I adopted Caramel (then named Rosa) from the San Francisco SPCA on April 13, 2014. After months of volunteering as a cat matchmaker and socializer, I met this gentle, chubby 5 year-old calico who would slowly and cautiously emerge from her cage to eat whenever I visited. She was located around the corner from the rest of the rooms, and I saw in the logs she was only getting about one visit a day from volunteers and adopters alike! She quickly became my favorite cat to visit and after a month passed and she remained unadopted, I’d made up my mind to bring her home with me.

She spent her first night hiding in the bathroom of my studio apartment and I was worried she wouldn’t warm up to me, but as the days went by and she realized she was in her forever home, she began to join me on the couch and show her personality, laying on her back and requesting belly rubs.

Caramel had a squeaky meow and a big generous purr. While not a lap cat, I discovered that if I slid a hand beneath her, she’d plop down on it, trapping it there to enjoy an extended palm-up belly rub. Despite being a heavier gal, she liked to play – her favorite toy was a rainbow snake wand with a green handle. When she’d tire of the snake part, I’d flip it around and play hide and seek with the green handle under a paper bag. Sometimes, she’d crawl into the bag itself and when she did so, we dubbed her our paper bag princess.

During our six years together we moved 3 times in the bay area and at one point I flew her with me to Vancouver, BC to stay a few months with her mom (my now wife). I traveled often which I feel guilty about now, but always made sure she had her cat-sitter or my roommates there to drop in on her and spend time with her.

After being the light of my life for nearly 6 years, Caramel sadly passed away after a battle with GI lymphoma and kidney disease – she was eleven and a half years old. As part of my grieving process, I called the SPCA to learn more about her history prior to my adopting her as I realized I never knew where she came from. They put me in touch with SF Animal Care and Control, who told me that she had been surrendered (abandoned) by her previous owner simply because she “made too much of a mess.” When she arrived at ACC, she was missing fur and had bad skin and discharge – she’d been clearly neglected. I felt a flood of emotions – how could someone just decide they didn’t want this beautiful, dignified girl?

Caramel taught me the power of adoption and how one person’s discarded animal can become the central joy in another’s life. She also taught me the power of unconditional love, and that good things take time. Looking back, she did constantly poop outside of her litter box and sometimes peed on my rugs, and I quickly learned not to leave clothes piled on the ground. However, I loved her so much that I simply didn’t care. In our final year together, she rarely did her business outside of her litter box and once even slept in my lap – the only time she ever did so in six years. I think it took her this long to know she was finally, truly safe and loved.