I am now so used to male cats in particular, testing positive for FiV that it doesn’t really worry me too much. They are not very likely to have health problems if looked after well, and they have a very good chance of finding great homes now that understanding of FiV is spreading, particularly if they are as handsome and gorgeous as Marley. He ended up at the PAWs cattery when his English owner left him behind. I use the term ‘owner’ loosely as Marley had no chip or passport and was not even castrated. It soon became obvious that he was a lovely, relaxed chap with other cats and as he was not going to bite anyone and thereby pass on his FiV, he was fine to socialise in the garden pen. Here Marley spent most of his time quietly snoozing and accepting any head strokes that came his way.
He was actually first adopted by another English family here in Spain, but came back after only a short time for biting. This seemed strange but Marley was nervous of having his back touched, and I noticed this when I met him again a couple of weeks ago. He seemed to need confidence in a person before letting them lift their hands towards him. This is not un-common among stray cats and nobody in Germany was overlay concerned, especially the 2 lovely ladies who had decided to foster/adopt him through Katzenherzen. They were also completely comfortable with his FiV as their last cat had had the same condition.
It seems the decision to keep him was made within the first minutes of them meeting this charming cat. As you can see from these photos that Kerstin took when she dropped him off, he was enjoying cuddles and treats from the start. The next day the reports were even better. Marley was being very well-behaved in the home even while they were out, and was increasingly affectionate and talkative. They cannot understand why anybody could have left him. It is actually very hard to believe. But some people just don’t understand and love cats. He has occasionally ‘chewed’ them when he has had enough stroking , but to a cat lady this is quite normal. He will slowly learn that he doesn’t need to do this. All Marley needs is a little understanding, lots of love and a nice quiet home where he can chill out!!! He seems to have found the perfect place for all of this. Good for him!
And here are the photos from the cattery that made his new family want him! One chilled-out boy!!!
