Cupcake had a big outing this weekend. Knowing she had lots of admirers to greet, she took a big bath beforehand to be sure her whites were gleaming.
Cupcake, interrupted mid-bath. You can see she was working on cleaning her back leg from its awkward position in the photo.
We went to the pet store to pick up some cat litter. The local shelter who has cats in their adoption center had a puppy adoption event going on. Cupcake was not at all impressed by the noisy puppies. She also was obviously not afraid of them.
One of the volunteers staffing the adoption booth saw this and walked over to us and asked, “Have you considered making your cat into a therapy cat?” It turned out this was the coordinator for the shelter’s therapy animal program. While Cupcake kept an eye on the puppies and a loose parakeet flying around the store, we talked for a long time about their testing program and requirements for therapy animals.
As much as I would like her to be, I’m not convinced that Cupcake would be a good therapy cat, but I am really excited to find that there is a local program who welcomes therapy cat teams. We have plenty of time for her to grow into her adult personality to see whether it’s a good fit for her.
After we finished at the pet store, we went to Starbucks to take advantage of the mild weather. As soon as we sat down, a fire truck pulled up right next to the patio, its air brakes hissing loudly as it came to a stop.
The fire truck idled loudly as two of the firefighters got out to get a sandwich at the shop next door. One of Cupcake’s barista friends brought the firefighter in the truck their coffee. I guess they have to do that since the truck won’t fit in the drive through.
Cupcake was not happy with the truck being so close by. But she was very brave and didn’t try to hide from it, either.
She may have been very brave about it, but Cupcake was also very glad to see the fire truck leave again so she could have her peace and quiet back on the patio!
Between the puppies and the fire truck, Cupcake was ready to have her reward. Her barista friends helped out with and made sure her reward was a sweet one.
We try not to make Cupcake’s outings quite so stressful, but having her see new sights and learn they aren’t too scary helps her for the next time she encounters those things. Cats are biologically programmed to be cautious, so I am proud of seeing how brave she is becoming with time and experience.
