Booba Is Ready for Her Close-Up
She spent the first six weeks of her foster placement in a closet and a bathroom.
Humane Society of Southern Arizona foster cat Booba is almost ready to meet her forever family.
Not because anyone wanted that for her — but because Booba was sick, and sick cats need quiet, contained spaces to heal. Terri Houston, one of the Humane Society of Southern Arizona's dedicated foster caregivers, knew this. She'd fostered 13 kittens through the previous summer alone, sometimes four at a time, managing medications and monitoring progress with the calm competence of someone who's simply done the work long enough to know what recovery looks like.
When I arrived at Terri's home with my camera, Booba had been in foster care for about six weeks total — 30 days initially, then recalled for bloodwork and a veterinary stay, then returned for another two weeks as her numbers continued to improve. The anemia that brought her in isn't fully resolved yet, but the trajectory is good. She's more energetic. More playful. Her appetite has stayed strong throughout.
The moment I set up in the bathroom, Booba made her opinion of the camera clear: she was interested. Not startled, not retreating — interested. She climbed onto the bathroom counter, batted at the wand toy Terri was using to coax her, and at one point stood straight up on her hind legs like she was auditioning.
That's not always how it goes. Some fosters need the whole session just to settle. Booba was ready.
Booba was ready for the camera from the start of the session.
Booba is ready to share her love with a new family.
Terri has been fostering and doing TNR work for years — she trapped cats on the East Coast before moving to Tucson, then re-engaged with rescue work after retiring. She knows Jennifer and Karen on the HSSA fundraising team, and it's the kind of overlapping network that makes this community function: people who care, connected to other people who care, each doing a different piece of the work.
I've been volunteering with rescue organizations since 2006 — most recently joining the Humane Society of Southern Arizona team in 2025 after reconnecting with Karen following the LA fires Wings of Rescue pet relocation effort. I photograph shelter and foster animals because the camera can do something for them that a kennel card can't: it can show who they actually are.
Booba enjoying a little play time.
Booba is a brown tabby with extraordinary green eyes, a black-tipped tail, and a personality that lands somewhere between dignified and mischievous. She's affectionate on her own terms, which is to say she's a cat. But she warmed up quickly to Terri's hands and to the session itself, and by the end she was draped over Terri's shoulder like she'd always lived there.
She'll be available for adoption through HSSA soon, once her bloodwork clears. If you've been thinking about adding a cat to your home — one with a little story behind her, a foster mom who loved her well, and eyes that will absolutely judge your interior decorating — keep an eye on the HSSA adoption listings.
Booba is ready. Visit hssaz.org/adoptions for adoption information. Know she’s the one without learning more? Email the adoptions staff to let them know you are interested.
