Merlin's Hope: Dedicated Ragdoll & Maine Coon Rescue – Caring for 600+ Cats in Texas

Originally published Apr 3, 2010

Merlin’s Hope: A Ragdoll and Maine Coon Rescue has been in the rescue business in Ennis, Texas (south of the DFW area) since 2005, though I personally have been in rescue since 1998. In the five years that we have been rescuing here in Texas, we have helped nearly 600 cats. This is, of course, in addition to the transporting, coordinating, referring, and working with other rescues that we do to help other cats. We originally started with Siamese and long-haired breed cats (Maine Coons, Ragdolls, Persians) but quickly saw the need for dedicated rescue for Maine Coons and Ragdolls. We have worked with several breeders in the past couple of years to help them as they went out of business, decided to quit breeding, retired, etc.

Additionally, of course, we rescue from shelters around the state of Texas, including the areas of Houston, Dallas, Austin, and San Antonio. We have a very strict adoption process including an application with veterinary and personal references, a lengthy telephone interview, and a lengthy contract requiring no declaw, indoor only, and that our cats be returned to us in the event the situation does not work out (just to mention a few of our specific requirements).

Our cats stay with us as long as they need to find the right home, and we are committed to finding the perfect home for each cat. Our motto is: A home for every cat; a cat for every home. All of our cats are in monitored foster homes.

Though we love our Maine Coons, our rescue is quickly becoming pretty much Ragdoll Rescue as we find so many Ragdolls and Ragdoll mixes in the state and in surrounding states needing homes.

I could tell you many stories of the lovely Ragdolls we have rescued and would love to share them with you. With the economic situation as it is, we have numerous cats coming in from sad situations. Since this is the case, at Jenny’s request, I’d like to quickly share the story of Killian and Jillian.

Killian is a lovely Mitted Seal Ragdoll mix; Jillian is her cute Brown Tabby Pixie-bob mix sister. The two of them found themselves in quite a situation when their owner went to jail and was there for two weeks before someone realized that her cats had been left in her apartment without care. For two weeks, these poor cats managed to get enough water out of the faucet to survive. When a friend finally came in to help, she discovered that the resourceful girls had pulled cereal boxes out of the cabinet to eat Cheerios in order to survive, but it didn’t stop these two girls from being wonderful babies. She notified me of their need for help one day; the very next day they were on transport to me. They came into our rescue and were quickly adopted by a lovely family in Killeen who wanted to keep the sisters together. Many of our cats come from similar situations.

Thank you for welcoming us to your website.

MeLinda Hughes, Director Merlin’s Hope: A Ragdoll and Maine Coon Rescue Ennis, TX 75119 www.merlinshope.petfinder.com Merlin’s Hope: A Ragdoll and Maine Coon Rescue has been in the rescue business in Ennis, Texas (south of the DFW area) since 2005, though I personally have been in rescue since 1998. In the five years that we have been rescuing here in Texas, we have helped nearly 600 cats. This is, of course, in addition to the transporting, coordinating, referring, and working with other rescues that we do to help other cats. We originally started with Siamese and long-haired breed cats (Maine Coons, Ragdolls, Persians) but quickly saw the need for dedicated rescue for Maine Coons and Ragdolls. We have worked with several breeders in the past couple of years to help them as they went out of business, decided to quit breeding, retired, etc. Additionally, of course, we rescue from shelters around the state of Texas, including the areas of Houston, Dallas, Austin, and San Antonio. We have a very strict adoption process including an application with veterinary and personal references, a lengthy telephone interview, and a lengthy contract requiring no declaw, indoor only, and that our cats be returned to us in the event the situation does not work out (just to mention a few of our specific requirements). Our cats stay with us as long as they need to find the right home, and we are committed to finding the perfect home for each cat. Our motto is: A home for every cat; a cat for every home. All of our cats are in monitored foster homes. Though we love our Maine Coons, our rescue is quickly becoming pretty much Ragdoll Rescue as we find so many Ragdolls and Ragdoll mixes in the state and in surrounding states needing homes. I could tell you many stories of the lovely Ragdolls we have rescued and would love to share them with you. With the economic situation as it is, we have numerous cats coming in from sad situations. Since this is the case, at Jenny’s request, I’d like to quickly share the story of Killian and Jillian. Killian is a lovely Mitted Seal Ragdoll mix; Jillian is her cute Brown Tabby Pixie-bob mix sister. The two of them found themselves in quite a situation when their owner went to jail and was there for two weeks before someone realized that her cats had been left in her apartment without care. For two weeks, these poor cats managed to get enough water out of the faucet to survive. When a friend finally came in to help, she discovered that the resourceful girls had pulled cereal boxes out of the cabinet to eat Cheerios in order to survive, but it didn’t stop these two girls from being wonderful babies. She notified me of their need for help one day; the very next day they were on transport to me. They came into our rescue and were quickly adopted by a lovely family in Killeen who wanted to keep the sisters together. Many of our cats come from similar situations. Thank you for welcoming us to your group.