Normally my husband’s morning jog is an uneventful event; just lots of sweat and dirty washing! However one day in October, it took a surprising turn.
Watching him go jogging down our road I was surprised to see him suddenly stop dead in his tracks, crouch down and almost climb into a storm-drain. What an earth is he doing I thought, it’s filthy down there!
 His arm then came out of the drain with a plastic bag, the plot thickened. He then promptly came back down the road to the house and gave me the plastic bag with the words “now we have a tough decision!"
He wasn’t kidding – inside the bag were three tiny crying kittens only 2 days old, freezing cold, starving and soaking wet. My initial reaction was – they are too tiny, they will never make it, we have to do the merciful thing and put them to sleep. But my husband being a big softy under the tough executive exterior said – no, they want to live, we have to give them a chance. With those words he managed to stop me having a full night’s sleep for 2 weeks.
Our three new babies fought for their lives; normally kitten’s only days old and who have got so cold and wet, really don’t stand much of a chance. However these three were determined to fight. Our spare room turned into a mini clinic with weighing scales, droppers, syringes, bottles, towels, schedules and weight charts. The internet became my best friend; we are now authorities on newly born kitten care courtesy of Google.
The runt of the litter (the black and white), I thought I would lose a thousand times. Why wasn’t he moving? Was he breathing? Had he drunk enough? Another check of the charts and comparison of food intake. Heaven forbid anyone even thought of touching them without spotlessly clean hands.
They slept every night by our bed, I set the alarm clock so I could wake and feed them every two hours throughout the night. Not forgetting you have to make them “pee and poo” after every feed, yes you really do, otherwise they will die, this is the not so nice part of the job. Lots of rubbing of tiny tummies and bottoms is how this is achieved.
My life was on hold for 2 weeks while I nurtured and protected them from germs and disease. Amazingly they grew and grew, these were our miracle kittens, the odds had been stacked so high against them, and by rights they should never have survived. But our three babies were determined and grew stronger and stronger.
Teaching them to lick water for the first time was fun, teaching them how to eat solids was even more amusing. I don’t know who got dirtier, them or me! In nature they would copy mother cat but as she wasn’t around they were clueless what to do for a while. My older cat was having nothing to do with them, so was absolutely no help.
I can’t believe they are now nearly a year old. They are the most loving cats and follow me everywhere. They are now all spayed and neutered and love to cuddle up together.
Rolo Snickers Oreo
We now have ended up with four cats! Certainly that wasn’t the plan as we move countries way too much, now we will be doing this with our mini zoo.
To the person who took them from their mother, put them in a plastic bag, and left them to die a slow cruel death - I cannot type how I feel about you; whoever and wherever you are (if I did this article would never be published). What a cowards way of dealing with the over cat population situation.
Please spay and neuter your pets, don’t take the cowards route. There is a humane way to deal with this situation – Trap/Neuter/Return . There might well be a Trap/Neuter/Return program running in your area, if there isn’t talk to the association, demand a humane solution. As soon as a cat is fixed they stop all the wailing and unsocial behavior.
Next time you are walking on the street, look twice at your local cats, they have so much love to give and play an important part in your society. Just because they aren’t “a breed” doesn’t mean they are not worthy. At CARA we call them “community cats” because that is what they are, they are part of the community, keeping the rat and roach situation under control. Please give them some food, take pity on their situation, if you can’t do that, at least don’t hurt them. Try to be a more caring towards the animals that share your life, your joy and your pain every day.
Written by a British expat who is beyond shocked at the cruelty to animals she has witnessed in the Philippines. But who is thankful for the three tiny miracles who have joined their family. They are a reminder of how the world needs to change to be a kinder place.
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