Kitty is a sweet, timid cat who has a story to tell. When she was 6 months old, she was given to my sister from a friend who was moving away. As soon as she was dropped off, she ran and hid under the bed. She gets scared easily from loud noises, strangers and just things she is unsure of, and her first instinct is to run and hide.
When my sister’s circumstances changed, she was given to a new owner who wanted a companion for her cat. Kitty unfortunately didn’t take to her new home, and not even a few days later, got scared and ran away. Not sure exactly what happened, as the new owner said she was petting her in her lap when she abruptly jumped out & ran after seeing the other cat. She didn’t see her leave so either she escaped through an open window or door.
I thought maybe she was hiding, as was good at that, so I went to check and that’s when I met the other cat. Boy she was mean, very unfriendly to strangers as she snarled at me. No wonder Kitty ran away, even I would have done the same! That cat certainly did not need a cat-friend as didn’t take to anyone cat or human, other than her owner. And because the home with the other cat was not carefully checked out beforehand, she ending up getting lost and her life put at risk.
I was frantic in looking for her as was very afraid that she couldn’t survive being such a scaredy cat who never ventured past the front steps or backyard of her home. That how she could even find her way home, the distance from the other side of the river, would be a miracle.
I spent the summer in that neighborhood looking for her, putting up posters asking around but she couldn’t be found. I never gave up hope, called vets, animal shelters and put up lost ads on local pet websites. As time passed, I wasn’t sure if she survived as winter was approaching and the weather was getting extremely cold. I wondered if someone took her in but since she doesn’t trust strangers, I wasn’t even sure that would be a possibility.
Then one day, over 3 months later, the vet from a nearby animal hospital called and said someone had dropped off the cat as she was found injured in their backyard. It turned out where she was found was down the block only a few doors away, that’s how close she was in finding her way back home. It was an extremely cold week with the weather dipping in the minus 20’s.
I felt unbelievable joy that she was found and just in time before Christmas! I rushed to the animal hospital and there she was laying down and a bit weathered. I started crying and, as soon as I did, she got up like brushing herself off saying it’s okay, I’m alright and ready to go home now.
She had a deep infected cut in her underarm due to a collar she had been wearing, in trying to take it off, and needed surgery. Unfortunately, the surgery wasn’t a success and the vet recommended another one since the wound still wasn’t healing. I was hesitant about another surgery but went along and, it too, wasn’t a success either.
It was upsetting that the second surgery didn’t help any and was unnecessary because the skin in the underarm area is thin and much harder to heal. So I took it upon myself to heal her injury and spent many months in successfully doing so.
It was an absolute miracle Kitty was found and, in the nick of time, taken to the animal hospital by those good samaritans, because the vet said she would have died. That was how close it was for her life on the last leg of her journey so close to home.
Since that day she was found injured and near death, I became responsible for her and have been lovingly taking care of her.
~ Kitty’s Humom ~