Operation Twelve Tiny Paws: Kitties Need a Home!

Hello, and Happy Wednesday! Today we have a guest on our blog.  I'd like to introduce you to Otis, the leader of Twelve Tiny Paws.  Otis, Milo and Cami are desperately in need of their forever home. Our friends at PAD PAWS  have been caring for them for quite a long time now, but they really need a home. We're asking all of our friends to share their story on social media so we can get the word out about them. Lexy and I were in the street at one point in our lives, and it wasn't fun!  We count our lucky stars every day for our home and family, and our wish is for these three beautiful cats to be safe and happy.

To stay up to date on Twelve Tiny Paws, visit them on Instagram and Facebook. 

Thanks, friends! We know we can count on you. 
Lola

OPERATION TWELVE TINY PAWS

Thank you, Lola. It's a pleasure to be here today. Let me introduce myself to all of you. My name is Otis, or otherwise known as “The Leader”. I’ve been waiting patiently to tell our story. It may be a bit long, but we've been through a lot in our short life. BTW, I’m also the handsome ginger boy in the group, and pretty much run the show. The other ones you see in the photos are my siblings… Milo & Cami.

We’ve had quite the journey in our last 10 years, but we’re finally safe and off the street. It all started when we were kittens. A nice woman by the name of Florence adopted our litter and gave us lots of love. Florence was a gardener and allowed us to live inside, as well as outside in her beautiful yard with bamboo, flowers, and trees. We had the best life in our early years. As time moved forward, Florence’s health declined, and so did the caring for our well-being. One day we sadly watched as Florence went off to a nursing home, and soon after, the family cleaned out the house when she passed away.

The neighbors reached out to PAD PAWS and asked the rescue group to be permanent caretakers. This way we could stay together, and also remain in the place we loved and called home. To our surprise, they said yes and kept their word for the next 8 years. Even in snow and ice storms, we never went a night without food. They also provided us comfy outdoor homes with fresh straw every year, which was always replaced after heavy floods or bad winters. 

We had the perfect life as cats. However, times started to change, and developers discovered our little gem of a neighborhood and moved in quickly. The garden we lived in became smaller, deserted and in danger. The parking lots, cars and people who didn’t like us came next. Before we knew it, high rise condos went up on all sides, and we had nowhere to live or hide. To make matters worse, our gardens were sold to make room for yet another tall building made out of concrete.

In January, the familiar caretakers from PAD PAWS trapped the four of us and luckily kept us all together. We were taken to a kind foster home, who agreed to foster us while we adjusted again to living indoors. Our foster mom and her wonderful family (including their other cats) gave us the run of their basement, full of nooks and crannies. 

Now, what no one realized is that I, "Otis" (super smart cat), found a small hole above the washer and dryer… Being “The Leader”, I did what all great leaders do… I showed my siblings the way, and up in the ceiling the four of us went. We would come down for food in the middle of the night, but the rest of the time, we could escape everyone and everything by living in the ceiling rafters of our foster home. 

Then sadly, our sister Johnnie passed away up in the ceiling from Heart Disease, and part of the rafters had to be demolished to bring her down. We were grieving, and also scared... and then the traps showed up again. The three of us watched as Renee and PAD PAWS spent the next NINE nights trying to lure us out of the ceiling and into the traps. One by one we succumbed to hunger. Milo to my surprise was the most difficult and went almost 5 days without eating. Everyone kept a watchful eye on our health, but they refused to give up until we were all together. Finally, after an exhausting week and a half (for all of us!), we were reunited in an upstairs spare bedroom where we would be more accessible and safe.  

We've been living together since then, but recently received news we would need to move once again.  To add to the chaos, Milo had a horrible case of Glaucoma and his eye was removed last month.  We're now living in limbo, being shuffled around to the rescuer's at PAD PAWS... all we're searching for is a nice home to let us live out the rest of our years in peace and safety.  

A few important notes to mention.  We're very low maintenance!  We use one litter box, eat out of one food bowl and huddle together when we sleep.  The three of us are healthy, up to date on our vaccines and use the litter box perfectly!  Milo, Cami and I are joined at the hip, so to speak, and would be devastated without each other.  If you know anyone who can open up their heart to give us a good home, please reach out to twelvetinypaws@gmail.com. Our location is anywhere in the NYC/CT/NJ area!  This is our story, and thank you for reading about us. 

Love, 
Otis