Last Friday, while heading out to lunch, my colleague and I saw a van backing out of its parking lot and we noticed a ginger cat dragging something small from under the van to the car parked next to it. At first, we thought the cat was chewing on a small mouse but as we looked closer, it was a kitten! It was barely the size of the palm of my hand! The mommy cat was carrying the kitten by the scruff of its neck to the safety of the underneath of another car. I left mommy cat some food that day, after checking with the vet that it’s ok to let them be as long as the mommy’s taking care of the kitten.

That same evening, a friend of mine (she’s an ardent dog rescuer) stopped her car just past a toll plaza to check on her car tyre, and noticed a litter of 7 puppies by the side of the road, without their mom in sight. She’s been back to feed the pups every day since then, waiting for her vet to give her the go-ahead to take them in while she tries to find homes for them.

My question is this : Why, of all people, did it happen to be ME who was walking past when the van was backing out of its lot and hence, noticing the mommy cat + kitten, and why did my friend so happen to stop to check on her car tyre at that spot at the moment, and then her noticing the puppies?

My theory is that the both of us, being hardcore animal lovers, have a subconscious thought in our mind on saving animals or looking out for animals in need, that we inadvertantly attract ourselves to situations where animals need help and somehow, we’re able to help them in every little way that we can. Of course, I’ve come across lots of situations where I couldn’t help and all I could do was say a prayer for the unfortunate animal that it be kept safe and out of harm’s way. But I’ve also encountered situations where I’m able to help and the animal was better off for it.

It actually breaks my heart each time I come across an animal that needs help… and it’s even worse if I can’t do anything to help. But I’m also glad that it’s me who come across them because I know I’d try my best to help, as opposed to most people who would just ignore them.

Sigh… I hope the mommy cat and her kitten are ok :-S

Continuing my animal stories streak…

Just finished reading a good cat memoir, Cleo, by Helen Brown. The cat was chosen by Helen’s oldest son from a litter of kittens, but he was killed in a car accident shortly after at age nine. Cleo came into their lives shortly after Sam’s death and helped Helen and her surviving son through the loss, birth of a daughter, divorce, subsequent remarriage, and birth of another daughter. In all, Cleo lived to a ripe old age of 23!

I just love reading pet memoirs, although the book usually ends with the passing of the beloved pet.

Sigh, pets just don’t live long enough.

*sniffs*

I’m still feeling the effects of watching Hachiko

I cannot imagine what it must have felt like for him, going back to the train station day after day for 10 years, waiting for his friend to appear but it never happened *sob*

The most heartbreaking part of the movie for me was when the professor’s wife returned to the town after 10 years to visit her husband’s grave, and as she was going to the train station, she sees Hachiko, old and grey and dirty, waiting at his usual spot and goes to him and says “Oh Hachi, you’re still waiting for him” *sob sob*

I think only animal lovers will truly understand and experience the same impact when coming across stories like this.

Ok, I’m adding another place to visit on my travel list. I want to go visit Hachiko’s statue at Shibuya Station in Japan.

A similar story occurred in England back in the 1850s, where Greyfriars Bobby spent 14 years at his master’s grave after the guy died of tuberculosis. Another must-visit place on my list.

“Let their loyalty and devotion be a lesson to us all”

So I finally watched Hachiko :  Dog’s Story, and ended up bawling my eyes out for about half the show, from the point when Richard Gere’s character dies until the end. Fyi, I knew this would happen (movies about animals do this to me; even Disney cartoons can make me cry) but I decided to put myself through the torture anyway. For those who don’t know, this is the American adaptation of the Japanese version of Hachiko Monogatari, based on Hachiko’s true story back in the 1920s.

I love animals. I wasn’t aware of this when I was younger, although I did grow up with dogs and later, cats. But as I got older, my affinity for animals became much clearer and stronger.

I’m always more attracted to animal babies rather than human babies. You know how people will go all gaga and coo over a baby? Well, human babies don’t generate that reaction from me but animals (babies and adults) do. Put me with a puppy/dog or a kitten/cat or some other animal and I will go all gooey and mushy. Heck, I feel for ants! Like, I think they have a right to be on the planet, hence in our homes. I’ve read somewhere that earthworms are more important to the earth than humans are. Anyway, I digress…

I like the fact that animals (by this, I mean mostly the dogs and cats that I’ve had the pleasure of sharing my life with) don’t care if I look like an ogre or if I didn’t brush my teeth or if I’m not dressed up to the nines. They still love me the same and expect the same of me. They still come running to me and want to play.

I like the fact that they don’t judge me or nag me or expect me to wait on them hand and foot (which I do willingly anyway).

I like the fact that they live in the present. Everyday’s a new day for them. They’ve got no worries, they stop to smell the roses, they don’t have to worry about bills or have any expectations placed upon them. They don’t have to go through traffic jams or think what’s for dinner tonight or who’s cooking or are we eating out.

I like the fact that animals do not intentionally hurt others. They are not evil. They don’t make cutting remarks, they don’t intentionally make you feel bad, they don’t do pre-meditated murder, like what humans are capable of.

I like the fact that they are just themselves. All furry, cuddly bundles of fur, waiting for me to come home from a long day’s work.

As I’m writing this, my cat’s perched on the arm of my chair, watching me.

Yes, I definitely prefer animals over most humans anyday.

Took Nessa for her regular checkup today and found out that she might have borderline diabetes

Hope it’s just a bladder infection, which was what the vet confirmed, but will check again in 3 weeks after a course of antibiotics.

