OkcPets Magazine May 2023

12 OKC Pets • May / June 2023 As Shawn moves the food bowl onto the porch, she also begins to open the door to the porch. The door to Ellis Island stays open for weeks or months while the cat gets familiar with the room. Slowly, the food bowl moves farther into the room until it’s time to coordinate with the neighborhood vet with a mobile unit. While the cat is inside Ellis Island eating, the Thompsons prepare for the smoothest possible transition as they welcome the feral cat into their household. The animal will need to be checked out thoroughly by the vet, spayed or neutered, and vaccinated. The experience can be scary and trau- matic, so Shawn and her vet coordinate to make sure the cat is sedated immediately once the door to Ellis Island closes. The vet is very careful with the animal, and sedation takes effect quickly. After an hour in the mobile unit, the sleeping kitty is deposited back into Ellis Island. Once the cats are fully moved into Ellis Island, the Thompsons give them lots of space to hide and recover. “I’d give them lots of places to hide, blankets over the table, and underneath would be a cat bed with more blankets,” Shawn says. “Every morning I have my coffee on Ellis Island,” Shawn says, so the cats could get used to being around a person. Suddenly one day, “They come out and eat in the open,” she says. “And then you could pet them and then they’re in your lap.” Her cat Willy (full name Willy the Office Cat because he lounges in the couple’s home office each day) arrived pawing at the French doors, hungry. He went through the rescue process and now happily occupies his office lair, overseeing the Thompsons’ daily to-dos. Their gray tabby named Frieda came into Shawn’s life as a tiny kitten that need- ed fostering. The Thompsons didn’t mean to keep her, but somehow, Frieda stayed. The Thompsons’ three cats and two dogs are a wonderful crew of misfit animals. Canine Stress Reliever Dog rescue is another transition process entirely. “Dogs kind of fall into our laps,” Shawn says. Shawn has two rescue dogs right now, Ollie and Max, but has rescued and fostered many more over the years. Ollie is a three-year-old Border Collie mix, and Max is an adorable and vocal four-year-old “happy mutt,” Shawn says. When the Thompsons aren’t busy taking care of their houseful of pets, tending to strays, or fostering animals in need, they work remotely from home in health care. Dick works for a group purchasing orga- nization for hospitals. Shawn works for a small Boston-based biotech company that created and distributes an infusion drug used to treat new mothers with postpar- tum depression. In the Thompson household, kitties begin to rustle around at 5:30 a.m., want- ing breakfast. Everyone eats, Willy heads to the office for the day, and the dogs go outside to their fenced backyard. Each evening, the dogs get a nice, long neigh- borhood walk. When Ollie isn’t herding the kitties at home, he works as a certified therapy dog with Therapy Dog International (TDI). A year ago, Ollie was certified through a program by Full Circle Obedience in Oklahoma City. Since then, “We started to explore who was looking for a therapy dog,” Shawn says. The Oklahoma City federal courthouse was seeking a stress reliever for busy staff members and large jury pools. So Ollie comes to the rescue, with his fluffy charm, friendly personality, and bright red thera- py-dog bandanna. In the jury pool room, loaded with grumpy people and a heavy atmosphere, Ollie has been a welcome distraction. “I just start walking around” with Ollie, Shawn says, “and the mood in the room changes within seconds. The air is really heavy, like you can’t breathe.” But as soon as Ollie comes in, “Suddenly you can breathe again,” she says. Everyone wants to meet and pet Ollie and to chat about their own pets. Ollie “changes the mood of the room dramatically,” Shawn says, and the dog adds “some levity and lightness to a very serious place.” The Thompsons are looking for more opportunities for Ollie to be of service as a therapy dog. So how does a household full of strays get along? “We expected them to get along,” Shawn says. “They had to get along.” So they do. Ollie likes to herd the cats, and the cats like to swat the dogs on the nose when they get into trouble. There’s some tattle- taling here and there. But overall, it’s a big, fun game for the five rescues. It’s a beautiful life for these furry friends — once they found a family they could trust. Frieda came to the Thompsons as a tiny foster kitten and became a permanent member of the family.