APRIL

GEMMA

GEMMA AT HER PROFESSIONAL PHOTOSHOOT

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Joie now Gemma was rescued from a farm in Hanover. Within days of coming into MHS care- she gave birth to 3 beautiful orange and dilute calico kittens. She raised her babies in the most incredible and loving foster home.

Funny enough, I actually wasn't even supposed to work the day she and the other kitties were brought into Ren's! Because it was so soon after my who I like to refer to as my soul dog, Fluffy, passed away, I was having a really rough time, and as much as being around animals made me feel better, it also made me miss my girl after 19 years together. I picked up the shift because I figured it was better to get out of the house and force myself to interact with people rather than just say home and be sad. Clearly it worked out for me this way!

I fell in love with her the moment I saw her because of her beautiful colours, but every time I walked by her throughout the day, just doing my job, she'd perk up and give me a little meow. If I was standing by the table chatting with someone, she'd watch me with her little tongue poking out and I was already thinking of how to convince my mother to let me bring her home!! I made sure to give her the whole guilt trip of "she's just a baby!! she had babies of her own and she's so tiny!!!" When she came into the store to pick me up later in the evening and saw Gemma for herself, she was sold!

When we brought her home, my other dog, Cookie, was still with us as well as my cat, Loki, but Gemma had no fear at all! She was happy to run around and explore the house, but being a mamma herself, if one of the other animals got too close, she knew how to tell them to back off and give her space! This was what encouraged us to change her name to Gemma. Gemma Teller-Morrow (played by Katey Sagal!) is the name of one of the main characters of the show Sons of Anarchy; she's the badass matriarch of a biker gang, and absolutely no one will mess with her! ❤

For the few months Cookie was still with us, she and Gemma were constantly playing, batting at each other with their paws, and running around the house. Loki was less interested in playing as I feel the dogs would gang up on him sometimes. However, in the past year since Cookie has passed and it's only been Gemma and Loki, Loki has practically become a whole different cat, too! He injured his foot as a kitten and it really stunted his confidence; he doesn't jump or climb things, but will rather claw his way up onto things like the bed for example. Now, they run around the house and parkour off of things like maniacs. Gemma is the best (worst? ?), and has set paths carved out for herself in our apartment. It's like a little race track, sprinting around corners, leaping off the couches, a kick off the side of my bed, it's never a dull moment in this apartment! Aside from their racing, they play wrestle all the time — but Loki is a big boy so sometimes it sounds like an earthquake!

Since I brought her home, besides becoming even more playful and really growing into her forever kitten personality, she's become my best friend. She's attached to my hip, follows me anywhere I go, — including the shower! — sleeps at my side every night, greets me every morning with her little baby meows, brings me her toys — and trinkets she steals from my family! — to show off, etc. Sometimes I call her a puppy, as her favourite toys are wicker balls, and more importantly, she likes to steal things off my shelves and chew on them. Even hard plastic action figures!

I can honestly say she's changed my life for the better since finding me in the midst of such an awful time. I often say she was sent to me by Fluffy as they have the same personality. From following me everywhere, to playing fetch, to demanding belly rubs every 30 seconds (have you ever seen a cat that loves belly rubs?!?! ?). I don't know what I would do without her. ❤