Dear Friend of Tux,

Autumn has officially arrived in Ringoes, NJ. Halloween decorations abound, and the cats are modeling their costumes and getting cozy.

Since Tux is always dressed in his finest, he doesn’t indulge in the silliness of dress-up like his roommate, Smokey (pictured below). His focus this month is much more on the cozy season rather than the spooky season.

To that end, Tux (and I) thought you might enjoy some introductions to some of Tux’s newest roommates; friends that appreciate the coziness of the season as much as he does.

Salami and Nirvana share a common history. Both boys came to Tabby’s Place through a very special colony project involving a large number of sickly kitties that needed help. As colony cats, Salami and Nirvana both love feline companionship. While Salami quickly came to appreciate human friendship as much as feline friendship, Nirvana, the elder, is more cautious.

Both boys have taken up residence in the Community Room and discovered the joys of the administrative desk. While Salami is often out in the open, Nirvana prefers to burrow under blankets, but is getting braver every day. We predict that by the time Halloween is here, life won’t be quite so spooky for dear Nirvana.

Tux has welcomed both boys with his gentle and loving demeanor and has shared beds and window sills with both. One of Salami’s first days out in the Community Room, he sought out the comfort of Tux who was curled up in a cardboard rocket ship. Salami nervously slunk out of his crate and started looking around for a good place to hide out. Rather than crawl into an open hidey-bed, Salami opted to crawl in and share the very cramped quarters of the rocket ship. Tux welcomed him in and assured him that all would be just fine. I did try to get a photo of the two curled up together, but the lighting didn’t really capture the charm and coziness.

Salami was truly in a hopeless situation when he came to Tabby’s Place. He had developed a case of FIP (feline infectious peritonitis), a disease that proved deadly until very recently. Earlier this year, a highly effective treatment protocol was approved for use in the United States. Salami was fortunate to begin treatment at the very onset of his diagnosis and has responded very well so far. The full treatment cycle takes nearly three months to complete, but we are very hopeful that he will recover fully. It is essential that cats undergoing treatment are kept in a low-stress environment, so Tux’s welcoming Community Room is just the place to promote recovery.

Tux remains in good health overall. His stomach is more sensitive than it was in his younger years, but he would never complain about such things. He is grateful for your love and support and all the coziness that you provide each and every day.

Your correspondent,
Lisa