George Foreman was one of 4 kittens rescued from George Street in Barry in October 2007. The lady who brought them to us had originally contacted us about them a few months earlier. We had explained to her at the time how crucial it was to get these kittens while they were still very small because the likelihood of being able to socialise them would decrease rapidly with age. Unfortunately, they were nearly 5 months old when they finally arrived at SHUA.
The Georges' mum was adopted by the lady in George Street. We spayed her to make sure that there would be no further unwanted litters!
We named the kittens George Clooney, George Melley, George Foreman and Georgina. Having lived outside for so long with no human contact, they were all terrified. One of our trustees, Jenny, took Georgina to work intensively with. It took so long to make progress with her, that Jenny eventually decided to keep her. Georgina was never going to be rehomeable!
We had high hopes for Clooney and Melley but it was clear from the start that poor Foreman would never learn to trust people. He spent most of his time hiding under his blanket. It was terribly sad.
In the summer of 2008, after many months of working with them all, we decided to release Melley and Foreman into the colony at SHUA. They were never going to be rehomeable and it was not fair to keep them in a pen any longer. We have ferals in our colony who don't like people but have learned that they are safe here, have shelter should they require it and will be fed and cared for. We hoped that Melley and Foreman would learn to do the same.
Unfortunately, that didn't happen. Melley and Foreman both disappeared that summer. After many months with no news, we started hearing reports of a white and ginger cat and a black and white cat hanging out together down near the beach behind Hayes Point. The descriptions matched Melley and Foreman. Whoever they were, they were apparently in pretty good condition and had found a regular food source.
In November 2008, we released Mr Clooney. He had been up for rehoming for many months and had even gone to a home on a trial basis, but had been returned. Again, we decided that enough was enough. Unsurprisingly to us, Mr Clooney turned into a "normal" cat the instant we released him. He found his confidence, made lots of friends, climbed the highest trees with poise and grace, wanted all of the cuddles we all had to offer and, to top it off, got himself a girlfriend (Rooster, a petite black and white cat) and promptly shacked up with her in the workshop!
Then, in summer 2009, Jacqui was doing the ferals' evening feed at the top of the garden when she double-took. Sure enough, she had recognised Mr Melley, weaving around Mr Clooney and other cats. He wasn't afraid of her - cautious, but not afraid. He knew exactly where he was.
And so the questions start: when had Mr Melley started visiting us for food each evening? Did Mr Clooney have anything to do with it? And where was Mr Foreman? Was he gone or was he simply hanging back in the shadows, waiting for us to leave? Was it really Melley and Foreman down by the beach all of those months?
Melley now hangs out at SHUA - cautiously, always at the top end of the grounds - but he is definitely here. We still haven't seen Foreman. But will we one day? We just don't know and that is why we want to remember him here. George Foreman, possibly MIA, we hope you are safe wherever you are.
Back to Angels Main Page.
