Dear Supporters of Bacon,

Seeing Bacon these days takes coordination and planning. On my part, I mean. Bacon shares a room with Lornadorne, and if you’ve visited lately, you might have noticed Bacon’s roommate has an orange collar around her neck. Orange collars mean “proceed with caution.”

Lornadoone has about the cutest face you’ll ever want to see, and your first instinct is to reach out and pet her. Her sweet face and the fact that she may even make the first move—curious to know who you are—and want to sniff you, smell your hand or leave her scent on you by winding herself around and between your legs—all signals that she’s friendly. You may get lured in. BUT…  you need to proceed with caution. Don’t assume. Let her make the first move. Move slow and easy.

This means when I arrive to visit Bacon, I have to lure Lornadoone back into her little house so Bacon can come out. Find a way to make her think it is her idea. I ask for some help and observe that the best approach is to use an irresistible treat. Lisa uses a Delectable—one of those smooshy treats that come in a tube. Lornadoone follows the smell of the Delectable back into her house.

Success! Or so I think. I unzip Bacon’s house and am just about to begin my visit with him when a volunteer arrives to clean the room. Clang, clang. The loud noise startles Bacon who decides then and there to stay put. He’s a very sensitive guy who basically says, “No way” when I try to lure him out–first with a Delectable, then a toy, and finally with promises that we’re going to have a lot of fun. No go! I give up and leave.

I come back later. This time, I feel like I know what I’m doing. Armed with my Delectable, it’s easy peasy to lure Lornadoone back into her house. Now that it’s nice and quiet and everything has settled down, Bacon comes out, eager to walk around and see what’s what.

As he’s roaming around, Lornadoone finishes up the Delectable. The creamy treat gets all over her nose, and she reminds me of a kid eating ice cream.

It’s fun to watch Bacon wander over and sniff my foot. He can probably tell all the places I’ve been to and all the people I’ve talked to since I put these sandals on this morning.

After the exciting shoe-sniffing experience, he hangs out at the baby gate and watches all the traffic in the hallway. This is a new innovation–replacing the door with a gate so the cats can watch the ever-changing scenery as it goes by.

Soon after, Bacon wanders into his cozy house, eats a bit of food, and then settles in for a well-deserved nap. Because of Bacon’s unique need for quiet, he usually has free reign of the room after 5 p.m. when Tabby’s Place shifts into a quieter gear.  The staff reports that sometimes Lornadoone takes her time vacating the room and Bacon waits patiently, chirping away, for his turn. Overall, our handsome boy has had a good month!

In general, the expansion at Tabby’s Place is very close to receiving its final certificate of occupancy. A few finishing touches are all that is needed.

Thanks, as always, for your continued generosity. Bacon lives his best life because he can be in such a loving place.

Your correspondent,
Kate