All in the Family

Like me, my mother is a friend to all things feline and canine. Growing up we found most of our pets out on the street. When I first saw Tippy the Dog, she had been shot with a BB gun and was wondering around the playground at my elementary school. Mom found out, drove up to school and wrangled our "new pet" into the car. I met Hannah, one of our many cats, as she was hiding in a bush circled by rock throwing little boys. I screamed as only a 10 yr old girl can, picked up the kitten and my Mom came and got us. Claire and Pita, two bob-tailed calicos, were sitting on the sidewalk in a box marked free kittens. Never one to leave an animal, or daughter, behind, my mother packed the kittens and me into the mini-van, and off we went. Max the Cat just showed up one day, as did Bear, Bear II and Gretchen. The point is, we are an animal loving clan.

Hence, my Mother's current situation.
She found Sid when he was about 1 yr old, hiding by the underpass of the freeway. She opened the car door and he jumped in. Smart dude. Cat tally=1


Binx was the next feline invader. My Grandfather found Binx roaming around his ranch way out in the Middle Of Nowhere. They think he came from a property a couple of miles down the road that had caught fire. He was seemingly healthy except for what looked like an old neck injury(his head tilts to one side so he looks constantly perplexed). My granddad was sick at the time and couldn't take care of the cat and because Belou had Feline Leukemia, I couldn't risk keeping him either(we found out later that he had Feline AIDS). Mom took Binx without hesitation. Cat tally=2


Mom was happy with her two babies until fate intervened. My Aunt found a tiny kitten that had some sort of injury to it's back leg. Though the vet said the kitten would live a healthy life, it was also very likely it would be permanently crippled. Aunt Jenni didn't think she would be able to take care of the poor thing. Mom's Cat tally=3.

With the newest addition re-couping at the vet's, off Mom went to PetCo for supplies. Bedding..check. Kitten food..check. Little brother and sister kittens for new kitten to play with..check. WHAT? She said she didn't want this little baby growing up without same age playmates, so in rolled the Twins; Lulubelle and Herbie. (Sid and Binx are each around the three or four year mark and HUGE with muscle. Not appropriate playmates for a special needs kitten.) Cat tally=5. Oy Vey..


Luckily my Aunt fell in love with her little bitty gimpy kitty and decided to keep her and all's well that ends well. Mom's cat tally is back down to 4 and she and her brood are happy.

So here's to Mom and her motley crew of felines; Sid, Binx, Lulubelle and Herbie.

Me-ow!