Next time you make a trip to the Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter, don’t be surprised if a friendly orange, white, and black cat runs up to say hello. That’s just Trixie, the shelter’s unofficial greeter. “She’s like the guy in front of Walmart. She says hello to everyone. It’s so sweet,” Community Programs Coordinator April Peiffer says.
Trixie wasn’t always the friendly feline she is today, though. When Round Rock Animal Control brought her in as a stray in 2019, shelter staff quickly realized she wasn’t going to be a happy, adoptable calico and placed her in the barn cat program, designed for cats that aren’t friendly. Waiting to be adopted by someone with a shop or barn in search of a mouser or outdoor cat, Trixie decided she’d had enough of her kennel and escaped. A few months later, staff began noticing a cat hanging out in a nearby storm drain that would take off whenever someone came close. “She was afraid of everybody,” Animal Services Specialist Vicki Jones says.
Drawn by the food left out for shelter cats, Trixie stuck around the area, gradually allowing people to get close and pet her. Staff realized it was their missing feline, and the previously dubbed Feral Fiddy became known as Trixie, thanks to her tricky personality. “One minute she would let you pet her and then she might swat at you the next minute,” Vicki says.
She slowly acclimated herself to life at the shelter, and began to allow more attention from the staff, volunteers, fosters, and customers. In time, it became clear she had chosen the shelter to be her home, and she now happily accepts petting and scritches. “She’s endeared herself to everyone here,” Vicki says. “She pulls everyone together. We all have that in common; we love Trixie and look out for her best interests.”
GETTING TO WORK
Trixie can be seen running through the grass in front of the Shelter Services Center, climbing trees, and dashing through the door as soon as a customer walks into the lobby—to her, this is the common house cat game of in-and-out. Most people owned by cats are familiar with this finicky feline phenomenon.
She also serves as an icebreaker for visitors who feel bad about surrendering an animal or bringing in a stray. Having a friendly cat greet them helps take their mind off what are often difficult decisions, a welcome respite in moments of sadness, April says.
Trixie also has a fearless nature around shelter dogs, which has led to another job of sorts at the shelter—helping to gauge a dog’s cat-friendliness, or lack thereof. Experienced shelter staff bring dogs out front to see Trixie from a safe distance and watch the dogs’ behavior. “She stands her ground out there,” Vicki says. “No matter how big or little the dog is, she puffs up to twice her size. She stands there and dares the dog to come near her.”
As for any adoption plans for Trixie, Vicki and April say they would be sad to see her go. Unlike the shelter’s other furry residents, Trixie has already found her forever home, right there at the shelter.