Cape Karen
I have a soft spot for felines. I've always enjoyed the company of my furry pets. First, there was "Booby" a kitten who found his way to our first home in Hyannis, MA. He was a scraggily little thing, covered with matted fur and loaded with fleas. After a trip to the vet to have him spayed, groomed and de-loused, he became the first "child" in our new marriage. He was my first pet and he gave us two years of unconditional love. Booby escaped and got lost during our move from Hyannis to Barnstable; but somehow he showed up a year later in our new backyard - I couldn't believe it was him! He was covered with matted fur again, and had become too feral to be reclaimed. We left food and water outdoors for him, and he stayed around for awhile, but soon ~ he went missing for good.
Then there was "Tiffany," a gift for our daughter, Heidi, one Easter. Instead of the intended bunny from the pet store, she came home with a tiny, marmalade kitten. Tiffany was with us for fourteen years, until we, sadly, had to have her put down. She was a wonderful friend and companion, and I still miss her.
Now, we have "Smudge" - she's a beautiful long-haired calico who is completely a "momma's girl." She is a delightful pet and a great friend. She's nine years young, and is wonderful in every possible way. Frank found her for me at a (now-defunct) shelter, when we first moved here to the Great Smoky Mountains. She could have ended-up alone and abandoned, too, if someone hadn't found her one night, wandering on the side of a mountain road. They, gratefully, brought her to a shelter, so we could eventually adopt her. We have been so blessed by her presence in our lives.
And that's the point of this blog - there are just too many feral cats and, therefore, too many abandoned kittens, running around everywhere, starving and alone. Spring always brings the newborn kittens, and then they are left by their mothers, after weaning, to fend for themselves ~ (usually around our house for some reason?)
Just two weeks ago, I took in an abandoned Siamese kitten I found under our backyard shed - she was the cutest thing you ever saw. I called her little "Sabrina." But, our Smudge kitty is the Queen of the Household now, and it just wasn't going to work out. She was just too 'put-out' by the little kitten's presence. So, I posted an ad, and she is now on her way to her new home in Cincinatti, OH, with a delightful young couple who were vacationing here; they saw my ad the day after I posted it, at a store called, "The Cat House," and they took her home as a companion for their one-year-old Siamese cat. She is a delightful, friendly kitten, and she's going to be a real beauty when she grows up.
Then, just yesterday, I found two more abandoned kittens. Two little yellow-striped marmalades, like our former Tiffany, crouched-up tight together, sitting on the back tire of my car. They looked to be about 3-4 months old. (This isn't their picture - but it's real close to what they looked like.) And, they were soooo pathetic... scratching like crazy with fleas, their little ribs showing from starvation, their eyes bulging in fear and desperation and loudly crying in pain and hunger. It just broke my heart, and it made me ANGRY ~ to the point of tears!
I couldn't take them in with all those fleas, and I think they are probably too feral now to be tamed. I began calling around to find someone to help them, and I came up totally empty. There is NO animal rescue organization in this entire town! This is a town where 15 million people come to vacation each year. It also seems to be an area where many local (ignorant) people don't bother to neuter their pets. It seems the only recourse I have is to call the Sheriff's department, in the next town over, and they'll send out their ONE animal control officer to try and capture them.... then they will be taken somewhere and killed. Arrgghh!
Innocent baby kittens, alone and abandoned, who ended-up feral, starving and diseased by fleas. All because some idiot wouldn't take the time, or spend the money, to have their female cat neutered in the first place. It's a damn crime! Something needs to be done here for these poor little creatures. And I'm going to do all I can to make sure something IS done... pronto!
Watch out Pigeon Forge, TN ~ Karen's on a rampage!
(Here's our well-loved Smudge ~ showing off her "pretty tummy" for you.)
Posted by Karen at July 28, 2006 10:16 AM