Strange Days

I got a call from the vet clinic today. The Pink House woman had called there, about one of the cats with "Pink eye". It's not pink eye, it's herpes conjunctivitis. She went on and on to the receptionist, but refused to make an appointment, told them "Judy" got the cats fixed, 13 of them but she didn't know where, various vets she thought, and maybe "Judy" would get her what she needed, antibiotics or a vet visit.

I stopped by the Pink HOuse then, on the way to pick up the five cats. I had printed out a Release of Ownership form, for Miss Pink House to sign the cat over. I can't pay for her cats to go to a clinic. Not anymore. I rang the bell and walked in.

I told her the vet clinic told me she had called and that she would not make an appointment for her sick cat but wanted me to get the cat to the vet. I said "I'm not going to do that, but I can do this for you and for the cat".....and I held the form up to her face with a pen. "Sign it," I said. "It's the only way I can help your cat this time."

She refused. She sighed dramatically and said she'd talked to a young kid at the clinic and had indeed made an appointment and didn't he write it down.

I said "He's not a young kid and you didn't make an appointment. Please sign the form or make an appointment if the cat is that sick. I need to get going." I gave her the number and said "Why don't you call right now?" She finally did.

I left and by the time I got to the clinic, the receptionist was still entangled talking to her. She wanted to be able to bring the cat in for free.

I said "Yeah, her disability is heavy drinking and compulsive lying." I couldn't resist that comment. She plays the disability card whenever possible to any possibly sympathetic ear. I don't care much for people who try to steal from others as she has. Like trying to get that retarded woman to sign over her house to her five seperate times.

I met KATA at the trailer park because they were taking in the old lady's six newborns with mom. That old lady has now gotten 15 cats removed in two days, plus four more fixed, and not a dime paid out by her. Boy, what a deal. You just can't beat that.

So the woman who owns one of two huge unfixed orange tabbies, who lives across from the old lady, was outside her trailer with another woman for whom I got a cat fixed.

The woman with the unfixed orange tabby and two dalmations, however, wanted to get into it with me. "I'm not fixing that male. It's my boyfriends and he would never get his cat fixed and that's his business."

I said "Sure it is, if he would keep the cat inside. With the cat free roaming, he's tearing up other cats, spreading disease and making more kittens other people have to pay to be fixed." The woman scowled and again said it was his choice to do what he wanted.

Later she asked the old woman about taking one of the orange newborns. Fortunately, KATA had just put them in a carrier. "I want one from my orange males bloodline," she said. Then, poutily, "Well, since they're taking them, I'll have to breed him again."

Sometimes it's almost too much to take all this. Vicki and Doris were gone with the six newborns and their mom within five minutes. I came home stressed again, from dealing with the Pink House lady, and her neglected cats, and now this latest cat crammed porch and the entitlement attitude dripping in some areas of Albany.

The Albany business feral is barely a teen and was pregnant. She doesn't even have adult teeth yet. She was dehydrated and not coming out of anesthesia so I took her in the bathroom and slid her out of the trap. This is a cat that tried to bite the employee who trapped her, through the trap mesh, when he tried to see if she was feral.

She's pretty much a kitten though, scared and starved and I couldn't help myself. I had a rough day, you see. I had a victim here of the likes of those trailer park people who just don't understand the consequences of their breeding behavior on cats everywhere. Like this little teen girl with nobody in the world.

I had her in my lap, then against my chest. Then I was syringe feeding her wet food mixed into water. Then I was running my finger softly through the fur above her eye and down her nose, murmuring to her in cat. And soon she was purring and clutching my arm and laying her head in my hand. It'll be hard to take her back now.

Such a hard cold world it is. Hard and so very cold. Even when our bodies can generate so much warmth just from that beating heart.