The last day of being a service scholar was bittersweet. I think that next year, if Rose were to do the same program, I would love to be a part of it again. I really enjoyed spending time with the cats each time and seeing many of them be adopted made me happy. Although it’s hard to set time aside for things like this, I’m really glad I was a service scholar and got the opportunity to work in a shelter and learn more about the differences between cats. Although I thought I was good at reading cats and making them feel safe, having fostered several cats at home before, I still learned more about how to read cats when they are overstimulated and how to introduce myself to cats that are less open to humans.

A black cat with a cute pink and black nose seemed to like me and I played with her and the two other cats in the room for a while, though they were all a bit spooked when music suddenly started playing from the speakers in the room. When I went to visit Jeremiah for the last time, he was still as playful and curious as ever, but he still didn’t feel comfortable enough to approach me as he did the first day in the room. I think this could be because of the smallness of the room at that time, but I also feel like he is less comfortable with so many other cats around. I hope eventually someone will see that he just needs a bit more time to get comfortable, but that he is a very playful, energetic, and cute cat. In another room, there was a new cat with a unique white mustache. I found him very cute, even though his mood was a bit hard to read.

All in all, being a service scholar was a rewarding experience and I enjoyed spending some of my Tuesday afternoons getting to know cats better.

On my 5th week volunteering, I felt pretty used to the set up of the shelter and went room to room, greeting the cats I had seen before and playing with and petting new cats. There were a few new kittens that were very rowdy. They didn’t really pay attention to me, as they could easily entertain themselves by rolling around and pouncing at each other. They had short attention spans and would soon get distracted when I tried playing with them, and so I simply sat and enjoyed the show of their play-fights for a while. Watching them reminded me of my two cats, who are very serious and graceful at times, while still kittens at other times, with mock-fights and chases.

In one of the rooms, I met a very friendly black kitten that seemed to be pretty skinny, with a slim body and thin tail. When he was walking around me, he would keep looping back for more pets and would rub his whole head against me. After pacing for a while, he stepped onto my lap and quickly settled down for a nap. Whenever I would accidentally move or shift, he would look up at me with wide eyes. I felt that his eyes were very intelligent and full of energy and his gaze seemed to communicate his curiosity. I enjoyed spending time with him because of his liveliness and friendliness.

I was feeling a bit stressed from my prelims before I got to the shelter, but as soon as I entered, I felt more at ease. Being surrounded by cute little cats made me feel like less anxious about my upcoming exam. When I entered one cat’s room, he immediately jumped off his shelf to greet me. As soon as I had sat down and laid down a blanket to make him more comfortable, he started kneading my legs and settled down. He was one of the older cats who had been placed in the shelter after owner abandonment, but he was still so affectionate to humans. It made me really hope that someone would see that he is a very sweet and loving cat and give him a home. Hearing his purrs and being nudged by his insistent headbutts made me feel a warm and fuzzy.

At another room, a more aloof black cat greeted me with a steady stare. After I let her smell my fingers, we sat in companionable silence and I felt very peaceful.

I once learned that the frequency of cat purrs help heal any injuries that cats face, such as healing broken bones and repairing joints and tendons. It is speculated that this property of purrs might also help humans. While I’m not sure of that, I do know that having a purring cat on your lap makes me feel warm and happy, and that endorphin rush and stress relief is definitely good for my health!

When I went to the shelter this week, I spent a long time simply petting a beautiful reddish-brown, long-hair cat that jumped onto my lap promptly after I sat down. Seeing her tail sweep around happily and hearing her purrs made me feel very relaxed. Although sitting on the floor got a bit tiring, the feeling of affection and happiness from her was infectious. I hope I get to see her again and pet her again.

I also played with Jeremiah again, who seemed a bit more skittish after being moved to a larger room, but couldn’t resist playing. Although he kept his distance, he was very eager to chase after the toy.

On my second week as a volunteer, I circled around the cat wing and played with each of the cats. Some of the cats were nervous at the beginning, but after simply sitting on the ground for a few minutes, they got used to my presence and a few that were initially nervous cautiously came down to look at me. To entice them further, I started luring them over with toys. With each cat, I tried gauging which approach to play they had. Some cats were more curious, and so when I moved the toy and then let it come to a slow crawl, they pounced. Other cats enjoyed the chase, and with them, I quickly moved around the toy in surprising trajectories. I especially liked playing with one black cat who at first was very wary, but warmed up to me through playing with the toy. Playing with the cats reminded me of my two cats at home, Frankie and Sparrow, and how both of them were scared at first when they got to our house, but now, with time and care, are very comfortable with every part of the house.

After a long day of classes, I was really excited to go play with some cats. When I got there, I first played with some kittens. One of the kittens really wanted to come outside and kept trying to climb around my arms and jump off. He was very cute and I felt bad that I couldn’t let him down. When I went into the cat wing, I visited each of the rooms. Some of the cats were aloof and others were very friendly and I enjoyed getting to know each of the cats. I eventually got to a room with three cats that were newer to the shelter. Expecting shy cats, I went into their room quietly and got low down on the floor so as not to intimidate them. I let them smell my hands and soon, Jeremiah, a black and white cat with beautiful green eyes, jumped down out of curiosity. He seemed very mischievous and reminded me of a cat I used to foster, who would get very hyper when I played fetch with him. Mike, an orange tabby that had been watching the whole time, also seemed intrigued and after petting him for a while, he came down to my lap. Petting him and playing with Jeremiah was very relaxing and I thought each of their personalities were unique. An afternoon at the shelter passed by quickly and I went back to campus much more awake than before.