Bunty & Pixie

About Bunty & Pixie

Pixie and Bunty are two very special girls who have been with us for a long time. They are sisters with very similar personalities and, although they aren’t always joined at the hip, we feel strongly that they would benefit from finding their forever home together.

Both girls came to us having been born in a family home, but despite this, they had had very little experience of being handled and arrived extremely frightened and almost feral in their behaviour around people.

Pixie remains particularly nervous. Her first instinct when she is frightened is to run and hide rather than approach people, and she can still find being handled very stressful. She has to be caught when she needs health checks or veterinary treatment, so her new family would need to be comfortable with this and have plenty of patience and understanding.

Bunty is a little more confident and is slightly easier to handle. With lots and lots of time and patience, she has learned that people aren’t so scary and will now enjoy cuddles once she feels safe. We think that, given the right environment, she could continue to build her confidence and become much more comfortable with her new family.

Pixie has also made progress with us and we have been able to stroke her, but she can be very easily overwhelmed. Last year, when we had lots of kittens coming into the main room where the girls lived, they became extremely stressed. They started hiding on top of the cabinets and would only eat and use the toilet up there. It was clear that the busy environment was simply too much for them, so we moved them into a much quieter room with our FIV boys.

The difference has been huge. They are no longer hiding away to eat or use the toilet, and having that quiet, predictable environment has really helped them.

This has shown us just how important the right home will be for these two. They need somewhere very quiet, calm and peaceful, where they won’t be surrounded by lots of noise, visitors or constant changes.

They have never lived outdoors, so we are looking for a special indoor home for them. A secure catio would be wonderful, particularly as they both enjoy going outside to sunbathe, but this isn’t essential. A secure conservatory or another safe, sunny space would also be lovely.

We would ideally like them to find an adult-only home with somebody who has the patience to let them settle completely at their own pace. This isn’t going to be a case of taking them home and having two cuddly cats on the sofa that evening. They may hide. They may take a long time to trust you. They may never become traditional lap cats.

But that doesn’t mean they don’t deserve a wonderful home.

With enough time, patience and consistency, we believe Bunty could become a lovely cuddly companion, while Pixie has already shown us that she can learn to accept gentle contact when she feels safe. They simply need somebody willing to understand that progress may happen in tiny steps.

These girls aren’t the easiest cats to rehome, and we know we’re asking for a very specific home. But being frightened and timid doesn’t make them any less deserving of a safe, loving forever home. We’d love to find someone who can see the potential in them and give them the chance they’ve been waiting for.

Likes

Each other

Quiet, peaceful surroundings

Familiar routines

Safe, comfortable spaces

Sunbathing

Having access to a sunny catio or conservatory

Gentle attention once they feel safe

Being allowed to take things at their own pace

Dislikes

Noise and busy environments

Lots of people

Kittens running around!

Sudden changes

Being rushed

Being handled before they are ready

Stressful situations

Health

Pixie and Bunty have no significant ongoing health problems and receive their regular yearly health checks. They can be very frightened when they need to be caught for veterinary appointments, so their new family would need to be patient and understanding about this.

Both girls have experienced stress-related urinary problems in the past, particularly during the period when the kittens caused them so much stress. This is something their new family should be aware of, particularly during potentially stressful events such as moving house or building work.

Keeping their environment calm and predictable will be an important part of keeping them happy and healthy.

Before Pixie and Bunty go to their new home, they will be spayed, microchipped and vaccinated, with flea and worm treatment kept up to date, and they will both have a full health check.

We’ll also provide you with a full copy of their veterinary records to keep for your own records when they go off to their new home.

As written by Farplace Animal Rescue.