I am finally writing another blog post because I have had a
number of questions recently about my cat situation. It is organized in chunks ending with an explanation
of how the information in the paragraph answers specific questions that have
been put to me over the past few weeks. I hope that this approach helps
illuminate some of the more subtle details of the story.
TOPAZ GOES TO WORK:
What seemed to be a large fat and fluffy tomcat appeared
on our campus just over a month ago. It was too large to be missed and the long
hair was a showstopper. The orange garbage cats here are generally a mongrel
version of the indigenous (really pale, super short haired) sand cat- I kid you
not. It was named Garfield by the
students for obvious reasons.
The really special thing about Garfield though was that it
spent most of its time strolling in and out of buildings and rubbing up against
people. It wandered in to the music room
one morning, jumped up on the teacher’s lap and laid down.-This is how we knew
it was a house cat.
It ate the meat from
Amanda’s lunch and sauntered out of the room only to reappear a few minutes
later with a baby in its mouth. It dropped the baby, flopped down and started
nursing. - This is how we figured out Garfield
was a she.
It must have been hiding the baby all along. It seemed like
there had originally been more than one kitten.
The one living in the music room was old enough to ween and it had an
infected eye.- This is how we came to believe that she and the defective baby
had been given the boot and the healthy kitten was likely kept instead.
The school administration hates cats. The strays are tolerated on the school
grounds because if they clear out the existing ones, they would simply be
replaced by others from the endless supply of cats in the neighbourhood. I think the term they use in physics for this
phenomenon is “net neutrality”. I don’t
actually think the principal cares about the scientific term for it. His term for Garfield when he found her wandering
around his office when he arrived back from Europe was not even remotely scientific. He gave a 24 hour timeline for getting rid of
the things.- This is how the cat rescue groups became involved.
A co-worker adopted the baby (Carson’s eye has been treated
and he is fine btw). I was promised that
if I agreed to foster the mother, it would be gone before I left for the Christmas
holiday.- This is how I ended up living with Cat.
I had help from a cat guy at work with the transportation
and bathing of the thing. He actually
knew how to pick the screeching, spitting thing out of a mid-air spin and pin it
to the bottom of the bathtub- it was impressive and very helpful. My only jobs were to soap and rinse and to
unhook the claws from the shower curtain periodically. We then wrapped it like a mummy for
drying. I don’t think cat liked it, but
I was completely traumatized. – This is how I learned that I am REALLY not a cat person.
So, the carrier was washed (she was so scared she pooed in
it) and turned upside down to create a litter box. I headed to the pharmacy for
flea medication and the supermarket for food and litter (which cost me as much
money that evening as the majority of Egyptians earn in a week).- This is how I
learned why Egyptians don’t adopt cats.
I finally got a phone call saying that there is a young
Egyptian man interested in adopting Topaz- This is how I learned her name was
Topaz. I assume that a name and the Persian
identification made her more attractive for Facebook posts.
Topaz began to limp and was barely able to walk within a few
minutes of this news. I was petrified
that the man would change his mind if I presented him with a defective cat, so
I made an appointment with a vet that makes house calls. I could not possibly live through transporting
her again. Especially not to a vet.
The vet was Amazing! He even helped me get her from under my
bed- she was becoming increasingly shy as her paw got worse. He sedated her and we treated her on the top
of the washing machine. He had to go to
the pharmacy in the middle of the procedure to get an antibiotic shot. When I asked him about why he didn’t carry
that kind of thing with him, he said he did, but not one suitable for a
pregnant mother- This explains why she was so fat and maybe why she has a
stripper name.
He showed me how to grind up medicine and how to give her
the second half of the antibiotic injection the following day. He also advised me not to tell the dude that
she was a month pregnant and asked me if I would be interested in adopting one
of several small dogs he is currently trying to find homes for.
The vet also explained to me on our walk to the bank that
Muslims believe that fixing an animal is not Haram because the Koran says that
animals have the right to reproduce. -This
is how I learned that people are nuts.
The bill came to less than 2 weeks cat food and litter. I
was so grateful I gave him almost twice that.
– This is how I learned that the vets treating my co-worker’s cats may
be charging too much.
Within 24 hours of the vet visit Topaz was walking on my
dining table with her swollen paw- This is how I learned that she’s not actually
a laid back cat, she was just not feeling well.
I also learned that I am not getting rid of her a moment too soon.
So, my own antibiotic injection was a complete fail. I squirted it all over her fur and she was
only mildly annoyed. The man who adopted
her was going to take her directly to the vet, so presumably things will be
taken care of properly by someone who isn’t a spaz. I had hoped that it would be a few weeks
before he discovered her condition, but I think the vet will spot the issue
right away.- This is why I’m not answering my phone or door today.
.
Apparently Topaz is going to live in an office. The man works longer hours than the rest of
the staff and spends a lot of time at work alone. He will leave her at night when he goes home
and return in the morning. –This explains how Topaz left school and went to
work.
