Cats and dogs rule at pet adoption center

MANATEE COUNTY – Lynn Vilandrie was trying to fill out the form to take home an adorable orange-striped cat named Newton, but Sugie was trying to send her a message.

Shannon Calvert, the head adoption counselor, with two of the 60 cats at the Honor Sanctuary.

"Take me, take me!" he might have been saying. Sugie, a black cat, kept climbing into Vilandrie's lap, started swatting at the pen as she filled out the form and generally made a feline nuisance of himself.

Vilandrie, of Bradenton, was sitting in a small room at Honor Sanctuary, a pet adoption center in a shopping center at University Parkway and Cooper Creek Boulevard. The room is one of several where prospective pet adopters get to know their new four-legged friends and play with them before deciding if they're going to come home, eat lots of food, and sleep on the bed, the table and the couch.

Occasionally, other cats walked in to try to get her attention. "I feel like the Pied Piper over here," she said with a laugh.

Her cat died on New Year's Day, she said. "She died in my arms," Vilandrie said. "She was an old kitty, she was 18 years old."

"It's just too lonely in the house" without a cat. Or two? Maybe, Vilandrie said. In the meantime, the black cat "is giving Newton a run for his money."

So volunteer Dari Oglesby went out and retrieved Newton so Vilandrie could pose for a picture or two with her new friend, while Sugie cruised around underfoot. He's one cat that's determined to go home with someone.

That's a typical day, Oglesby said, with people coming in for a visit, and sometimes leaving with a cat or dog. They adopt out about 10 cats and dogs a week.

Plenty to choose from

Shannon Calvert, the floor manager and head adoption counselor, said the center has 60 cats on site and 100 in foster homes for medical reasons, the cats are too little or there's not enough room at the store; there are 11 dogs, with 40 dogs and puppies at another location and more in foster homes.

About 300 animals have been adopted since the organization began.

Lynn Vilandrie holds Newton in one of the rooms at the shelter where people can see if a cat is compatible with them.

Most of the cats are from the animal shelter, or people will their cats to the organization. Some cannot take care of the pet any more and turn it over to them, but that's hard now because they're so full.

The current economy has created a huge need for new homes for pets, she said, and sometimes they find dogs tied to posts outside the storefront with notes.

The storefront, donated by local developer Nate Benderson, attracts crowds, she said. People walking past love to look in the windows even when the place is closed just to watch the cats and dogs. You have to watch your step inside because there are cats underfoot, cats in their cages, cats sleeping in kitty beds and atop nearly anything flat.

The store opened Dec. 8, and then moved to the current location. The organization pays no rent, just utilities. "He's very generous," Calvert said of Benderson.

Though occasionally a dog barks, and sometimes two cats get all puffed up and start snarling, mostly the animals maintain the decorum. Still, if you're not careful you'll find a cat rubbing against your leg and meowing, hoping you'll be their next mom or dad.

There's some measure of impulse buying, Calvert admitted, but there is a process to be followed before anyone can take a dog or cat home. New pet owners have to fill out a form, undergo a references check, sign a contract and they can leave with a cat if the checks are finished while they're in the store.

There's often a bias against adopting full-grown cats, Calvert said, and that's a shame. "The thing about the full-grown cats is we already know their temperament, where kittens, we don't know for sure," she said. "So if you're interested in something, we can already tell you if he loves dogs or its reactions to things."

Another problem is that people are still biased against black cats, and the Honor Sanctuary has plenty of those. "They think that they don't have any personality and they don't have the stripes or they're not colorful," Calvert said. "Black is dominant. A lot of times you have at least one black cat in a litter. But they're the most curious cats. A lot of times if we get a new toy, they're the first to check it out, they're the first ones to explore, they're the most adventurous."

The adoption fee for cats is $85 – more for a purebred – and $150 for dogs ($300 for a purebred). What you get is an animal that has been spayed or neutered, has lived in a clean environment with lots of love and affection, and is well-behaved.

Addison Waimann, almost 2, entertains two cats while Roxy, a dog, sniffs her hair.

They can't do "2-for-1 deals" on cats or dogs or offer discounts, Calvert said. "What we put into these animals, and we rescue dogs with heartworms, which would a person $1,000 or something, we might adopt it out for $150," she said. "We do run specials on occasion."

Volunteers are needed to cuddle and play with the cats to get them used to being around people a lot.

A few times, people have returned pets – usually dogs – Oglesby said, because they can't handle the animal. But that's very rare. If a person lives in the house or apartment with someone, Calvert said, they require all residents to come in to make sure everyone's OK with the new pet so that returns don't happen.

A new little friend?

Addison Waimann, "nearly 2; 21 months," her mother said, sat on the floor and waved around a little pole with a string and a toy on the end, something designed to drive felines wild. She laughed as one cat watched as the toy swung to the left and right, and then made a leap for it.

Amber Waimann said she's thinking of adopting a cat and wanted to see how her daughter could handle being around one, and to find one that could deal with Addison.

Meanwhile, Janice Day and Frank Monti, a married couple from Osprey, got to know Roxy, a 1-year-old mixed-breed dog. They have a cat at home, and Roxy seemed to be fine with all the cats around, an important detail.

"We like this dog, we like the size, we like that it's a year old and housebroken," Monti said. "That's one good advantage of getting a dog from a shelter, plus the fact that there's too many dogs that need rescuing."

They've been in the store looking for the right dog, and Monti said he thinks Roxy is the one.

It took some time to get Roxy settled down for a prospective family photo, and it looked like the dog would soon be heading to his new home with his new owners. Everyone looked happy.

Sensitive noses welcome

The first thing a visitor might notice on entering the Honor Sanctuary is the smell, or lack thereof. Volunteers said it's a tribute to the one paid staffer who does all the cleaning that there is no smell such as might be found in a place with only a few animals.

Frank Monti and Janice Day with Roxy, a dog they are considering adopting.

The cleanliness extends to the floors and the cages, and the litter boxes were clean, too.

The noise level was getting a little high and Oglesby sought a quiet place to continue the interview, so she opened the door to one of the rooms and entered carefully. Inside was a "kitty condo" with four small kittens packed together, though they soon were out and about.

These are from the same litter, she said, but are too young to be adopted. In addition, they haven't been spayed or neutered yet. When they weigh enough, they'll visit the vet, then go out onto the main floor and maybe find a home.

Volunteer help wanted

The place is very short-staffed, and all sorts of help is needed, included the aforementioned cuddlers.

There's a thrift store at 3518 53^rd Ave. W. (State Road 70) in the Winn-Dixie plaza, which helps to raise money for the place. It's open Tuesday to Saturday from noon to 4 p.m., and it will expand hours as it grows.

Kathy Hanselman, the manager of the store, said they're looking for quality donations.

They could use more pet adopters and shoppers at the thrift store.

The place may be full right now, but Oglesby said it's better to be selective about who adopts a pet.

"The last thing we want to do is adopt out a cat and have it come back a couple days later," she said. "It's too hard on the animals. It puts them in a deep depression. As adoption counselors, we make sure all those questions will be asked."

The shelter is a no-kill place, and it's a joy to see an animal leave, Oglesby said. "Especially a dog, because you can see more emotion. They run out of the parking lot on that leash and into the car."