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Siam

This is a long time coming, but I finally have the time to put some words together and tell you about life since SIAM (now Sammy) aka Sam-I-Am arrived at our household.

On April 6, 2009 I went to the shelter to pick up kittens for the Petsmart shift I was working that day. When I walked into the "cat room" the volunteers were busy getting the selected kittens (and cats) into the transport carriers.

As I walked to one cage where several kittens were being moved, I noticed one that was a beautiful buff color with seal points in patches on his legs and face. He looked up at me and had the most gorgeous blue eyes! He also had a fluffy tail and long hair. In that instant, I knew he was the cat my 79 year old mother who lives with me. Many years ago she had a Siamese cat named Tiger and recently and lost a long haired orange tabby. Although we had 2 dogs, 2 cats, and 2 ferrets already, she was wishing for a new “baby” to keep her company.
I called her at home which was just down the street from the shelter and told her to come right away to see little “Siam”. She dressed hastily, came to the shelter and fell in love with him on first sight. She came with me to  Petsmart and immediately began the adoption process. Once my shift was finished we headed back home.

Here is the part of the story never shared before and which makes Siam’s arrival most memorable. As I got out of the car in the garage, there seemed to be the smell of something burning. I opened the door from the garage to the kitchen and it was FILLED with white smoke that was generated from a burned pot on the stovetop. Yes…Mom had rushed out so quickly to see Siam that she forgot the pot of soup she was making on the stove. In all it had been burning for about 3 ½ hours!

We both ran through the house collecting the cats, dogs, and ferrets and opened all the doors and windows to clear the air. Once things were clear, we brought all of our babies, including the newest one, back inside.
The picture taking began and I have attached 2 from 4-6-09 for you to see as a reference to Sammy’s size. He was 9 weeks old.

Sammy began to settle in nicely since my Mother has a large room and she kept him in there and completely indulged him in toys, treats, and attention. Little by little we would allow him out to mingle with the other pets. The dogs pretty much tolerated him, and my male tabby Rocky accepted him fairly quickly. My female tabby Roxie was not as kind and resented him being in the same air space as she was. Our feeling was…time…just give it time. After MANY months, they now play together if we don’t watch. If Roxie knows we are watching, she growls and hisses at him to let us see that she is still the boss.
The most interesting thing that we discovered as Sammy grew was that his behaviors were a lot like a type of cat called a Ragdoll. His hair was getting longer and longer. His fur felt soft like rabbit fur. His tail looked like a giant duster. He slept on his back with his legs over his head and always hung dangerously close to the edges of all surfaces he was lying on. As a result, I did some research online and found pictures of Ragdolls. They looked just like our Sammy!

He has also grown into a very large cat. Although most of him is fur and fluff he is now at 1 year (01-29-10) a 13 pounder. (A couple more pictures here for reference on size).

Finally, I have to say how grateful I am to all of my friends at Suncoast not just for bring Sammy into our lives, but for giving me the opportunity to volunteer and help them do all the wonderful things they do every day to help all of our furry friends.

Sincerely,
Karen Santos