Which brings us to Rory, a rescue jumble of Lab, Pitbull, Chow, Boxer, Huskey and possibly Greyhound who began life in Texas but has lived in Cincinnati the last few weeks adjusting to her new home with mom Alyssa and her cat sister and brother, Tim and Coney, respectively.
Tim, the queen of the house, has been with Alyssa for 16 years. Growing up, Alyssa and her two brothers had multiple cats and dogs. One night, in high school, Alyssa’s mom, Pam, was driving her home from cheerleading practice when they saw something strange in the road.
“We assumed it was a mouse, but my mom got out to check. It turned out to be a tiny orange kitten with its eyes still shut,” Alyssa said. “My dad named it Tiny Tim. The first time we took Tim to the vet, the staff couldn’t tell what the genitals were but said most orange cats were boys and that girls were rare. We made an appointment for Tim to get neutered, but the vet called and said she would need a spay.”
Alyssa continued, “In 2019, a friend called me out of the blue, saying she found a stray cat and had no experience with them. She had the cat stay in her garage overnight. I got a very frantic call from her the next morning saying the cat had had kittens overnight! All the kittens died, one by one. The big orange tabby is now my baby. Coney is my shadow and we do absolutely everything together.”
Alyssa said she loves her two cats dearly and never thought she would want to add a dog to her family.
Then one Saturday this fall, she and her mom were at an adoption event at their local PetSmart. “I saw a particular dog and immediately changed my mind. Unfortunately, they told me that dog would not work in a home with cats. I told my friend Jordan and we began looking at all kinds of adoptable dogs online and on Facebook.”
Jordan is my daughter. She and Alyssa work together and are good friends
One day, Alyssa was looking on petfinder.com and saw Rory, or as she was named at the time, “Arya, The Gorgeous Smart Girl.”
Alyssa renamed the black and white spotted pup, Aurora Borealis Jo Miller or “Rory,” after her Grandmother Cathy Jo. Her family is originally from Marquette, MI. where you can see the Aurora Borealis or northern lights. Grandma Cathy and Alyssa would often watch the breath taking light shows together.
Rory was listed in Cincinnati, but when Alyssa contacted the rescue organization, she was told the dog was living in Texas.
The organization, the Three Little Pitties, helps rescue dogs and cats in Texas and sends them to foster homes and adopters throughout the country. Every two weeks one bus travels to the Northeast, another to the Northwest.
I was impressed with the thought the rescue puts in keeping the dogs and cats safe and comfortable on their travels. Each bus has two drivers and one caregiver dedicated to the needs of each animal.
Once Alyssa was approved to be Rory’s mom, the process began to get Rory on a bus and travel to Cincinnati to join her new family. The rescue continually posted where they were so Alyssa, her mom, and Jordan could follow along and know when to pick Rory up.
A few days later, they were meeting Rory’s bus in a Cincinnati Petco parking lot.
Alyssa has been mindful about giving Rory, Tim and Coney the time they need to adjust to each other. She stayed home the first day, keeping watch.
At first, the cats wouldn’t come near Rory. Over time, the older cat, Tim, has been much better.
Alyssa believes the reason may be that Tim is so much more accepting of Rory’s behaviors after growing up with two of Alyssa’s family’s dogs, Lucy and Molly.
Coney is slowly coming around to Rory being in “his” space. Alyssa makes sure he feels safe and protected, carrying him into whatever room the dog happens to occupy at a given time.
Both cats are learning that when Rory lunges at them she’s trying to engage them into playing with her.
Many trainers talk about slowly expanding a dog’s “space” when taking walks or just playing in the backyard. Alyssa has been following this advice. She started walking Rory short distances and then slowly expanded. Now they walk the whole neighborhood daily.
Rory learned the first day where her bed, kennel and toys were. Alyssa has her on a routine feeding schedule.
Alyssa understood why Rory’s foster mom called her a “smart girl” when she learned to open her kennel. She keeps her busy learning manners like “sit” and “wait” as well as tricks like spinning.
Adopting Rory has been a lot of work and time getting her adjusted to her new “space” and her cats, but Alyssa says it’s been completely worth it.
Karin Spicer is a member of the Dog Writers Association of America and the Cat Writer’s Association. She can be reached at Karinspicer@gmail.com.
Where to start your rescue pet adoption journey
2. rescueme.org
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