had tested positive for FIV, but glad to learn that he had not tested positive for Feline Leukemia. Our vet said that Dart was in good condition and that the call was up to us as to what our next steps should be. We learned that cats with FIV can lead long, healthy lives, but that their placement opportunities are limited; they need to be placed adoptively as singletons, or with another FIV-positive cat. We elected to move forward with Dart’s neuter and vaccinations and bring him home. Dart now occupies his own small bedroom in our house, a management arrangement necessary to protect our own three cats. Dart’s room is fully outfitted with a scratching hammock, litter box, food and water, and a number of treasured toys with which he plays joyfully and vigorously. He uses his litter box religiously and does not scratch or pick at the coverings on the bed. Clearly, Dart had been an indoor cat in his former life before he was discarded into the woods. The most endearing aspect of Dart to us is how greatly he yearns for companionship, and how insistent he is on making his terms fully understood. In this respect, we have become quick studies, happy to comply with Dart’s terms and process. WHAT MAKES DART A CHARACTER From the onset, it was obvious, even to a human, that Dart was eager - almost abjectly so - for attention and touch. Initially, he allowed his head only to be petted, and occasionally these attentions were rewarded by a brisk swat from Dart. Sometimes he sheathed his claws. Sometimes not. Clearly, two opposing needs were warring inside Dart. The solution was a $1.00 bamboo back scratcher. This instrument allowed us to pet Dart, and Dart to self-pet - all from a safe distance. Dart was quite pleased by our ingenuity, and over the course of a few weeks, he allowed us to pet not only his head, but his shoulders, then his back, and tail with the scratcher. At times Dart enjoys a full-body scratch so much that he will just fall over in a frenzy of purring. Now he curls up with one of us on the bed in his room to take a nap and allows us to pick him up and carry him back to his room when he darts through his door to explore the rest of the house. During these excursions outside his room, he marches around with his tail held straight up - he does not seem remotely concerned about our dogs. It is clear to us that Dart yearns to be a full-fledged part of our lives, and we are hoping that there is an adopter out there who will love Dart as much as we do, and provide him a home with full membership privileges. He is so ready for this, and he so deserves it. Dart is fully vetted. He free-feeds cat kibble and is overjoyed by a small daily ration of canned cat food. He is clean and non-destructive. Dart is a cross-post with Hedgesville Hounds. If you are interested in adopting him, or if you have any questions, please contact us directly at whalton@earthlink.net.

If you have any questions or would like to adopt Dart, please reach out to the adoption group directly. PetSmart Charities does not facilitate the adoption process. Thank you.