Today is Remember Me Thursday, (#RMT) the day we celebrate our own rescue cats, and also commemorate the pets we lose to the shelter systems worldwide. We can all do something, no matter how small. A dollar donation, food from a wish list, a social share…
Did You Know?
People forget there are dozens of pedigreed rescues for expensive breeds like Persians? Some cat owners realise they cannot cope with Persian cat maintenance (considerable), Sphynx cat care (a little more specialised) or Oriental Shorthair chatter (adorable but some can’t cope).
Sunny’s Story
Sunny came to us as a former colony cat and foster. She was so scared she hid under her cat bed (in a large comfortable crate) for weeks. She was our second foster-fail after Natasha.
We let her acclimatise to the family home at her own pace and this has taken a lot of time and patience – but we knew what we had signed up for, a colony cat who might be very nervous.
She continues to surprise us even after three years. She will never be a ‘cuddly’ cat and we can not pick her up unless it is a sneak attack to get her to her annual vet visit. But this is fine by us.
Problems #RMT is Trying to Help Solve
- Many shelter pets are overlooked because people have the wrong idea about them. We need to show how wonderful they really are! Do your bit to encourage people to look for their next cat at a local shelter.
- Pets living on the streets face danger, hunger, and short lives. We want to help them find safe, healthy homes.
- Too many pets are being born without enough homes to go to. We need ideas to fix the overpopulation problem. This is the tough one. We need education and cheap spay/neuter. Vet’s need to look beyond profit to animal welfare as a whole.
Some heroic vets do low cost spay/neuter and they are life saving angels.
Sunny’s Landmark Moments
- When Sunny stopped hiding under her bed in the crate.
- Her first ‘meow’.
- When she stopped running from our footsteps.
- Her first purr.
- Her first steps outside on to our deck on her own.
- Then not finding her for hours as she want off exploring.
Most recently Sunny has decided that sleeping on the bed with some of the other cat family members is ‘not a bad idea’. She secretly sneaks on to the bed after the light are turned off then ruins the sneak effect by squeeking her presence! This has taken three years but now she will climb up Jack’s cat steps when the beside lamps are still on.
A Shelter or rescue pet is the finest you can get. They are full of love, they may need a helping hand to gain confidence but they reward you with joy and love.
FACT: There’s not just one type of shelter pet. Help others #ShineALight for rescues by posting and sharing rescues on Social Media on #RememberMeThursday 24th September 2026
Sunny Today
Not everyone wants to take on a cat with issues. This is fine. There are lots of friendly and loving adult and and adorable seniors ready and waiting for you. Here are a couple of late in the day smartphone snapshots of Sunny, taken a couple of days ago.
Don’t let them become a death statistic. Give them a life and the chance to give you so much love.
Cat Photographer, Instructor and Writer
Professional Member of the Cat Writers Association,
Winner of the Kuykendall Image Award
Published at the Guardian newspaper
