Tuffy Update

Remember Tuffy? He's the cat who moved uninvited into our Cloverdale, B.C., house about six months before we moved to Costa Rica. We became attached to him and he to us so we did not want to just abandon him when we left.

We were bringing our cat, Genny, with us but had no wish to bring a second cat. To the rescue - my niece and her husband in Toronto, Ontario. We air shipped Tuffy to them and he adopted them as his own in no time.

An interesting aside to the Tuffy story - we were convinced Tuffy was female but it turned out he was not!

Here is a recent photo of Tuffy living the very good life in Toronto, Ontario. Thank you, Stephanie and Dave.

Photography: S.J. Kalinowski

 

 

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Another Tuffy Update

For those of you who may not have been following my Costa Rica blog since I started it (about a year ago), Tuffy is a stray cat who appeared in our Cloverdale, B.C.,  home backyard. We thought Tuffy was a female and also a fighter -  she had scars on her head and one broken fang. Somehow, this cat wormed her way into our home, aligning herself with our cat, Genny (I think cats are expert at this). I was only hoping she was not carrying kittens along with herself.

We all got attached to her - a lot. I tried to find out who her owners might be - delivering bulletins to over 100 of our neighbors, no response. We had her ear tattoo checked out at our vet but it didn't lead anywhere.

When it came time for us to move to Costa Rica, we knew we were bringing Genny with us but to bring another cat was out of the question. Tuffy's next move was going to be to a cat shelter.

To the rescue: my fantastic niece and her equally fantastic husband in Toronto, Ontario! Tuffy flew Air Canada direct from Vancouver International Airport to Toronto International and met her new family, niece, nephew-in-law, great nephew twin boys, and the very lovely resident cat, Rocky (aka Rockstar).

A quick health checkup trip to the vet revealed the surprising news: Tuffy was a neutered male! So I guess we need to review those wall charts showing how the sexes differ. Six months on, Tuffy is living the life of, well, Tuffy ... and here is a very recent photo of The Tuffy living la pura vida in Toronto.

Breaking News!!!

Tuffy went to the vet today to be vaccinated, dewormed, chipped and apparently have a sex change operation.

Yes, it turns out Tuffy is really a boy and not a girl! I swear I saw nothing to indicate that. Neither did my husband or my sister (who is a nurse, she ought to know these things).

It's not like we are entirely ignorant on these matters. Our Siamese cat, Mat, had very definite, albeit, tiny gonads but they were there.

Huh, just when you think you know everything ....

Come Fly With Me

Tuffy is now an Ontario cat. The last report I had on her was yesterday and she was eating and using the litter box but, as my niece says, "Swiffering under the bed". She is being kept in a quiet room for now to get used to new people and surroundings.

She was a good girl about riding in the carrier to the airport - lots of complaining but she settled down somewhat. I felt bad leaving her with the agents but they were ooohing over her so she was in good hands. I hope the flight was smooth for her. Here's a picture of the exact moment when Tuffy touched down in Toronto:

For a stray cat with a broken fang, torn ears and fight scars, she is so fortunate to have a wonderful family right across Canada. Numerous relatives of mine offered to adopt her/considered adopting her so here's a big shout out to everyone in my family - you are champs! And thank you Steph and Dave for taking her in.

Interesting observation: our cat Genny seems happy to have the house to herself again. She was unusually active and affectionate yesterday!