Introducing Miss Lucy from Istanbul

I woke poor Lucy up from her nap in her kitty condo to take this recent photo!

Turkey is an amazing holiday destination, but my holidays often end up having to do with animal rescue. Somehow I did not notice how many stray dogs and cats there were in Istanbul during my first trip to Turkey in January 2006. During my most recent trip in November and December 2009, my heart was broken almost upon arriving. There were homeless animals everywhere, and what stood out to me most was the number of cats and kittens. I think I cried at least once every day during my 14 days in Turkey because of the overwhelming sadness I felt for the animals.

Sure, there are some kind souls who leave food out for the stray animals. But the fact that these animals need to be spayed and neutered at a bare minimum seemed to be lost on the handful of Turks I engaged with about the issue. These animals also need proper medical care and loving homes with warm beds, but you have to start somewhere. There is no perfect solution, but I believe that TNR (trap-neuter-release) of homeless animals combined with public education on animal welfare are two ways to make a lasting impact.

I have been amazingly fortunate to have lived in many countries and traveled to many more. I have witnessed the plight of homeless animals in many different places, and I know that even my birth country of the United States still has much room to improve on this issue. We all have to start somewhere, and if we can collaborate and work together to create a better world for people and animals, we will make a lasting change.

I was born to a mother who had a Basset mix dog named Myles who slept in the playpen with me from the day my mom brought me home from the hospital. She tells me that my father’s family was howling for her to get rid of Myles before I was born, but there was no way that was going to happen because dogs and cats are fine with children. Children just need to be dog-proofed and cat-proofed! They have to be taught how to respect animals, and I am both lucky and grateful that I grew up with the opportunity to share my life with animals.

Love for animals brings with it a keen awareness of their plight. You can look the other way, but that is not going to change anything. Instead, I have struggled my entire life to understand how to fix the problems I see. Sometimes I feel overwhelmed when I realize I can not solve it all myself. I can not take in every single animal that needs a home, and it is very easy to drown in my tears and give up because the problem is too big. There is too much suffering. But I am not willing to give up. So what can I do? I can lend my voice to the voiceless, I can volunteer my time with rescue organizations, I can transport animals from shelters to rescues and foster families, I can foster animals, and I can TNR and feed the feral cat colony in my own neighborhood. But most importantly, I can join forces with others who are trying to solve the problem.

On December 6th, I met three kindred spirits at Istanbul airport. They were bearing two beautiful cats, and they were trusting us to bring those cats to America. I had found Viktor and the Let’s Adopt! community on the Internet before our trip to Turkey. I usually read up on local animal rescue groups to see how I might be able to help while traveling, and I made an offer to transport any animals who might need a ride to Chicago. As fate would have it, Viktor took my offer. One kitten was going to a family in West Virginia who had been in Turkey the month before and had adopted her but were unable to take her with them at the time. The other cat was Lucy.

As Viktor said as soon as he met my fiancé and I, the goal of Let’s Adopt! is not to send animals overseas. But there are some cases which require such drastic measures. Disabled animals have fewer chances of being adopted even in countries where people are used to companion animals, but imagine their chances of being adopted in a country that does not have a tradition of keeping companion animals inside the home. Beautiful Lucy had lingered in a crate at the vet clinic for 10 months. She is an older cat, and she has no teeth. She had no prospects for adoption in Istanbul. Enough was enough, and Viktor made the decision to send her overseas before her spirit was broken entirely.

I have transported animals in Australia from the shelters to the airports, and I have transported animals in America from shelters to rescues. My wonder dog, Mr. Claus (who also happens to have his own health challenges), moved from Sydney to Cincinnati with me. He had to travel in the cargo hold, so I had never transported an animal in the cabin with me until we brought Lucy with us. The journey could not have been easier. Lucy was an angel, and one particular woman in the flight crew was outstanding and even moved the woman seated next to Paraag and me so that we had more room with Lucy. The woman was elderly, and we had a complete language barrier. She was telling the air hostess that she didn’t mind at all and was asking questions about Lucy. Her interest and kindness were contrasted by two cranky gentlemen who did not like the idea that there was a cat in the cabin. One of the gentlemen who was two rows in front of us and on the other side of the plane was complaining of severe allergies. I didn’t understand the Turkish being spoken, but it was pretty clear (and pretty amusing!) that the air hostess was telling him to deal with it and put on a mask. She handed him the mask which he proceeded to take off an hour or so into the flight. I guess the allergies weren’t so bad after all…

Lucy rode in the middle seat between us, and we gave her food and water several times during the flight. She watched the TV screen with great interest, and she purred as we stroked her. A few people stopped by our seats to ask about her, and I made a point of telling them all about Let’s Adopt!. I cried for Lucy on the plane. It’s hard for me to imagine her being without a home for so long. She must be one of the easiest cats I have ever met. Like every other homeless animal out there, all she needed was a chance. They are all good pets; we just need to learn how to be good pet owners.

Many of us love animals and work with our local animal rescue communities to help in any way we can. Transporting an animal from overseas might seem impossible or just too complicated. Our experience was an easy one. All you have to do is present the pet passport (provided by the vet, of course) to US Customs and Immigration so that they know the animal has been vaccinated against Rabies. It really is as easy as that. And the sound of Miss Lucy purring next to my keyboard as she bathes herself in the wee hours of dawn makes it all worth it.

So some people bring home carpets when they go to Turkey. We brought home Lucy.

If you are considering transporting a special needs animal for Let’s Adopt!, I would be more than happy to speak with you and answer any questions I can about our experience. Just reach out to me via the comments section. Our community always needs flight volunteers travelling from Turkey to Europe and the United States, and there is no cost to you other than your time and effort. And the chance to help a special needs animal is priceless.

This is Lucy a few days after she arrived home with us. She decided she wanted an extra bed in the shelf of our bedside table!