Allow me to introduce you to Black Kitty (so named by my neighbor). She has a heartbreaking story. Her family used to live a few houses down from us, but they got divorced, moved out, or otherwise relocated. So, what did they do with her? They threw her out on the street. The people in the next house over eventually took pity on her and brought her in. Until they got a dog. Black Kitty and Jake the Dog did not get along. So, what did they do? They threw Black Kitty on the street. The people in the next house, my neighbors, have not brought her inside, but they do at least feed her. I just don't understand this. Why do people do this? It would never have occurred to her second set of owners to throw the dog out into the street, so why is it okay to throw the poor little pussycat out there? It makes me so sad and so upset to know what she has been through. Do you think these people know that an average outside cat's life expectancy is only 2-3 years? Or perhaps these people don't care?
This hits particularly close to home because I believe my little (well, not so little: he's 13 lbs.) Jack has a very similar story. He had been fixed and declawed and then abandoned. Because someone took away his claws and then threw him outside, he had no way of defending himself and is now sick with FIV. FIV is AIDS in cats and is spread through a scratch or bite. Cats with FIV will lead a long (although, not as long if they were not sick) and healthy life as long as they remain healthy. Feline leukemia is actually closer to human AIDS. It breaks my heart to know that he's sick because of the stupidity and lack of compassion of his former humans. When my vet first told me that Jack has FIV and I started asking questions, she said that many other people would simple have had him put to sleep. I just don't understand that either. He's still the same sweet kitty that I fell in love with, I just have to take a little special care in the event he gets sick. His quality of life is just as good as a healthy cat. My vet said that he was very lucky to have found me. I feel like the lucky one.
If you feel as strongly as I do about this kitty injustice and want to display your feelings, check out julep115's Etsy Shop:
In other news: "The Room" is coming along. The sealant is on the stucco and the corner where the birdcage attaches has been painted, so now our contractor can come back and put the lanai back together. Once he's done with that, we can finally have the final inspection done. We will still need to paint the remainder of the exterior walls, paint the trim work on the interior, and finish up some furniture to be done in there for the time being. There's still two more big things to do: we need to replace the laminate flooring in there (the water damage was so extensive that it's basically turned into speed bumps) and deal with the landscaping so that we can get the standing water away from the house. Damn, we're poor.
