'Very Friendly' Beatrice Is Huntington Adoptable Pet Of The Week

HUNTINGTON, NY — Beatrice, a 7-year-old female cat, is the Grateful Paw Cat Shelter's Huntington Pet of the Week.

Beatrice went to the shelter with a "very sad story," but the rescue is hoping someone will adopt her for a "very happy ending."

"We received an urgent message from another rescue about a situation on Fire Island," said Debbi Larkin, president of the shelter. "There were 64 adults and 20 kittens that needed placement...was there any way we could help? Of course we said 'yes' and started the conversations and paperwork to get these cats the help they needed."

Three adult cats joined the shelter on Aug. 23, and they were all adopted in less than three weeks.

"We didn’t have enough time to even get them featured in the Patch," Larkin said. "When we received a call last week whether could we help with two more adults, we immediately told the other rescue to bring them to us and we would get them settled in…and that is how Beatrice joined the rest of our crew."

Beatrice is the sister of one of the first three cats the shelter helped, and she has the same personality as her brother, according to Larkin.

Beatrice, a white cat with tabby markings on her head, back and tail, weighed in at 14-and-a-half pounds. She is still quite agile for her size, Larkin said.

"Beatrice is very friendly and very sure of herself, much like her brother, but not quite so 'in your face' as her brother, Lando, was," Larkin said. "She is just fine around other cats (even though she would like to be the one and only QUEEN) and gets along with dogs. She doesn’t really play with any toys, but loves to be the center of attention and if you sit down next to her she will climb up on your lap and encourage you to start petting her. She is very curious about her surroundings and loves to look out the window to watch the birds and squirrels in the yard."

Beatrice has been vetted, has had all of her vaccines, been spayed, litter box trained, tested negative for FELV but positive for FIV.

"The FIV+ testing should not scare you or be a problem for you or her," Larkin said. "As long as she stays indoors and is up to date with yearly checkups and vaccines she can live a long, healthy life. And she can live with other cats..as you can see from her previous living condition and now that she is in the shelter."

If you are interested in meeting Beatrice, you may call the shelter at 631-757-4517, email cats@laphuntington.org, visit the Facebook page or visit at the Grateful Paw Cat Shelter.

The rescue is at 3 Verleye Ave., East Northport, and visiting hours are Tuesday through Sunday from noon to 4 p.m.

The shelter is also open from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday nights only for those who cannot make it during the daytime hours.

The shelter will also be at the upcoming Huntington Fall Festival on Oct. 7 and Oct. 8, and if the weather cooperates, there may be the stars at the shelter's booth, Larkin said. The shelter is booth #2.

"Beatrice is a very 'old school' name for a cat and in Italian it means voyager or traveler," Larkin said. "This name suits her perfectly because she has traveled from Fire Island to Middle Island to East Northport..all in less than six months! We are hoping that finding her forever home will be
the last journey she has to take…let’s make that a reality for her."