Conference misery::feline

760.0. "The Dog Who Rescues Cats" by SOLVIT::FLMNGO::WHITCOMB () Fri May 20 1994 10:15

This article appeared in the June, 1994 issue of Good Housekeeping.  It's a
bit long, but I thought everyone would enjoy reading it.

THE DOG WHO RESCUES CATS

Some dogs are wonderful because they're good with children; others because
they're fun.  But tucked away in a small town on Long Island, in New York,
there's an especially wonderful dog named Ginny who's made it her mission 
in life to rescue abandoned and needy cats.  And in doing this, she created
a kind of family for her 43-year-old bachelor owner, Philip Gonzalez.

It started three years ago, when Philip decided he needed a "companion."  He
went to the local shelter in search of a dog, but, Philip says, "Ginny found
me.  She ran right over and started licking my hand."

She was about a year old, an odd mixture of a Siberian husky and a schnauzer
and clearly very loving.  How could Philip resist?

It didn't take much time for Philip to discover Ginny likes cats.  "I took
her for a walk at four o'clock one morning," he remembers.  "The streets
were deserted, except for a stray cat.  Ginny really wanted to get close to
it.  She just kept whimpering until I let her go right up to the cat.  The
next thing I knew, they were kissing each other!

"When I took Ginny home, she started whimpering again.  And I thought maybe
she wanted me to feed the cat.  So I got out a can of dog food (I didn't
have any cat food), and Ginny and I went back out again.  She took me right
to where the cat was.  I put down the food, and--out of nowhere--four or
five stray cats came out and started eating."

They began feeding the strays regularly.  Philip believes Ginny was
sympathetic to the cats' plight because she'd had a rough life herself.  He'd
been told her previous owner couldn't afford to feed Ginny.  When the woman
was evicted from her home, workers found the dog and three of her pups
locked in a closet--and starving.  That's when Ginny was taken to the shelter.
Now, Philip says, she wants to help other animals in need.

But just feeding the strays wasn't enough for Ginny.

One day, about three months later after Ginny had come home with him, Philip
took her for a drive.  They passed the shelter and Ginny started whimpering
and barking.  "I decided to take her into the shelter for a visit," says
Philip.  "That's when she saw Madame, a beautiful blue-eyed white cat.  It 
was love at first sight."

Philip adopted Madame and discovered later that she's totally deaf.  He 
suspected that Ginny knew it all along.

Philip and Ginny started visiting the shelter about once a week.  On one
visit, Ginny fell in love again, this time with Revlon, a small, orange-and-
white cat.  She has only one eye.  Philip had no intention of getting another
cat, but..."Ginny chose Revlon," he says.

Philip added an abandoned stray - Vogue - to the family.  Next came Betty
Boop, who had no rear feet.  Ginny was thrilled to have another impaired cat
to take care of.

One time, Ginny made Philip follow her into an abandoned building.  She
stopped in front of a long pipe that was standing on one end and started
whimpering.  When Philip didn't respond, she pushed the pipe down--and five
kittens came tumbling out.

He found homes for two of the kittens and took in the other three.  "I
think Ginny wanted the kittens--Tiger, Spot, and Caesar--to mother because
her puppies were taken from her," Philip says.

After about a year, Philip was still feeding the strays, whose ranks had
swollen to about 40.  He started catching them whenever he could and taking
them to a vet to have them neutered and given their shots.  (All this at his
own expense--he estimates he's spent about $3,000 on the strays.)  Next, he'd
find them homes.  All told, he's managed to arrange 30 adoptions.  "I had
become an animal-rescue person," he says, "and it was all because of Ginny."

It wasn't over yet, though.  Philip and Ginny were out for another walk near
the abandoned building when Ginny started whimpering again.  Philip let go
of her leash; Ginny ran into the building and came out a minute later holding
a small cat in her mouth.  When she put it down at Philip's feet, he realized
the cat couldn't walk.

Philip thought the newcomer had fallen off a roof, but the vet said she was
brain damaged and had never been able to walk.  So Philip named her Topsy
and added her to their household.

Their ninth--and, so far, last--cat is Jasmine, a stray that was badly
injured in a fight.  Philip had her patched up and brought her home.  Ginny
got busy nursing and grooming her, and today Jasmine's fine.

What's next for Ginny and Philip?  "I guess I'll go on taking in more and more
of the animals Ginny brings home," Philip sighs.  "It makes Ginny happy."

How does Philip know Ginny's happy?  "She smiles," he answers.  "She cuddles
next to me, she cuddles next to the cats, and they cuddle next to both of us.
Then we call feel good.  We're just a big, happy family.

    
    
    	sniff...
    
    	what a great story!
    

    That IS a great story.  Brought tears to my eyes.  
    
    Steffi
    

    How refreshing - especially since we've recently heard about some
    really awful things happening to animals!  Guess there are still some
    "decent" people out there in the world! 
    
    Thanks for postig the story!! 

    Some dogs have a real affinity for cats.  I adopted an abused and
    neglected dog.  The only time he would respond to anything was when a
    cat wandered into view - he'd perk up his ears and wag his tail.  He
    lives peacefully with 2 cats and 2 other dogs in my household.  But he
    likes the cats the best : )
    I love this story.  Guess Ginny was one of "us" in her previous life!
    Sarah

    Loved the story....hmmmmm makes me wonder if Ginny lives near
    me and he's the one bringing me all the strays!!!
    
    Sandy

    I can just picture Ginny now...  What a great story.  This 
    almost sounds like something Disney could do!  Proof that dogs
    and cats do get along.
    Karen

    Great Story. Great dog. Great person...
    Thanks for the share. I just yesterday found a dead kitty on the road
    again. I needed some good news.
    Nat

    
    Sounds like she should have been named Lassie...