Tuesday, March 17, 2009

How to Create a Stray Cat

This is how to create a stray cat. Buy a nice house with a large mortgage. Buy nice new, all white furniture and put in a new kitchen. Go on holiday 3 times a year and have three kids. To complete the image and the perfect family scene buy a purebred pedigree cat, say a nice Siamese, they are one of the most popular and impressive looking cats and the white body and dark pointing (extremities) go oh so well with the white kitchen and the new cushions you just bought for the large sumptuous sofas that could barely get through the front door when they were delivered. Keep doing that sort of thing for a time.

Wait for the inevitable economic crash, the bust after the boom. Then try and hang on to the job, but to no avail. The wife works part-time but the debt that you accrued over the last ten years amount to $50,000 and the family home has been remortgaged four times and now property prices have plummeted there is negative equity. You stop paying the mortgage and the HP payments on the sofa got too much so you lost that. Next you lose the house.

You pack your bags and cart away what possessions you have left. You, the wife and the kids shut the front door for the last time. Inside the home is your Siamese cat, without food or water and locked in. You just couldn't see a way to paying for her. The cat had to go. That's how to create a stray cat in the recession.

{based on the true story of Bandy a 1 year old Siamese cat who was left in a foreclosed house and who became a stray cat with no where to stray to}



From how or create a stray cat to feral cats

9 comments:

VG said...

Michael,

This is a great post!

It really sums up so much, and reads like a "short story" of literary calibre. But, it's true.

And, the husband/ wife roles could be reversed, here in the US. But, I know you didn't mean to exclude women from the making of bad decisions. ;)

VG said...

p.s. I've actually read stuff online about "cat owners" choosing the cats to match the decor. It was a while back so unlikely that I could dig up the links. irrc I got going on that because of a "cartoon" I found about a woman finding a cat to match the rug (or vice versa). I never posted the cartoon, because of ominous copyright stuff. But, your story hit the mark.

Michael Broad LLB, ARPS said...

Thanks VG

Glad U like it. I get depressed with the attitude of some people towards their cats and that includes some cat breeders too. I might find some more examples. I think the fictional story based in a true story is a way around copyright, possible defamation and other legal issues and it gets the point across. I have done it before once or twice.

Best
Mike

VG said...

But, "fiction" often is a good way to distill the truth. And, your "story", well, I don't have the links, nor the cartoon, but I knew the truth of your words. Not by the way of "me or mine", mind you. The "decor" has never been a big issue hereabouts. Why, right now, Tootsie is having a good time clawing the downstairs pseudo Persian carpets. Now, if they were real, that would be another issue... ;) but, she is a relatively small cat, and it will take some time for her to do visible damage. And, heck, I'm pretty hard on them myself!

Michael Broad LLB, ARPS said...

We think alike you and I, VG. I don't mind some cat damage. But, yes, if that was a real Persian carpet...I'd think of some way to protect it but I would never try and train my cat to fit into my life style and I am sure you think similarly. It would be like trying to change a human partner wife whatever to fit in with you and that always fails for obvious reasons.

VG said...

Hi Michael,

I'm planning to take an idea from Anita McCormick- she's a fiber artist, and has a talented cat, Henry. He had a solo show at the Bangor Public Library.

~~Henry's talent as a fiber artist was discovered when his frustration with traditional scratching posts led Anita to purchase rug remnant pieces from Marden's, and nail them to the wall. It did not take him long to discover that not only did he now have a great place to sharpen his claws, but it proved to be a wonderful outlet for his artistic abilities!~~

I've been on the lookout for a good piece of carpet to nail to the wall! Tootsie has one of those corrugated scratch pads, and she uses it, but obviously it's not providing enough scope for her ambitions.

Here are the 2 posts about Henry, the feline fiber artist:

here and here

Anonymous said...

PoC

Anonymous said...

Henry says to make sure to get your cat a piece of carpet with uncut loops so he can create a beautiful wall hanging for you to display in your home!

Anonymous said...

A cat is for life - not just a passing fad !! - and that includes all animals.

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