Look What I Found!

Yesterday I was at work and went outside to smoke. I heard a kitty crying and crying, then I spotted her sitting under a bush. I called her, but she wouldn't come to me. She just kept crying and crying. So I used a little trick I'd learned reading The Man Who Listens to Horses by horse whisperer Monty Roberts. I went closer, then sat down with my back to her. Sure enough, within seconds, she was right behind me.

I scooped her up and went off to find my friend Debra to get some help. Little kitty was skin and bones. Her black fur is bleached out from being in the sun and she had stickers and burrs in her hair. She didn't struggle while I was carrying her, but lawdy, did she make a fuss with her caterwauling.

Debra was on her way out and I'd just missed her, so I went running around the third floor of her building yelling for her, accompanied by kitty distress signals. She heard us and came back. I was like, "Help me." We took little kitty into the bathroom so we could set her down and get a better look at her. I didn't want to abscond with someone's pet, so I wanted to be fairly certain she was really a stray. We decided she was.

On a Friday night, it can take me up to an hour to get home and I had nothing to put the kitty in for the drive. Debra kindly offered to let me borrow her carrier, so we left for her house. I put little kitty in the back seat of my car, where she stayed for the ride. Seriously, she didn't move a centimeter! She was clinging to the back seat for dear life.

On the way home, I called my vet's office to make an appointment to get her seen a.s.a.p. After I'd dropped little kitty off at my house, quarantined in the bathroom, it was off to the pet supply store. I have two cats of my own already, but I needed a litter pan, etc., for the newbie. I got her settled in for the night to await her vet appointment this morning.

I took her in this morning to see Dr. Edgar Church at All Cats Clinic. Dr. Church gave her a thorough exam. The very first thing he did was scan her for a microchip. We needed to be certain someone wasn't missing their beloved pet. There was no microchip. She has fleas, no surprise there, so we treated her for that. She also has a respiratory infection, so I have medicine to treat that. She tested negative for both Feline Leukemia (FeLV) and Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP). Yay! We're waiting for test results to see if she has parasites. Her respiratory infection is contagious so I'm glad I was able to get her seen right away. I'm being very careful to keep her quarantined and wash my hands and even, on the recommendation of Dr. Church, change my clothes after I've handled her.

The good news is, she's already been spayed! I would have had that done, too, if she wasn't, but I'm glad I've been spared that additional expense. Poor little kitty just needs some TLC. She's really sweet and cuddly, purring away when I pet her. She gets in my lap and she lets me pick her up and cuddle and pet her.

Since I have two cats of my own already and I'm a renter in a one bedroom apartment, I'm hoping to find a forever home for her. She's not going anywhere until she's healthy, though. With treatment for her infection and a good diet, I figure she'll be good to go in a week or two.

Stay tuned!