Every cat who comes to Protectors of Animals is on a journey. Some journeys are longer than others. 

Duncan came to us in April 2024. We were told that he’d been outside for a year or two. His people had moved away and left him. Some people in the neighborhood fed him occasionally, and someone had arranged to have him neutered and ear tipped. But nobody wanted to take him in. 

Duncan learned to survive outside. He learned how to stay warm. He learned how to avoid predators. He learned how to be the toughest cat in the area. But Duncan remembered human connection. He wanted it, even though he was afraid of it. 

Duncan started coming onto the porch and into the basement of a specific home. He just wanted to hang out near the people. But they didn’t want him. They didn’t even want him living in their yard. They certainly didn’t want him on their porch. They dragged him out of their basement and somehow got him in a carrier. They took him to several rescues. Duncan spit. He hissed. He lunged and tried to bite. The rescues didn’t want him. 

When Duncan was brought to POA, we were told that he was a girl (we initially named him Daisy) and that if we did not accept him, the next stop was to have him euthanized. We tried to change their minds. They were resolute. Either we were going to take him or he was going to be euthanized. So we reluctantly said yes.

For months- literally months- Duncan hissed and lunged and spit at us. If we tried to put a hand anywhere near him, he hit us. Hard. He was happy to be fed, and he quickly learned the schedule, but Duncan’s attitude was best described as willing to leave us alone if we left him alone. And for a while that’s pretty much what we did. We talked to him and offered him toys and food, but we didn’t push.

Duncan became comfortable. He learned to play. Gradually Duncan’s need for human connection started to reassert itself. He started to greet his favorite volunteers. He might wind around your legs when you came in. We learned that if you approached him when he was in his favorite bed you could pet him. He loved it as long as he couldn’t see your hand coming at his face. (And yes, we suspect that his fear of hands coming towards him means that he was hit at some point before he came to us.)

We made him available for adoption. We were honest about how difficult Duncan could be, but also about how much potential he had, how smart he was, what a survivor he was. People mentioned him when they came in to adopt. But nobody applied for him.

We kept working with Duncan and he kept surprising us. He decided he liked to climb in laps and be read aloud to- if you followed a specific routine that made him feel safe. And once in your lap, Duncan would stay for as long as you let him. Hours.  He would purr. He would let you pet his head. Duncan also developed some dental issues and let us know that he was willing to trust us enough to be medicated and ultimately have a painful tooth extracted. 

By this time, Duncan had been with us for over a year. He was a true volunteer favorite. He had his own bed and his own blankets and volunteers who sat with him every day. But still, nobody wanted him.

Until someone did. 

Corinne applied specifically for Duncan. She wanted an independent cat who would be okay when she worked occasionally long shifts. She also had a soft spot for the cats who were hard to adopt. She didn’t expect Duncan to be easy. But she wanted to meet him.

We set up a special appointment in the evening with no other adopters around.  We told her all about Duncan. About him being abandoned. About him trying to connect and being dragged away. About how hard he was with us. And about how proud we were of him for how much he had learned to trust. We also showed her what worked for us with Duncan. Corinne listened and asked good questions. She understood the difficulties and was still interested.

Corinne confided that she expected to take Duncan home without ever having been able to touch him. She was ready for that. (She had even purchased bite proof gloves just in case). But that isn’t what happened. When Corinne did what we suggested, Duncan climbed into her lap. And stayed. 

There was a clear connection. She told us that Duncan was her cat. She wanted him. Duncan went home with Corinne in May. She sent us a video the first night of him nuzzling her. She sent us a one week update in which she explained that he is still nervous about hands, but that Duncan’s only issue with personal space seems to be that he has decided that she is his person and therefore she is his space. She said that she loves the snuggles and head butts. She sent an update after several months telling us how affectionate he is and how she’s been able to even give him his first bath.

Every cat who comes to Protectors of Animals is on a journey. Some journeys are longer than others. Duncan’s journey was long and arduous. But now he’s home. He found his person and she found him. And that is the kind of happily ever after that we dream of.

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