CARIBOU, Maine — Third-grade students of Rachel Bourgeois’ class were on their best behavior during their field trip to the library on Dec. 22, but there was one question that prompted an indiscernible flood of enthusiastic answers.
“How many of you own pets?” asked President of the Halfway Home Pet Rescue Norma Milton; out poured over a dozen anecdotes and information about furry friends — old, new, hamster or dog.
Since the start of the school year, Bourgeois’ third-graders had been slowly fundraising for the Halfway Home Pet Rescue and their trip to the library for a visit with Milton (and her cats) was the culmination of that effort.
“We got bottles and put them in a trash bag, and Mrs. B gave them to a factory, and they cashed it in for money,” explained student Sofia Fleury-Mendible.
The 8- and 9-year-olds proudly presented Milton with their donation to the pet rescue, which was over $100.
Student Dylan Bouchard expressed that it was important for his class to help the shelter because they did it last year — plus, he thinks Milton does really good things for the cats.
Milton and her volunteers offered the students a few important suggestions to keep cats healthy and safe; while some of the verbiage missed the mark (like how cats need to be spayed and “noodled”), children clearly understood what it means to take care of a cat.
“First thing you have to do is ask your mom and dad if you can get a kitty, then you have to change its litter box and give them food and water — and neuter and spay them,” outlined Keegan Bell.
“And bring your cats in to the vet so that they’ll be all healthy,” his friend Calvin Hersey commented.
“If you are playing outside with your cat, make sure it’s not really cold but if it is cold, then bring your cat inside,” Fleury- Mendible said.
Bouchard stressed another component of keeping neighborhood cats safe — making sure to cut up the six-pack rings and other garbage that animals can get caught into.
“Cutting them up is important because cats and some animals can get their heads stuck and die,” he emphasized.
Though the students didn’t take home any animals that afternoon, helping out Halfway Home Pet Rescue cats was important to them because, as Hersey said, “They’re like your best friend!”
Like her fellow students, Prudence Napalapalai was eager to explain why she loves cats.
“Well,” she said, “I like all cats because me and my mom, we saved two cats and my mom saved one dog,” Prudence said in one quick sentence. “Because we think it’s nice and we don’t want them getting hurt or anything — because my brother’s hamster, somehow he opened his cage and got stuck in the vent — but we were able to get him out in time before he died,” she said proudly.
Clearly, Bourgeois’ students love animals. Though they paid attention to Milton and her volunteer crew during their visit to the library, their focus expectedly wandered from time to time while they petted the furry and fluffy felines that roamed through the room during the lesson.
Additional information about the Halfway Home Pet Rescue and its cats available for adoption can be found by visiting www.halfwayhomepetrescue.org
