Adoption information
I've been adopted!
This pet is no longer available
On Hold
About Lionel
Lionel is in a desperate situation and urgently needs a home on his own where he will be given special treatment, lots of love and soon his confidence will return. He just needs a second-chance. His owner writes:
Lionel is a 3 year old with the softest medium length black fur of any cat I've known. He is the gentlest, sweetest, most gorgeous boy who loves a cuddle and belly rub. He doesn't have a mean bone in his body - he's an absolute teddy bear. I've had many cats over the years and I've never known such a complete softy. Sadly, Lionel has had a pretty hard time lately. We have come to the very difficult decision that he needs to find a new forever home.
Lionel was rescued from the street with his brother Micah at about a week old. We adopted both cats and raised them happily together - they were good friends, though Micah was always a little dominant, which is normal for a two cat household. Last year, my wife and I had a baby and everything changed. Lionel began to show signs of stress, over-grooming his legs so that he had bald patches. Meanwhile his brother began to treat him differently, becoming a lot more dominant (his own stress response). Fights became regular, and where previously they would have been playful, now they were nasty. By Christmas Lionel regularly had scabs all around his neck from fight wounds inflicted by Micah. Micah also began blocking him from food and ultimately the litter tray. By January, partly because he was being blocked from his toilet and likely as an extreme stress response, Lionel began weeing outside his litter on a fairly regular basis. At that point we found a family of a colleague who took him in to see how it would go. They have older kids but it’s a busy household and ultimately has not proven to be a suitable environment for Lionel. Removed from the immediate stress of his brother he has improved, but he still has deep anxiety. His current foster family have tried so hard but they just can't continue with him.
What Lionel needs is a quiet home with one or two people maximum. He needs a great deal of patience and love and work to bring him back to the place he used to be in - a happy, relaxed and loving pet. Ideally, his new owner is someone who has past experience with cats and can give him the time he needs to come back into himself. To start with he also needs a quiet space that he can get accustomed to in a house without lots of foot traffic and noise. He's actually never been in an environment without his brother so it’s even possible that he'll blossom into a more confident cat than he was before.
Right now, we urgently need to find a new home for Lionel. My colleague is unable to continue with him. He can't come back to us because he will be attacked. This is such a hard situation - we love him so much but we have to do what is best for him. I just know that the right person is out there for him - right now we just need a miracle.
Lionel is desexed and microchipped. He had a full dental check last year (great teeth) and was given a clean bill of health by the Sydney Animal Hospital in Erskineville in January. He is in care in Leichhardt.
Adoption details
SAS will arrange a "meet and greet" with our rescue pet and we offer a two week trial period if we feel that the rescue pet and the prospective family are well matched.
This pet has been adopted and found love with its new family.
The rescue group has removed this pet and it is no longer available for adoption.
The rescue group is no longer taking adoption applications for this pet.