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No Comments [ Add Comment ]Tabby Teamwork / Butterfly and Gretchen provide comic relief for stress of working at Ogden Animal Shelter
By DI LEWISOGDEN -- Typist. Letter folder. Pest control. Comic relief. These cats do everything. Everything, except leave, that is.
Butterfly and Gretchen are the mascots for the Carol Conroy Browning-Ogden Animal Shelter, 1490 Park Blvd. They found a home there after arriving as strays in September and October, respectively.
Animal-control officer Mandy Hamblin said shelter employees had been looking for a new office cat since early 2008 and had tried out several other cats brought into the shelter, but none of them were quite the right fit.
When Gretchen and Butterfly took up post behind the desk, Hamblin said, employees knew either of the two would be perfect. However, no one could decide which one to keep, so both got to stay.
Hamblin said the two cats act like siblings and are good at dealing with the many animals and people coming in and out of the shelter on a daily basis.
The shelter had another mascot cat named Woogie, but he disappeared in 2005. Employees believe he was stolen.
Shelter employee A.J., who said she uses no last name, said it took some time to convince director Bob Greier to let cats stay there again, but when they told him the cats would help get rid of mice he caved in.
Greier is allergic to cats and at first had an antagonistic relationship with the two newcomers, A.J. said.
"They used to torment him, but now they just sleep on a chair in his office," she said.
Even now, A.J. said Greier will try to get the two cats adopted, but she said, "We love them. You can't have them."
Hamblin said the 8- or 9-month-old pair can't replace Woogie, but they have found their own place in the office, which is basically everywhere.
Gretchen loves to sit on the printer, "prefolding" the paper as it comes out, A.J. said, whereas Butterfly will hang out near the keyboard to help with (or cause) computer problems.
The two cats are very different, Hamblin said.
Gretchen, a short-haired brown tabby, is more aloof, teasing and quick to learn things. Butterfly is a loving calico who likes attention but is a little more ditzy.
When animals are brought in, Hamblin said, "They know if it's a nice dog or an aggressive dog."
"Well, Butterfly hasn't quite figured that out yet," A.J. said.
Gretchen was the first to figure out a drinking fountain trick Woogie used to do, but Butterfly caught on eventually.
By standing on a chair, the cats can push the bar on the drinking fountain down and crane their heads over the side to get water. Gretchen will often sit on the fountain and splash Butterfly with the stream.
And when things get frustrating, A.J., said the cats are always a source of relief.
They can sense the prevailing mood, and when rude or angry people come into the shelter, the cats will do something silly or cute to cheer up employees.
Butterfly and Gretchen also help the customers relax, she said.
They are also role models for other cats, having been spayed, vaccinated, microchipped and licensed, Hamblin said.
"I've never been a cat person, but they found a place in my heart," she said.
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