[Author’s note: Move along if you don’t care about animal welfare. This story is all about the welfare of a kitten that might be in trouble]
Julie Cunningham needs your help to find the black kitten in these photos. His name is Magic. Ms. Cunningham runs Julie’s Wayward Home for Kittens, which is a personal and charitable initiative where she rescues or receives rescued kittens, nurses them to health, then adopts them out. Her efforts are providing humane solutions to Guam’s stray domestic animal problem.
Recently Ms. Cunningham began a Trial Adoption Program to help alleviate the crowding of the kittens she and others have rescued. The gist of the program is that a citizen can take home a kitten to see if they want to adopt it following the one-week trial period.
“Magic went out on a trial adoption last Wednesday the 13th for one week,” Ms. Cunningham wrote to Kandit. “The people who have him have not responded to our messages and have now blocked myself and other volunteers. We are very concerned for his well being.”
Admitting that she has been just too trusting of strangers who have expressed interest in helping these kitten, her organization trusted a couple who picked up Magic for a trial adoption based on their assurances to her volunteers that they would be good owners and that they would return with Magic after the one-week trial period.
“The woman said she is an anesthesiologist at Guam Memorial Hospital,” Ms. Cunningham said. “She is around 5’4″ with dirty blonde hair and dreadlocks, the man is around 5’11″ with dark brown hair and a goatee. They were driving a white Corolla, older model. They said they were adopting Magic for their autistic daughter. They told our volunteer they live at Leo Palace.”
Leading up to the end of the one-week period, Ms. Cunningham began to message the man from the Facebook account he used to contact Julie’s Wayward Home for Kittens. The Trial Adoption Program agreement was for the couple to return with Magic after a week whether or not they intended to fully adopt him. If they wanted to adopt him, the program would require them to fill out paperwork and be approved by the program for the adoption.
After several follow-up attempts on the Facebook messenger platform, it appears the man has now blocked Ms. Cunningham. They do not have any other contact information for the couple.
“I totally trust people too much,” she said, adding that this experience will cause the Home to undertake greater scrutiny of people wanting to adopt, slowing down the process of adoptions. One of the Home’s volunteers told her they believe the woman’s name is Rikki Truax, based on pictures of the couple they were able to find online. “She told me previously they moved to Guam last month. A friend works at GMH and said there’s no anesthesiologist there by that name or description.”
If you know the couple matching the description Ms. Cunningham gave or the picture she provided, or otherwise have information about Magic, please call Ms. Cunningham at 483-4195, or the Guam Police Department at 647-8923
Ms. Cunningham has filed a complaint with the Guam Police Department.
5 Comments
Fawna Truax
12/17/2024 at 7:04 AM
This is my ex husband and his new wife. He owes over 67k in child support and he is no where to be found. Last I heard they were in Guam but his name is Michael Reid Truax. Her parents live in the Jacksonville, FL area and her maiden name is walker. His family also lives in the same area, but he also has family in Georgia and NC. These 2 are seriously some of the absolute worst people to ever walk the face of the Earth.
Rikki Truax
01/04/2025 at 2:42 PM
This entire story is a lie. Nothing more than a desperate attempt for attention which will land Julie Cunningham in court for slander very shortly. The REAL story is that Julie was off island and the day after she returned, we planned on meeting to fill out the adoption paperwork. She had been provided daily updates and photos of my daughter playing with Magic, who she adored. My daughter is autistic and has recently lost her service dog of 10 years. Magic was to bring “magic” back to her sad heart. I told Julie that we were short staffed in the OR and I had to work late that day (BTW she knew the entire time where I worked AND lived) and asked if we could meet over the weekend. The next morning (which was the 7th day of the trial adoption), Danielle Brown, the volunteer who ‘speaks on Julie’s behalf’ showed up at the hospital and lied to security in an attempt to sneak into the OR and demand the kitten back, while I had a patient under anesthesia. Security escorted her off the property and notified me. I then discovered the horrible lies being said about myself and my family all over Facebook…this hitting my daughter especially hard during such a fragile time after losing her dog, Sheerah. I contacted Julie and asked why she was doing this…She said the adoption was off and if I didn’t return the kitten immediately would come to my house with the police. 2 hours later my daughter was holding Magic when 2 unfamiliar women began pounding on my door and her bedroom window screaming my name and that I was a thief. My daughter sobbed and begged to not take Magic away but I had no choice. Taking that kitten out of her hands and watching her heart break is what disgusts me the most about this. I opened the door and handed them “our” kitten who we all had grown to love so much. I strongly warn anyone dealing with Julie that she has a major issue with control and an obvious personality, attention- seeking, disorder that she unfortunately exercises through her Wayward Home for Cats…… Dr. Rikki Truax
Rikki Truax
01/04/2025 at 2:41 PM
This entire story is a lie. Nothing more than a desperate attempt for attention which will land Julie Cunningham in court for slander very shortly. The REAL story is that Julie was off island and the day after she returned, we planned on meeting to fill out the adoption paperwork. She had been provided daily updates and photos of my daughter playing with Magic, who she adored. My daughter is autistic and has recently lost her service dog of 10 years. Magic was to bring “magic” back to her sad heart. I told Julie that we were short staffed in the OR and I had to work late that day (BTW she knew the entire time where I worked AND lived) and asked if we could meet over the weekend. The next morning (which was the 7th day of the trial adoption), Danielle Brown, the volunteer who ‘speaks on Julie’s behalf’ showed up at the hospital and lied to security in an attempt to sneak into the OR and demand the kitten back, while I had a patient under anesthesia. Security escorted her off the property and notified me. I then discovered the horrible lies being said about myself and my family all over Facebook…this hitting my daughter especially hard during such a fragile time after losing her dog, Sheerah. I contacted Julie and asked why she was doing this…She said the adoption was off and if I didn’t return the kitten immediately would come to my house with the police. 2 hours later my daughter was holding Magic when 2 unfamiliar women began pounding on my door and her bedroom window screaming my name and that I was a thief. My daughter sobbed and begged to not take Magic away but I had no choice. Taking that kitten out of her hands and watching her heart break is what disgusts me the most about this. I opened the door and handed them “our” kitten who we all had grown to love so much. I strongly warn anyone dealing with Julie that she has a major issue with control and an obvious personality, attention- seeking, disorder that she unfortunately exercises through her Wayward Home for Cats…… Dr. Rikki Truax
Talia king
04/09/2025 at 4:32 AM
Seriously what about my r v. You absolutely destroyed. Are you gonna say i’m lying like the pet rescue.
Keith Washington
01/28/2025 at 8:55 AM
If this is the same Rikki Truax who got strangled in 2023 then she is a nutcase sociopath. What a terrible couple and they probably hurt the kitten given their track record. But hopefully I’m wrong and you find it.