Success Stories – Imagine Home Inc.

We promised details of this weekend’s adventure with Bailey. It’s a bit of a long and sad tale, so pull up your chairs and settle in. We promise you a roller coaster ride of emotions.

Chelsea contacted us on Monday, frantic to find a foster for her cat Bailey. Bailey was in Phoenix, and Chelsea had moved to Castle Rock, Co. Having encountered a string of unfortunate circumstances, Chelsea was unable to take Bailey with her, but it was NOT for lack of trying. So she had managed to get two former friends to watch her, and keep a roof over Bailey’s head.

We set up a transport right away and somehow managed to quickly get it filled. We even managed to get a foster for Bailey in Castle Rock, since Chelsea’s landlord had said that the cat could not be in the house unsupervised. Now here’s the “you see” part. You see, Chelsea is 9 months pregnant. And baby Olive is breech, which means lots of hospital visits and possible hospitalization when they turn her. But I digress.

Bailey's event was set up by Tuesday. — Bailey’s event was set up by Tuesday.

We set up a very successful fundraiser that in the span of just a few hours got the money needed for Bailey’s health certificate, a carrier, some supplies, and gas money for our admin Lisa (“the great” shall now be forever entwined with her name).

Bailey's Rabies Vaccine — Bailey’s Rabies Vaccine

Much needed supplies for Bailey's long journey north. — Much needed supplies for Bailey’s long journey north.

Chelsea had been trying to contact her ex-friends for days to let them know that Bailey would soon be out of their hair. They wouldn’t return her many calls and texts. And finally at 2pm EDT Friday Aug 22, we learned the reason why they wouldn’t communicate.

It seems that Ben (the apartment lease holder) claimed that he had come home from work one day earlier in the week and learned that Shane Troyer (the ***) had dumped Bailey. Shane refused to say where she was or what he had done with her. As Ben texted Chelsea, his story kept changing. Finally, he broke our collective hearts by saying “I’ll get you another cat.” Cowardly Ben even said that he was sure Shane had let Chelsea know that Bailey was gone. Chelsea has raised Bailey since she was one week old. Bailey was bottle fed, and has crossed the country with Chelsea. At this point in our story, we didn’t even know if Bailey was alive.

By 4pm EDT, our main focus was creating a flyer that could be passed around, finding searchers, and contacting the police. Chelsea did call the Tempe, AZ police and they refused to take her statement. They said they would do so if Bailey was found and there was evidence that she had been abused. It was our hope that the police would scare Shane into admitting where he had dumped Bailey. So for now, we didn’t even know where to start our search.

Behind the scenes, our tiny little team of admins was working together to find places to post our flyer, Lisa was giving Chelsea places to call, Noelle was frantically working up a flyer in the middle of a storm that kept knocking out her power and internet, and there was still no word about Bailey.

At some point, we decided to contact our resident Animal Communicator, Emerald Nightflower. She had helped us in the past and was able to give us valuable information. We were pinning our hopes on her being able to give us a place to start. Emerald did not disappoint. She informed us that Bailey was scared and very hungry, and still in the apartment complex, best of all, Bailey was alive.

What had started off as a group message on Facebook with 3 ladies, suddenly blew up into a message with ELEVEN people trying to gather a search party. For a few frantic minutes, it felt like time was standing still as we were all typing over each other and not making much sense. Then, as if the universe was smacking us all in the head with a good V-8 slap, we got our acts together. Suezy and her husband jumped in their car with towels and some cans of Tuna and started the 25 mile drive. Lisa rushed home to get a carrier and called a lady who had seen her posts on Straydar and another site. That friend turned out to be Jessica. Jane (of Plain Jane fame) and her sister Jett were too far away to be of assistance, so Jane was reaching out to anyone she knew in the greater Phoenix area.

Our team of searchers entered the gated area with caution. They hadn’t been invited there by a resident, but Bailey’s life was in jeopardy. They spread out and started searching in all the areas Emerald had suggested. Texts were still being sent, and the group message was bristling with tension. By now, it was 1:00am EDT, which meant it was 10pm Arizona time! A resident of the apartment complex approached Lisa and offered to help talk to Ben (apartment lease holder) and Shane (the ***). We debated for a few minutes, and Chelsea decided it was worth a try. When asked, the two cowards denied any knowledge of Bailey. We sat stunned, so I’ll repeat that statement. Ben (apartment lease holder) and Shane (the ***) DENIED any knowledge of Bailey.

Bailey was found in the "backwards E" building of this huge complex — Bailey was found in the “backwards E” building of this huge complex

Our hearts were collectively beating so hard they could probably be heard all over the United States. We sat helplessly in Chattanooga, TN; Paris, KY, Colorado, and parts of Phoenix wondering what would happen next. Within an hour, a picture was texted to Noelle by Lisa, Noelle then texted it to Chelsea. Before Noelle could type anything in the group message, there was a post “THAT’S HER!!!!”

Jessica said this: “I had so much adrenaline when I looked up and saw the cat on the stairs above my head. I dont have chelseas info or know her but tell her I love her cat and she wasn’t injured at all. she was rather happy, rolling around on her back wanting me to pet her belly.”

Bailey was found on the 4th floor of the apartment building where the two boys live. The boys live on the 3rd floor.

So now you all know everything that we know. Two boys, because they can’t be called men, by any sense of the word, entrusted with the care of a cat by it’s owner, decided that Chelsea’s precious 5 year old cat was disposable.

They had several opportunities to be men and take responsibility for what they did, but instead chose to lie. We know that Bailey was shaved very recently, despite the fact that she has a low maintenance coat that has only matted once in 5 years.

We also know that Shane thought it was funny to blow pot smoke at Bailey. And lastly, we know that Bailey now has a chipped tooth and her whiskers had been shaved off.

Chelsea says Bailey's tooth was not like that when she left AZ. — Chelsea says Bailey’s tooth was not like that when she left AZ. Also, look at the whiskers. **Deliberately cut.**

We say all this not to embarrass Chelsea in any way. We admire this young lady for her dedication and poise and class in the face of overwhelming fear and stress. Chelsea thought that despite the flaws of these boys they wouldn’t put Bailey’s life in jeopardy. Chelsea was afraid that putting Bailey in one of the area shelters would be worse than staying with these two boys. It’s our hope that after today, Chelsea, baby Olive (soon to arrive) and Bailey will share only love for the rest of their lives together. We believe they deserve that, and so much more. Please join us in praising Chelsea as she starts her new life as a single mother in Castle Rock, CO. We feel this remarkable young woman is off to a great new start. As I write this, Bailey is very close to Castle Rock, CO. We’ve moved many cats in our short existence. I think it’s safe to say that Bailey’s transport will be one we always remember.

Note: Since she left in such a hurry, Chelsea has nothing for the baby. Check out our event for ways to help: https://www.facebook.com/events/689668624443326/

A few more pictures regarding Bailey’s adventures. ~noelle