Many of you have been asking how dear little Coco has fared after her surgery and long rehabilitation period. Read about our plea at the time click here
I'm pleased to let you know that she is thoroughly enjoying her rural lifestyle in Kumeu with her every need catered for by her new caregivers. When I asked how Coco was coming along, Hazel and Glyn invited me to visit for a cup of tea and sent the wonderful update below:
"When Coco appeared on the Animal Re-homing website we responded with a donation to help, as it was clear she deserved a second chance. At that stage she had a prospective new home, and we certainly weren't looking for a third cat. When her new home fell through, we decided to offer her the chance of a life in the country and went down the road of ‘proving' ourselves to Linda. We must have passed, because we then progressed to the adoption phase. This wasn't a quick process as Coco faced a lengthy recuperation under vet care.
We finally took her home but she still needed weeks of cage confinement. We arranged daily visits of family and friends to keep her company when we were at work as she craved attention. Coco was returned to the vet for her checkup, but we were advised that the pin should stay in place for another two weeks.
On Christmas Eve the pin was finally removed (See photo). Even though we had seen the x-rays we were still shocked at the length of it. She was put on cage rest for a further week, where she received a steady stream of visitors over Christmas weekend ... after all, humans were obviously only there for her entertainment and enjoyment.
As the days and weeks passed, the movement in her leg improved and her #1 fur clip was gradually replaced by a luxurious coat . However, we were still not sure how she would fit in with the rest of the menagerie. Coco has since made friends with one of our cats (the other is rarely home), is used to the chicken, our big dog, pet ducks – even horses and cattle. She is convinced that everyone and everything must love her, so we have to watch she doesn't venture too close to some of the bigger animals.
We do wonder whether Coco should really have been named Paris. She would suit lolling around in a Remuera mansion, holidaying at some $300-a-day cattery or receiving make-over treatments at the local cat spa; but instead has taken to country life on our 14-acre block with great gusto. She explores far and wide, returning to the house to be "de-leaved' as most of the garden seems to stick to her fur, gaining a nick-name of "Velcro-cat".
She bounds around the place with only a slight limp and taunts our 10-year-old cat Schuey to play tag. She revels in cuddles and pats with an “it's all about me" attitude. A long haired, high maintenance exotic is not your typical or ideal 'farm' cat ... but we love her to bits. So is this a happy ending ...? We think".
Glyn and Hazel