Firstly, I am so very proud to present to you, in association with the Cat on My Head Sunday Selfie Blog Hop........
Woodside (Animal Centre) Sunday Selfies!
Anyways, Mrs H and I were on a shopping visit to the great city of Leicester, in the heart of the UK, when we decided to call in and say hello to the team. Well we had a whale of a time, and made new friends, and soon discovered that there were loads of fine felines who not only want a forever home, but who also wanted to take some selfies.
So many in fact, that we will be doing selfies from Woodside Animal Selfies for the coming weeks, to help support their drive to find homes for some very special fine Leicester felines.
So, without further ado, I would like to introduce our first Woodside adoptable cat, Parky.
"Hi, everyone, I'm Parky, and I currently live at Woodside Animal Centre in Leicester, awaiting my forever home.
I'm a one year young, female calico short hair cat, full of life and enjoy looking for things to do and places to explore. As an active girl, I am not keen on being in my pen, and am itching to find my own special place, and family.
Don't worry though, I also love to meet and say hello to people. And if you are up for a little fuss and attention and to play games too, then I'm your girl!
My ideal home would be in a more rural location were I'll be able to safely explore my surroundings.
I would also rather have an experienced, adult only environment, where I can have a quiet balance of the things I like best– fuss, play and exploration.
If you think I am the calico cat for you, and I hope you do, then please do come and visit Woodside in Leicester and say hello."
A link to Woodside Animal Centre can be found HERE.
Or you can call their (UK) rehoming centre number 01162 33667
If you want to email Woodside, please use [email protected]
Well, Parky seems to have the hang of the selfies alright, and I adore her rich markings. What do you all think?
Join me next week with another great guest selfie from the Woodside Cats.
To see what all my other pals in the Blogosphere are are up to this Sunday Selfie Blog Hop, please click the links below.
And now, this weeks chapter in our adventure!
(Suitable for ages 12+)Chapter 26
The customer lift bell heralded the arrival of the guests and security. The companion department staff were however not concerned by this as they knew the guests would have to await the royal party in Mr Herod’s lift.
The bell of Mr Herod’s personal elevator pinged differently to that of the customer lifts, and afforded the staff a moments warning of his arrival on any given floor. This morning however, the staff were ready and waiting and had, along with the companions, already passed inspection by the floor-walker, Mr James.
With the exception of the damage reputed to have been caused by a cat, Mr James was most pleased that morning to see that, despite his grumpiness and the telling off the day before, Mr Askew had completed the preparations and had once again more than surpassed expectations. The somewhat spartan temporary cages and kennels seen by Esme, had been replaced by delightful and enriching environments for all the companions. With the covers removed from their cages, the birds were now singing and twittering as they hopped from branch to branch exploring their new and rather expensive nest boxes, and an array of golden perches positioned amidst living foliage. As for the puppies, some were in the midst of a game of rough and tumble, whilst others played with interactive clockwork toys, or chewed at special teething treats. Any mess that had been apparent earlier, in the exotic animal area, had been cleared and a fresh vivarium containing an artificial spider, put in its place.
The large lift glided to a halt so gently that it wasn’t until the bell sounded and the doors slipped open that the royal party realised they had arrived.
Vinny and Jackson let Esme out first, as all well-bred dogs do, and then bounded after her, eager to escort this feline delight. However, they very quickly calmed down when they saw the gaze of the other guests was upon them. Esme looked around and about her for signs of Erin, or the kittens but she couldn’t see either anywhere.
The Royal party moved off out and across the floor, stopping periodically to look at the architecture and works of art along the way. Mr Herod had learnt the history of each item, and the value, though the latter he didn’t dare mention as it would have been grossly impolite to do so. Esme was looking around too, but now with a sudden melancholy in her heart as she felt that an absence of Erin meant that things had somehow gone wrong.
Jackson and Vinny had noticed the concern etched on her face, and whilst Mr Herod was in mid speech about a particularly fine bust of a roman goddess, they steered her to one side.