Poor Nessa, am praying hard she doesn’t have diabetes coz she’s been through enough. Sigh…

~~~~~

When I was paying for the meds, this man came in with a cat in a cage. He was telling the staff that it’s a stray cat that’s been around the back of his house for a year and he wants her to be put down coz she’s been bothering the neighbors.

According to the man, the cat was abandoned by her owners when they moved.

What’s really sad is that the cat is really pretty, quite similar to Trixie (my sis’ cat) in in color and fur. The man said she couldn’t get along with his cats and also he’s already got a number of cats at his house.

Every so often, I have to keep telling myself I can’t save them all because if I don’t, I’ll get consumed by guilt and probably drive myself insane. But it’s really heartbreaking to see such a pretty and healthy (I’m assuming, from her appearance) cat be put down thru no fault of her own.

I hope her previous owners, whoever and wherever they are, will burn in hell for just abandoning her like that, and now for getting her killed.

One of the SPCA committee members whom I’ve worked with over the years on animal welfare issues is now my colleague.

There are stray dogs in the area around our workplace. I recently found out that she has gotten all 7 of them fixed (i.e. spayed or neutered) and every weeknight, she stays back till dark and feeds them (because she doesn’t want to be noticed by people in case they complain). On weekends, she will also go there specifically to feed them. And she buys freshly cooked rice and meat from one of the restaurants near our workplace to feed them.

The most amazing thing : she’s been doing this for almost the entire time she’s been with the company, which is about 8 years! Everyday.

I so admire her level of dedication and commitment. My work/contribution thus far is pittance compared to hers.

Note : The Trap-Neuter-Release method has been proven to curb the dog and cat stray population and also prevent new strays from entering into an area that already has a colony of strays. Singapore is one of the countries which has successfully implemented this program. I can attest to its effectiveness because this is what I did with the stray cats around my parents’ condo. The number of stray cats there have remained quite stable over the past 6-7 years and a few of the cats have been around for almost that length of time.

When incidents like this happens, I hope people will remember that ultimately, these are wild animals and we may keep them captive and train them all we like but we will never be able to remove the wildness from them.

And we shouldn’t. Because being wild is their nature.

And when things like this happens, it is not the fault of the animal because it is just displaying its natural instincts.

The only reason why I’m not looking forward to going back to work is that I won’t be home to watch Nessa in case the reduction of her meds cause her seizures to recur. According to the vet, it will take about 2 weeks for the meds to stabilize in her system so it might not take effect immediately. This means that the most likely time it might recur is when I’m back at work. Sigh. Am so praying for the best because it would be so difficult to see her go thru the horrifying episode again.

Doesn’t help that now I don’t have my parents around for moral (and sometimes, physical) support.

Sigh.

Got.to.be.strong.to.handle.this.on.my.own.

Now I know how it might feel like if I were to have a kid and had to leave him/her to go back to work. But that situation would be different in that there would be people (read : family) who would be clamoring to volunteer to watch the kid.

The past 2 weeks have been traumatizing.

Nessa developed seizures 3 Fridays ago and it got progressively worse. Dr. Vijay prescribed steroids to see if it would bring any inflammation in the brain down but it didn’t work. It got so bad that she was having fits almost every hour. That night, I couldn’t take it and decided to take her to the 24-hour vet so that they could monitor her and administer Valium intraveneously.

Watching my beloved pet having a seizure is, by far, the most traumatizing thing for me to-date. Because there is nothing I could do except try to hold her down until the fit passed. To watch her writhing and thrashing around, and being unable to control her bowels was just too much to bear.

We’re currently controlling her seizures now with barbiturates. Phenobarbital, it’s called. We still don’t know the cause of her seizures so this medication is purely an anti-convulsant and does not address the underlying problem. I am considering if I should get an MRI done so that we can rule out or know for sure if there’s anything affecting her brain. But what if we do find out that there’s a tumor? There is no neurosurgeon here in Malaysia to operate on it. But the other vet I consulted had a point : If we know what is the problem, we can be prepared to face the upcoming challenges. So, the MRI is something I am considering at the moment but will not rush into doing it because the animal needs to be under anesthetic in order to get the scan done.

I’ve also found out, thru the blood tests that was run to rule out any organ/blood disorders, that Nessa is mildly positive for FIV, the feline equivalent of HIV. Can’t be sure where she caught this from but am suspecting it is from her days as a stray. This might also be the cause of her seizures.

I joined a group called epi-felines, run by people who have cats with seizures. So far, I have gotten a lot of support and information from the group. It seems that seizures are uncommon in cats and most of the time, the underlying cause of the seizures cannot be identified, and most of them are keeping their cats’ seizures under control with pheno.

Having a pet is a lifelong commitment. Living with a pet with a health condition is even more work. I’ve got to give her her meds on time and monitor her closely to ensure that she doesn’t display any strange behavior. But this is all part and parcel of taking care of a living creature.

Having a pet is not unlike having a child. Except that a child will eventually be able to voice his/her desires and wants and needs, while a pet will never be able to do that. In that sense, it is more difficult to keep a pet because you have no idea what is hurting them or whether they are sick until you see the physical signs.

Many people would say, it’s just a cat. But to me, my pets are living creatures who depend on me for food, shelter and a loving home, while I depend on them for their companionship and unconditional love. My cats have been with me for more than 8 years, longer than any boyfriend ever lasted. They ask nothing of me, save for their twice daily feeds and cleaning of their litter pans.

Me and my pets are a package. Previously, I have often wondered if it is too selfish of me to impose this particular aspect of my life onto others (especially a significant other), but a few of my dear friends have shown me that I must be true to myself and those who can’t accept it, can go look elsewhere. I now realize that people may come and go in my life, but my pets will remain constant. That is, until they pass on.

How many of us stop to check on animals who get hit by vehicles?

Here’s a lesson that we can all learn from Daryl.