Meeting Genie

Continued from the July 6th post, "Of a Pet Lost and a Pet being Found."

While my husband was reluctant to seek out a new pet -- strike that ... a new companion -- life seemingly was finding a way to bring her to us.

I received the call from my neighbor Lois last week. Her daughter was moving down south and wouldn't be able to take her cat along. Did I know someone? They were running out of options.

My interest was piqued. As Lois described the feline, a Persian, my spirits dropped. While Genie sounded perfect for us in every other way, I had to consider my husband's allergies ... and I had serious misgivings about a long-haired pet. Still, I told Lois that I'd ask around, then -- on a lark -- went to the Internet to conduct research. There I learned that a long-haired pet may be no more of an allergy source than a short-hair; it all depends on which potential allergens trigger your symptoms. One may react to one cat and not another. It's complicated and -- as you find whenever you seek out expert opinion -- no two experts ever agree entirely. So the best advice was to spend time with the cat in question and watch for allergic reactions.

When Frank got home, I recited my findings to him in an out-of-breath litany of sorts. I told him that this might be it; this might be our cat. After all, I was working normal hours. Our finances were in good shape. And this little feline was in need. I stopped for a deep breath.

And before I could exhale, Frank agreed.

Lois and her daughter Marla brought Genie over to meet us the next day. She was beautiful (pictured to the left) and, as Marla described her little idiosyncrasies -- how she loved to be held like a baby and needed a gentle touch and a calm, loving home -- my husband and I realized that she sounded right for us. We decided to keep her over the weekend to see how Genie would adjust to us ... and to see if Frank's sinuses might somehow behave.

I was especially concerned about that latter point. A friend of Marla's had been caring for Genie for the last month or so. This long-haired beauty hadn't been groomed in some time. As Marla passed the cat's brushes to me, I worried that we had the added allergy-risk of accumulated dust mites which would be released once we started brushing her. I'm not typically much on prayer, but I made up for that deficit over the course of the weekend! By the time Monday rolled around, Frank and I had removed a kitchen trash bag's worth of fur and, while Frank did suffer some sinus headaches, it was nothing more than what he usually experiences this time of year. Success!

Marla returned to our home Monday to assess Genie's progress and was happy at what she found: Genie's coat was once again silky to the touch. More importantly, however, Genie was beginning to make herself at home! Marla seemed hesitant, though. After all, she'd loved and cared for this cat for five years. But ... there was more to the story than that. As we spoke with Marla, Frank and I learned that it was possible that Marla might not be moving out-of-state after all. Even though we had surmounted the challenges that lay before us from the start ... there was no guarantee that Genie would join our family. We had not arrived at a happy ending. Not yet, anyhow. And still, as I write this, this story's conclusion is far from certain.

To be continued with PART 3 in this continuing series on July 12th.

Comments

[Brenda replies]

Thanks Titania! This has turned out to be the best WIN-WIN-WIN scenario for everyone. Marla can rebuild a life for herself without worrying about Genie (and knowing that communication will be kept open)... Genie is already beginning to thrive in a more settled environment ... and I get to enjoy a very special bond, one that makes my life seem full again!

[Titania]

Awww Genie is so precious. I just lost my Miss Tissy. I understand how your friend must feel if she has to part from her beloved pet. But.... if she does at least she will know that Genie will be in a loving home.