"Esme, Lady Esme, why the concern? This is such a wonderful day, yet you are so sad. I do hope I haven’t with my doggy manners caused you any offence?” asked Vinny, his tail drooping somewhat.
“Nor I too, ma’am,” piped in Jackson. “A southern gentlemandog hates to see a lady sad or upset. If it’s some cur then I will fight them for you, Wroof, yes I will. Even if it’s a fierce tomcat I shall cuff him and send him back to his mamma with his whiskers knotted and screaming like a cat on a hot tin roof! But I will make him apologise first. Grrrf, yes I will.”
“And I my Lady Esme," Vinny added. "I too will chase the scoundrel and…. and…. I’ll ask mamma to lock him up in the Tower of London, then off with his head like they did in the old days. And then get him to apologise too!” Both Vinny and Jackson nodded and wagged their tales with enthusiasm for the suggested punishments, and not having chased anything for a while were quite willing to demonstrate, they said, on the first available knave, should Esme wish.
Esme could not help but smile at her escorts defence of her honour and their kindness to the lady they saw before them. Would they still be so willing if they saw where she and her mamma lived? The yelping of a puppy, homeless and without its own mamma brought a tear to her eye and she sat and sobbed into her paws. The sudden despair and tragedy of her circumstances and her kittens and Erin’s risks spilled out of her in a wave that caught the two dogs unaware.
But these were not two usual dogs. These were dogs of action, who knew of political intrigue and would lead a nation with their human companions if need be. They knew what to do in a crisis, and the words and actions that counted.
“Lady Esme,” began Vinny. “I think I speak for both Jackson and I when I say that no matter your circumstances in the past, now, or in the future, you are a lady in need. There is wrong doing afoot and apaw, here, and we will help find those kittens and Erin too and sort the villains once and for all. Shall ask agent V over there in that black carrier, who’s my personal security agent, to be on the lookout and assist if required. Jackson point his paw at trolley not unlike that Erin had seen the child in the previous day. In this instance though, the trolley was screened in in a black netting. It was funny, Esme thought, that she had not noticed it or the lady that pushed it, before. She was dressed in a uniform not unlike Mrs Hudson’s, but hers was of a lighter weight cotton fabric, and a deep blue rather than a grey-blue.
Esme nodded in agreement, and Jackson padded off to the trolley. The lady lifted the netting and Esme saw that agent V was in fact a fluffy black Persian, with pale green/yellow eyes that reminded her of orchids she had seen in a magazine her mamma used in a dress design. She purred with thanks that she had some of the world’s best on her side. After a short exchange of words and Jackson returned and the trio re-joined the party that had started to move off again. Rather than walking beside their human companions, Jackson and Vinny wove their way through the displays on route, sniffing here and there to find a scent or a sighting of the kittens, but to no avail.
A short while later, and without further distractions from Mr Herod, the big moment had arrived and the Queen stood before the Companion area. Scissors in hand, the blades poised to cut, she posed with Mr Herod for a personal photograph of the big event. The photograph, like nearly all of those taken of her, would not make the newspapers. She valued her privacy, and in these early days of her reign she felt the press an extra burden, a pressure that she could not as yet cope with. In time she would accept these things she was sure, but for now she needed privacy, to mourn the passing of the old Queen and to come to terms with her duties and life ahead. The press for their part respected her wishes and in return were given special access to key events and occasions that the public would wish to see.
The flashbulb popped at just the moment the pink silk ribbon was cut, and made the guest blink in surprise, and then burst into genteel applause from guests and staff alike. With the ceremony really over, the Queen took a tour of the various companions, and showed her knowledge and love by explaining to the President the various species of birds, and breeds of rabbits. He in turn was able to explain about some of the spiders and lizards that were basking in the warmth of their heat lamps and the morning light that came through the large windows nearby. When it came to the puppies he surprised everyone by pointing out the best breed attributes for puppies, and hand rearing techniques. It all left the staff in wonderment as to how he found the time to do all he did, and foster and raise litters of puppies too.
To be continued........
