?I have always loved animals.  My house has always been home to pets since before I was born.  All of my family’s pets have been rescues.  For instance, our cat had been living on the streets until we welcomed her into our family.  My mom, sister, and I are all animal lovers, so when a new furry face showed up at our doorstep, how could we say no?

?My family had been noticing a stray cat hanging around our neighborhood for the past few months.  We would see glimpses of him in the bushes, or under our cars.  We even saw him resting in the middle of our lawn enjoying the sun completely out in the open.  However, over this past Labor Day weekend, the cat came up to our back patio.  My mom, who had been taking out the trash, had heard a strange sound and turned around to see who it was.  It was not a who, but a what.  “Meow!” it cried.  My mom called for us to come outside while she went inside to fill two bowls with food and water for our new visitor.

?I had just gotten up and had thrown on my blue animal rescue T-shirt and a pair of shorts and was in the middle of brushing my long hair when I was summoned outside.  I abruptly twisted my hair into a very sloppy ponytail, found a pair of flip-flops, and sauntered outside.  In the background, I could hear Arts, Beats and Eats, the local festival, already in full swing signaling that I had slept in late.  I walked outside, not expecting much, when I nearly stepped on the cat.  I was so surprised; I let the screen door slam behind me, causing everyone-- even the cat-- to jump.  Instead of scolding me, my mom said, “Look who just showed up.”  I looked down.


The cat had gorgeous black and white fur.  All of his paws were white and so was the tip of his tail.  In addition, his chest and stomach were all white too.  His black fur was tinted brown in the sunlight.  I tentatively reached out a hand and he nudged it with his head and let me pet him like we had known each other forever.  His purring was as loud as the rumble of a truck.  My hand paused on his back where I could feel his spine; it was like a mini mountain range protruding from his back.  “He’s so thin.” I said.

“Yeah,” my mom replied, “he probably is very weak so he can’t hunt for food.  He didn’t even turn his head when a robin landed a few feet away from him.  Instead, he ate an ant that was right by his paw, but after that, he had to lie down.” 

?A trip to the vet confirmed that he was indeed extremely malnourished, probably in fact starving to death.  The cat was not use to getting food so he could only eat a few bites and then come back later to repeat the cycle again and again and again, until all of the food was gone.  This cat was also old; the vet estimated that he was at least 15.  In addition, he was treated for fleas so that we could take him inside without worrying about infecting our own cat. 

The heartbreaking diagnosis was that the vet thought that he was blind in one eye since it was all clouded and the pupil was no longer visible.  Also, he could have cancer or glaucoma in the other eye since it too, had started to cloud up.  “However,” the vet continued, “you should take him to and eye doctor for treatment and further diagnosis and examination.”  My eyebrows shot up.  There are eye doctors for cats?! I thought flabbergasted.

?After the trip to the vet, we all took him home.  When we introduced him to our cat, he howled and growled.  “Feisty little tiger aren’t you?”  He meowed and bobbed his head in agreement causing everyone to laugh.  “Welcome home Tiger.” I said as a smile crawled onto my face.

? As the days went by, Tiger grew more and more strength and his appetite increased.  He could now eat some dry cat food mixed in with his favorite wet cat food-- tuna and eggs.  He even could climb the stairs whereas before, he had to be carried.  Like human eye doctors, cat eye doctors were very busy and did not have another opening for months.  All we could do was try to keep him comfortable and hope that his eye did not bother him too much.  Tiger did not seem to mind, he was not letting his disability stop him.  He would meow defiantly if you ignored him or if he wanted food.  Now he could not get enough to eat.

Tiger and I have a very special connection that I find totally disgusting.  He likes to slobber and drool all over my hand. I will scratch his ears and then he will start to lick my hand and all of his drool and slobber make my hand wet.  Then he likes to rub his head against my hand, causing his fur to stick to the slobber.  He does not do this to anyone else, not my mom or my sister.  Just me, and if I pull my hand away, he meows and brings out his claws.
 

?I am constantly washing my hands, yet I still smile.  So Tiger has some quirks, but we saved his life.  If we had not taken him in, he would still be out on the cold streets starving to death.  He is part of our family now, and we will provide him with food, water, shelter, and care and of course my hand to drool on.  As long as he is happy, I am happy.