He’s white, fluffy as a toy and gets his picture taken with admirers who want to feature him on their Facebook page.
Meet Razah – the St. Charles Parish Animal Shelter mascot who has his own fans and Facebook page.
This cuddly celeb blogs, too.
Visit www.facebook.com/razahcat and the page begins: “My name is Razah. I am a purebred Persian cat that was rescued by an animal shelter that I now remain as a permanent resident. Oh and I am completely deaf.”
He’s cool about it and loves to share his rags-to-riches story.
If this kitty resembles the Internet sensation Grumpy the cat, it’s because they’re both Persians, although Grumpy is a ragdoll (combination Siamese and Persian). But that’s where the similarity ends because Razah really isn’t interested in drama queens because he’s gainfully employed. He blogs to help other cats and dogs get adopted, as well as personally greets all shelter visitors.
Nearly three years ago, shortly after the shelter opened, a woman brought him to the shelter. He had been “running around the neighbor and was horribly matted and covered in fleas,” said Shelter Director Angie Robert.
“Obviously, someone got him and he got lost or wasn’t taken care of. The first thing we did was shave him and took care of him.”
Razah was a mess and dangerously thin. It took considerable time, work and cost to nurse him back to his now beautiful physique.
In the process of rescuing him, though, Robert began to recognize that this cat was a unique case.
“You have animals that should never be outside,” she said.And it was clear that this feline was one of them.In addition to Razah being neutered, declawed and deaf, white cats are prone to skin cancer and Persians require costly, continual grooming. These demands collectively may be why he was homeless.
But this celeb cat isn’t talking and certainly wasn’t about to confess that Persians also “have bad potty habits” in addition to him having irritable bowel syndrome. He gets special food, which Robert and the shelter workers pay for although he does earn his kibble.
All of these concerns combined made Razah what Robert calls a “hard keeper,” but that’s what started her thinking.She didn’t intend to have a “house kitty,” but her experience as a shelter director told her that this animal needed a special home.
“I was grooming him with my employees and while we were doing it, we saw him in a mess and … my heart went out to him,” she said. “I didn’t know if he was deaf yet, but I wondered if he was because deafness is common in white cats.”
Like the lion in the “Wizard of Oz” after a good grooming, Razah emerged a new cat and began to explore the shelter. Right about this time, Robert’s boss visited and she popped the big question. She asked about him being the shelter mascot cat and was happily told to give it a try.
“I never meant for it to happen, it just happened,” she said of her growing affection for Razah. “I thought it was God’s way. He’s not my cat. He’s his own cat.”
Possibly five years old now, he stays mostly in front of the shelter and at closing time, 4 p.m. every day, he heads to his own big cage to sleep in at night. In the mornings, Robert said he’s hollering to come out. He knows the routine. And, it is quite clear, that he has found his home with great appreciation.
“He loves it here,” Robert said of a cat who not only is the mascot but acts like a shelter ambassador greeting all visitors. “I just really think there’s a lot of times he brings people in. I have people who come in just to take pictures of him. They see him on Facebook.”
Robert sees Razah as a perfect image for the shelter.
“We’re not here to kill animals,” she said. “He definitely brings that element. He’s a definite rescue situation.”Then there’s the fascinating element of a deaf cat making his way in a noisy world.
Although cats can hear 10 times better than humans, he apparently hears nothing, but he’s comfortable in the safe confines of the shelter.
“With him being deaf, he walks by cages with dogs barking at him and it doesn’t bother him,” Robert said. “Nothing bothers him.”
This is what makes him a great tester to determine which dogs are cat friendly for adopters with both animals.
At one point, she considered trying to raise $2,000 for a hearing aid (yes, they make them for cats), but changed her mind.
“He’s perfectly happy in his little world,” she said. “He doesn’t go outside and doesn’t even try to go out.”Razah can be comical, too.
“Most people think he’s a statue he’s so still,” Robert said of him stunning people when he moves. He’s also mischievous, rubbing on the legs of people he senses don’t like cats.Ironically, the cat that Robert thought was unadoptable has drawn numerous requests from people who want him.
“I’ve been offered thousands for him, but he’s not up for adoption nor shall he ever be up for adopting after being here nearly three years,” Robert said. “Everyone thinks he’s the cat’s meow.”
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