We call the strays that live in our community “Community Cats.” And we created our TNVR—Trap, Neuter, Vaccinate, Return—program to keep them safe and healthy and to control the community cat population. It’s an essential program for community cat welfare. And we are incredibly grateful to the “community cat caregivers” who keep us posted when a cat needs our help.
Peanut Butter was one of those cats. While his name is sweet, he definitely is not. Peanut Butter is the curmudgeon of cats—a testy, grumpy fellow who deserves our care even though he’s not one to show gratitude.
Peanut Butter, unsurprisingly, showed up at a cat colony with his head stuck in a peanut butter jar to the point where he couldn’t get it off—cue the panic! The caregiver of this colony, just the biggest-hearted human, trapped him and cut a hole in the jar so he could breathe, only for him to bolt off with the plastic still around his head. After a few weeks, many attempts, and even more patience, she was eventually able to trap him and bring him to our Companion Animal Hospital.
Here, our team was able to remove the jar safely, freeing him from his plastic prison, and assess his condition. Peanut Butter was incredibly dehydrated, matted and dirty, and covered in cuts and wounds. He looked like life has been one wild adventure lately on the streets of Hamilton. We cleaned him up, hydrated him, updated his vaccinations, provided flea prevention, gave him some antibiotics, and sent him home with a full belly.
While he definitely didn’t purr and lick and cuddle with gratitude, we know Peanut Butter was thankful for and moreso deserved the care and love he received.
To everyone who looks out for, monitors, and connects with community cats in colonies across our region, Thank You.