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Rescued Cat Loves Farm Animals
Rescued Cat Loves Farm Animals
Herder of geese, hospice nurse for cows — meet Wesley T. Monkey, an extraordinary cat.
Wesley T. Monkey isn't just any cat. He is the cat — and you can depend on him to be there for his friends when they need him most. The 2-year-old feline is "mayor" and cool kid of the Indraloka Animal Sanctuary in Mehoopany, Pennsylvania.
The sanctuary, founded by Indra Lahiri, acts as a forever home for former farm animals who have nowhere else to go. The sanctuary also houses nearly 100 cats and Wesley, by far, is the one with the biggest personality. He's best known for sleeping, riding, cuddling or otherwise simply sitting on top of his bigger friends.
Unlike other cats, who jump off quickly and scurry away when an animal they are resting on moves, Wesley loves to stick around for the entire ride. "All the other animals love him," Lahiri told The Dodo. "He's really just very popular. I don't know how to put it any other way."
A pregnant stray came to the sanctuary two years ago in the spring, during kitten season. "That happens quite frequently," Lahiri explained. "Stray mothers find the barn and, you know, there's food, shelter, everything else. So they decide they're going to come here to have their babies. But we track them, we get them fixed." That stray was Wesley's mother. The rest was history.
Since Wesley grew up at the sanctuary and around various animals, he's never noticed a difference between species. "He just interacts the same way with another cat the way he would a human, a cow or a pig," Lahiri said.
As the only cat who is fearless and friendly enough to get along with all of the animals at the sanctuary, he's managed to crack the barrier of one particularly difficult clique. "Even the geese that nobody else gets along with because they're a little intense, Wesley T. Monkey will hang with them," Lahiri said.
Another prime example of his "I don't give a damn" attitude: Lahiri said that it isn't odd to check on four 1,000-pound pigs eating a stack of hay with Wesley resting right on top of the hay, not at all concerned that he might be accidentally be eaten. That said, the animals respect one another and are careful with each other.
Wesley's flamboyant name matches his equally flamboyant personality. But the meaning behind it? Lahiri explained that Wesley is the name of a musician she likes and his middle initial, "T," stands for "THE," making his full name Wesley The Monkey. Monkey was the surname given to his litter, as every litter of kittens born at the sanctuary receives a family name. "Wesley's family was given the name the Monkeys because they were like little monkeys and climbed around everywhere," Lahiri said. "They were curious and mischievous."
Wesley is a cat who isn't just a "mischievous," fun friend to have around. He's also a friend who remains loyal to the very end. Such was the case with Penny, a cow at the sanctuary who passed away last month. Wesley climbed on top of her and remained with her, purring and comforting until her very last breath.
A feline with many quirks, no two days are the same for Wesley. He has an entire sanctuary filled with besties to attend to and is always in motion.
"He has to have adventures," Lahiri said. "He's just not a sit-around kind of cat." Keep up with Wesley T. Monkey and his friends on Facebook. Interested in supporting the Indraloka Animal Sanctuary? Consider making a donation or sponsoring an animal.
The stories of interspecies behaviour that are coming out of animal sanctuaries nowadays are both heart-warming and astonishing. When we allow animals to live naturally, they exhibit behaviours that we don't see when we keep them segregated and caged on meat-producing farms. Just as Wesley has nothing to fear from the pigs, the pigs have nothing to fear from him -- or the good humans who work there.
Would you like to look at yourself in the mirror and assert that no animal needs to live in fear because of you? Then it's time to reduce or eliminate meat from your diet. It's not difficult, especially when there are so many delicious vegetarian dining options around!
If you're in Malaysia, simply surf over to http://KindMeal.my and browse dozens of great options and inviting promotions. You can become just as popular with the animals as Wesley!
Source: https://goo.gl/sHtq71, http://bit.ly/1XSLW8a
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