Peaches was once a young man’s cherished cat, along with another cat friend. Then life happened and he married a woman with a toddler. They soon got a big dog and found themselves expecting another child.

A sweet human toddler can be a monster to a small cat, as can a big dog, relentless in their chasing and manhandling. No one thought to help the dog or the toddler learn to be gentle with the cats, so soon they found themselves part of The Forsaken, cats who are literally pushed out of the family and terrorized so they never come out from under the bed.

Both cats were given away, but another year and another toddler later, they turned up several hours away in Golden. Many of Peaches’ teeth were pulled there, including her upper canines, leaving her with a sweetly goofy smile.

Back they came to the family, who found a home for her friend but not for her. So back she went under the bed. Another friend intervened on Peaches’ behalf and she came to us at Happy Cats.

Although loving, she was a little shy and tended to stay up high, above the bustle and certainly away from any children who might visit.

Along came Patricia and Tom, who were looking for a sweet cat to match their new retirement. We weren’t sure if Peaches would ever be completely comfortable, but they took the chance.

Patricia came to one of our Click with Your Cat classes, thinking the training might give Peaches something to do. She was delighted to find that Peaches adored training and quickly learned lots of tricks, including High Fives, Sit Pretties, Kisses, Twirls and jumping through a hoop!

Now instead of hiding, Peaches runs to meet people at the door, ready for petting and laptime, if they stay long enough. She even became our Kitty Ambassador for Every Cat Has a Tale at the Pikes Peak Library District, visiting the branches and doing her tricks once she got over the excitement of being in a new place.

To our surprise, she even like the children, as long as they didn’t chase her!

So don’t believe it when they say you can’t teach an old(er) cat new tricks…Peaches is here to tell you it’s all about giving them a chance to be the best cats they can be! Click below to see how what a fun partnership she and Patricia have.

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