Happy New Year, Team Pepita!

As the new year takes off, all of us at Tabby’s Place are in awe of you and your loyalty to Pepita and all of our cats. I can hardly believe it has been over 21 years that Tabby’s Place has been helping these special felines. It is all because of individuals like you—with big hearts and long-standing love of fur babies!

Thank you for every moment you think of Pepita, and every cent you send in support of her care. This has been especially important over the past month, as a few issues surfaced for her.

This was not the best month for Pepita, as she was noted to have a small scabby spot on her nose that didn’t want to resolve. She also had what looked like a broken tooth.

The vet team decided to biopsy the spot and perform a dental that included several extractions. While she was examined, the vet team noticed bruising on her one rear leg. They checked the area thoroughly and couldn’t locate any obvious wounds, so we suspect she took a tumble or got into an altercation with another cat (maybe crazy Hazey) and got injured while running away.

Our little lady ended up on cage rest with two stitches on her nose. She hated this, so as soon as she was healed from the dental and leg injury, she was released. She is also being treated for a urinary tract infection with injectable, long-acting antibiotics.

I am happy to report that when I visited with her this week, she was jumping on all the solarium shelves with no issue, and she looked terrific!  Here are a few pictures of her enjoying the treats I offered and then being sure to keep herself pretty with extra grooming!

December has been quite cold in Ringoes, NJ, so the heating pads are in full use, as well as the special heated bowls for keeping the water from freezing in the solarium. On Christmas Day when I visited Pepita, she was indoors, curled up on a bed overlooking the lobby and pretty sleepy!

When I visited this week, however, she was still enjoying the solarium, despite it being quite chilly—she just can’t resist the lure of the outdoor fresh air!

On the coldest and windiest days, we usher all the cats indoors and keep the solarium cat doors locked. While this keeps the cats out of the frigid weather, a bit of the cold air inevitably sneaks in and can make the neighboring suite rather chilly. To keep the cats toasty warm, we set up extra heated beds in both the solariums and some of the suites. The staff are always looking out for our older and more delicate kitties.

Pepita decided that 2025 will be a great year for her and for Tabby’s Place! She knows that sponsors like you are the magic that makes her world go round.

Her resolution for the year (one must have at least one resolution) is not to let Hazey bother her or take her out of her calm and serene state. Hazey’s bio notes her as “a paradox of sweetness and spice!” and I can attest to this first-hand. But I know Pepita has it in her to rise above and take the high road, or in the case of the solarium, the high shelf!

This Saturday (1/18), Tabby’s Place is holding a special adoption event called “New Year, New Home!” We will be featuring some of our cats who we would love to see get adopted and will have some light refreshments and extra tours. If you know of anyone ready to offer a forever home to a beautiful feline, please encourage them to stop by and meet some of our amazing kitties.

We wish you a bright new year, filled with lots of hope and happiness! Pepita sends you her deepest love. If you live close enough to visit, she would love to spend time with you and show you that love in person.

Your correspondent,
Sheila