After the passing of both our cats within a year of each other, (due to natural causes, both were 14 and 15 years old respectively).
We finally decided that we were ready for a new addition to the family. Adopting a pet seems to have gotten significantly more difficult than I remember from 15 years ago. Let me relate the travails we experienced on this endeavor.
We started out at a local pet store who contracts with an agency to put adoptable animals in the stores. I won't bore you with the mundane details of how many kittens we looked at before kiddo made up her mind. With the selection made we proceed to fill out the application where we are asked things like "Where will this animal sleep?" and "How many hours per day will the animal be left alone?" It's a cat for crying out loud - she'll sleep wherever she wants, and in my experience cats are quite happy being alone provided they have food, water, and a clean litter box. Anyway, we submit our application only to be told that it will be faxed to the "main office" and they'll call us the next morning and let us know. It is a this point that I steel myself for the terrible tantrum we're about to experience when she learns that kitty cannot go home with us at that moment. Happily this didn't happen; thankfully our 4 year old accepted it with a wisdom way beyond her years.
So, after purchasing some cat toys, and supplies we head off to dinner, where we proceed to actually name our new kitten. (for the record, Mozart was the winning choice) Next morning, the wife gets the call from the main office who proceed to tell her that there is a pending application for this kitten. When asked why we weren't informed of this the night before, she was told that "oh, we accept multiple applications for the same animal in the event that one falls through." So now you can imagine what goes down when we have to break this news to a child who literally hasn't stopped talking about her new kitty the entire day. Indeed, it was painful for all involved.
However, we recovered, went to another shelter, girl found another kitten, we're told "we don't adopt out to homes with children under the age of 5" at which point we ask the manager to waive this requirement and she agreed to do so. And so on that note, to bring us to the end of the longest post I've ever made; dear reader, I give you - Lily!
Lily is a 12 week old Siamese mix who is the perfect mix of sweet, yet independent while remaining tolerant of the 4 year old who wants nothing more than to carry her kitty everywhere.
