March Greetings to You, and to All Fenek’s Friends!

Just want to say this right up front: this letter was not written by ChatGPT or even CatGPT. What you’re reading contains nothing artificial, and its author has worked diligently to create something that won’t insult anyone’s intelligence.

That said, the wise old Distinguished Gentleman cat has had a relatively uneventful month. The staff members who see him every day report that Fenek has been in good spirits. I visited a few times in the past month and can corroborate those observations, except for one Sunday afternoon.

When I entered, he was slower than usual to approach me, and although he did get in my lap, he only stood there for a few moments before climbing back down and returning to his blanket-lined box. That was the exception, though, and it’s understood that he’s going to have good days and not-so-good ones. Overall, in the past month, he had more of the former than the latter.

Here’s the plastic sack that contains medications Fenek receives daily. Close by, a photo was taken while he was being dosed with some of them. An ongoing daily concern is his fluctuating blood glucose levels; they’re checked twice a day, and that has led to adjusting his insulin dosage to help keep them under control. Also, he’s coming up on a year since his heart disease was discovered, so more testing may be on the horizon. Pills and insulin daily; echocardiogram, blood pressure monitoring, and blood tests periodically. I don’t want to think of where he’d be if it weren’t for Tabby’s Place, and for the caring, generous people like you who help fulfill its mission.

Fenek is among the first cats I see when I arrive for a visit. This is not just because I am eager to see him, but because he lives in the lounge, which is where volunteers and staff log in for their shifts. Incidentally, that log-in process has been modernized along with the rest of Tabby’s Place. Where once there was a paper sign-in sheet, now there’s an electronic screen where you enter an assigned code. After that administrative duty is fulfilled, I find a place to sit and prepare for Fenek’s arrival.

We have some good Quality Time, and I know from experience that at a time of his choosing, he will stand up, stretch and yawn, then leave me and make his way to a food dish or a water bowl. I then hang my camera back around my neck and go looking for more good cats. Whether the cat loves lap time, like Ponce de Leon, or is less trusting, like the recent arrival, Cookie Monster, I enjoy visiting with them. Sometimes, there’s a pleasant surprise, like the Sunday afternoon when a little gray cat named Melee showed much more affection than I expected after noting the “Caution!” sign on the door of her space.

It’s easy to lose track of time under the circumstances, but if it’s not too late in the afternoon, before logging out I visit with Fenek one more time. That lasts only until someone enters carrying small paper plates of stinky goodness and fish mush, each plate bearing the name of its intended recipient. As he and his lounge mates dig in, I can sign out until next time.

One thing more: Just for fun, I took a different route home from Tabby’s Place one afternoon, and Google Maps led me to a place in southeastern Pennsylvania that contained a large patch of wildflowers that bloom in autumn.

Wishing you all good things…

Your correspondent,
John