When we first met Samson and Delilah, they were 10 years old and living on top of a refrigerator. Yep, that’s what we said. They were a gorgeous pair of pure-white cats: Delilah’s eyes were a beautiful blue (like many blue-eyed white cats, she was deaf), and Samson had one green and one blue eye. The person who surrendered them told us her ex-boyfriend had abandoned them with her several years earlier. But she had a couple of large Rottweilers who didn’t love cats, so they rarely got to come down off their narrow perch.
Even worse, Samson had broken his jaw four years earlier and the pin was never taken out (!), so he’d spent four years with metal in his mouth (you can see it in the first photo – he’s on the left). He was terribly skinny because eating was so painful. BAA got Samson the medical care he needed and placed the pair in a foster home. It turned out that the years of enforced closeness had not made them best friends, although their individual personalities were lovely. So BAA found them separate homes. Samson got adopted first, by Esther and her kitty Rosie; a year later, Delilah found her forever home with Stephanie and Joseph.
Samson’s mom adores him; she says he’s really affectionate and loves cuddles and sleeping with her. He’s also had a wonderful influence on Rosie, who was a terrified semi-feral when Esther adopted her. “She started following Samson’s example on how to interact with humans, like meowing for food or giving affectionate headbutts, and now the two of them are inseparable.” When Esther had to be away from her kitties for an extended period, Samson stayed with Esther’s sister, who sent her photos every day. Esther missed them so much she got a tattoo of them “out of separation anxiety!”
Delilah’s new family says she’s “an absolute treasure! She is so affectionate and loves to snuggle in our laps while we are working. She sleeps in between us and is the best kind of blanket at night.” Delilah’s deafness isn’t a problem: “We can tap on the ground to get her attention or waft her food towards her at dinnertime and she is immediately aware of us!”
Samson and Delilah’s adopters gave these traumatized kitties a second chance at life, and discovered that adopting older cats can be a wonderfully rewarding experience. We’re so happy for all of them!
