Now, I am ~absolutely~ not a cat person. I mean, I love kittens. Adorable, adorable, little things. And I've even met many very cool cats. When I go to someone else's house, and they have a cat, well, I'll be all over the furry kid. But, do I want one in my house? No. No, no, and no. It is my belief (and I am really hoping to be proven wrong on this one) that if you have a cat, you have pee in your house. I have never known a cat that did not pee in the house. If the litter box isn't completely clean, if it isn't in the right spot, if there aren't enough litter boxes around, if the cat gets spooked, if they cat isn't feeling well, if the cat woke up on the wrong side of the bed...it pees in your house. It'll even pee directly on your clothes or your pillow, if he is really pissed...no pun intended. Would a dog do this? No. A dog will not pee on your pillow because he is cranky. So, I'm a dog person. It's not much of a contest.
We will never have a cat in this house.
I've said those words to my daughter (who has been begging for a cat for, I think, pretty much all of her 7 years. I think her first words were, "Can I have a cat?"). Well, never say never...right?
Enter Mr. Pitiful. Literally.
Last weekend we found Mr. Pitiful in the ditch at the side of the (80 km/hr) road. I thought he was just a baby because he looked so tiny. Hubby pulled over to check him out and he came right up to him, meowing away. Dave brought him into the truck so I could check him out and, I suppose, "assess" the situation (I'm a professional veterinary technician, but I don't play one on t.v.). Well, kitty was actually about 7 or 8 months old. Not neutered. No collar. Ear mites, "walking dandruff", and probably a wide variety of intestinal parasites. He was severely malnourished with his hip bones clearly visible. And, he had a pretty awful upper respiratory infection. So, now, I guess I have a cat.
Well, I couldn't just leave him there.
Right?
(Just kidding).
Poor little guy. He really is a very sweet cat. I mean, most cats hate being in a car, but he just started purring and kneading his feet as soon as we touched him. It was like he was so thankful and relieved that someone picked him up.
We brought him home and got him set up with a litter box (a spare from my rabbit) and some fresh water, a blanket, and the only food we had to offer him...a can of sardines. Wow. He went to TOWN on those. We've also had him checked out by the vet and he has been treated for all his worms and mites and parasites (oh my!) and he was going to be vaccinated but, sadly, he was too sick to risk the vaccines. He is still very underweight (despite eating like a crazy cat for the past week) and he is still congested (he is blowing snot all over my house, people!!). All kidding aside, he really is a very sick little guy and we actually had to get him tested for Feline Leukemia and FIV. We don't have those results back, yet.
Mr. Pitiful is so happy here in the house and he has completely tolerated being dragged around the house like a rag-doll by Jamie. Maddie and Jamie both are head over heels in love with him. I'm letting him sleep with them at night so the two girls have been sharing the bottom bunk (so he doesn't have to jump too high to visit Maddie). I went in the other night to say "Good-night" to the girls and sing them their songs. Maddie was reading him a book!! He was lying in bed, right between the two of them, with just his head poking up above the covers to see the story. It was the sweetest, most adorable, thing ever!
I just hope Mr. Pitiful doesn't pee in my house.
And, we hope Mr. Pitiful will be okay.
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3 comments:
He sounds so sweet, I bet he wins your heart over! If you managed to not gag over the mites and worms and grossness, then it sounds like he may have already made inroads into there!
I can honestly say that Zebby has done all his business in the litter box. I'm not a cat person per se either. Actually I'm not even a real pet person. I enjoy other people's pets, but truly prefer my home to be pet free. I only have a cat as a mouse deterrent. And I would like to go on record and say....according to the 2 mice that Michael caught this weekend and the one I found in the basement over the summer.... Zebby sucks at mousing.
All that being said. I can't wait to meet Mr. Pitiful.
Seriously? You are not a cat person? Didn't you have cats? I know you had cats. I thought you were a cat person because you always defended them when I (more of a dog person) said bad things about cats.
And do you remember the time I was babysitting my neighbour's kids and their cat got up on the kitchen table I was sitting at and I called you because it was freaking me out. Do you remember me asking what it meant if a cat was wagging its tale? Do you remember what you said? Because I do. Like it was yesterday.
You said, and I quote, "Oh, Simone, cats are not like dogs. If the cat is wagging her tale, that is bad." I wonder, is that true? I sure hope it's true. I went downstairs and locked myself in the rec room until they came home.
That cat peed on the dining room carpet and they had to get a new carpet.
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