Nikki

Identifiable by a missing ear tip and the unique patterns in her eyes, Nikki is one of the sanctuary old timers.

Gaye tells me that Nikki had been adopted out at one point, but was returned after a day or two. Apparently, the lady who took her home had the new arrival sitting on her lap when a garbage truck rumbled by outside. Startled, Nikki did as most cats would do in this situation and leaped from the woman’s lap to get away from the noise, digging her claws in for purchase as she went. The woman must have never experienced being a launching pad for a frightened kitty, because a call to RAPS had Carol going over there and bringing Nikki back to the shelter.

These days, Nikki is an older girl with not much in the way of teeth (which I noticed when she decided to alternately lick and gnaw on my hand), but more than a few friends. When I first met her, she was weaving around, playing and cuddling with Mr. Belvedere, her boyfriend du jour.