A Rescued Cat Called Nishi

Mark and I were walking to the restaurant when I heard a weird noise. It's like a crying bird. The street was still busy so I couldn't really tell where it's coming from. Mark didn't hear it so I thought I was nothing and proceeded to dinner.

After 2 hours, we headed back home taking the same street and I heard the same crying bird again. We tried to look for it, and there, we found this tiny calico kitten, about 2 weeks old, crying non-stop while laying in a small ditch at the middle of the walk way in Leviste St. Imagine, it was a busy evening, and yet nobody gave a shit to even pick up and put this little creature somewhere safe. Mark panicked and immediately picked up the kitten. She was very weak and filthy with street dirt. I didn't know what to do. I didn't want to touch the little kitten as it freaks me out. I never had a pet before. We both didn't know what to do with her because our building admin doesn't allow pets in the condo. But we couldn't just leave her like that. We took her to our building and was immediately stopped by the guards. We talked to them and promise to take her to a shelter the next day, and that we are just going to feed it.

Since Mark have experience with cats, he knew that cow's milk is not good for them so he just cleaned the little kitten, and then googled for a milk substitute just to get by through the night. Then we took the shade off our lamp and used it to warm the little kitten up. Everything improvised.

I was very stressed that evening because I was afraid the kitten might not make it through the night. I was also stressed that we don't know any shelter that would take in the cat. Plus, this kitten cries so much and so loud - I was stressed to be confronted by the guards again and get me pressured to get rid of the kitten.

The next day, we took her to the vet for check up. She was a strong kitten. She didn't even sip the improvised milk that Mark prepared for her, but she seemed to be OK. She was checked up, got her nails trimmed, and got kitten replacement milk for her. She also had been tested for worms etc.

And that's where it all started. Eventually, we decided to keep her, and kept her a secret :). I fell in love with Nishi. She have changed my life to something better. She's the reason why I help and rescue cats in need. She have opened my eyes, and she was an instrument to awaken my compassion for the stray cats/dogs population, and at the same time act on it. She's my inspiration.

I recently compiled all the video clips we have collected from the beginning we got her, how we nurtured her, and now that she's full grown. I hope this inspires everyone to care and give those stray cats a second chance in life.

Annie and Nikki

There were 3 kittens found in Greenbelt 5, roaming around at some posh restaurant, when a customer complained about their presence. The management immediately told the janitor to "get rid" of the kittens. Well, if you are from here, "getting rid" would mean throw them away. Luckily, the kind-hearted janitor took them to Bow and Wow employees instead, since he probably couldn't keep them. The pet store, however, doesn't shelter stray animals, but they are known to support animal welfare groups, so they took the kittens and hoped that their customers might have the heart to adopt them. One got adopted immediately, and two were left.

Mark went to Bow and Wow just in time before they close to get cat supplies and saw these two little babies in a box. The Bow and Wow vet explained where they came from and they would really need someone to take them in. Mark couldn't turn his back, but at the same time he couldn't carry these kittens because he didn't have a carrier and he went there on foot, he didn't bring our car. Then someone came. He said he can't take the kittens because he is full, but he can donate a carrier so Mark can safely bring them home.

We named these two kittens Annie and Nikki, after the two vets from Bow and Wow. They were very aloof and scared in the beginning. They hiss at us non-stop. But after two days, they began to be OK. The two are inseparable. They are about a month old and very playful. As much as we want to keep them, we have a very limited space, plus we already own four full grown cats. So we are sending them up for adoption, and currently looking for a loving and caring home for them. If you are interested, please shoot me a comment and I'll get back with you. It would be sad to separate them so we prefer to get them adopted together.

Annie and Nikkie posing.

Finding Haydi

Today, we found Haydi, a 3 month old, black, female cat, laying helpless along the PLDT building going to the walk way to Greenbelt. As always, there were hundreds of people walk pass her ignoring her existence and condition laying on that path. As normal, nobody gave a shit. It was similar to the rescue experience we had with Freddie, where the cat was just lying lifeless that we first thought was dead. Haydi hardly moved. Her eyes were filled with mucus, head balding from an infected wound. I offered her food but she wouldn't eat. We immediately put her in a re-usable shopping bag since we didn't have anything with us to carry her along. She was in a very weak state and didn't even try to object.

Mark brought her to the Animal House clinic. We found out that she's badly dehydrated, and she have a respiratory infection. The wound in the head was also pretty infected. She'll be confined in the Animal clinic for about 3 days, has been dewormed and cleaned. I'm glad we found her just in time. Soon we will be needing a loving home for her too.

Another Interesting Kitten Encounter

What's up with me visiting a government agency and then finding a sick kitten? This happened twice now.

I found Lotto when I went to LTO to renew my car registration. Today, I went to Makati's civil registry office to get requirements for our upcoming civil marriage - and there I found another kitten in dire need of help.

It was a very hot afternoon when Mark and I decided to just walk home from Makati city hall instead of taking a jeepney (my car was coded so I couldn't drive). The traffic was pretty bad and we'd rather walk than to sit, get bored and smell diesel fumes and road dirt while we wait the jeepney to move. I honestly don't enjoy long walks under the sun specially on streets that aren't really pedestrian friendly. We passed by a pile of dried branches and leave trimmed from a tree and saw an orange kitten lying lifeless beside it. I was horrified thinking that someone must have just thrown this poor kitten's body on the pavement. I stopped to check it out and said "OMG". For a moment, I really thought it was dead because it didn't move. Then I noticed that it is still breathing. We immediately picked it up and offered dry cat food we always carry around in our bags. Apparently, the kitten was exhausted from heat that it could hardly move. It was malnourished, dehydrated, and like most stray kittens, it has a heavy eye discharge that's a symptom of a respiratory infection. The kitten is about a month old. We knew that even if we leave food and go, the kitten will eventually die. As always, we couldn't turn our backs and leave it. Call me crazy, but I just can't leave a poor helpless creature like that, knowing that I have the power to save it. So since we weren't prepared for this, all we got was a little green grocery bag. We immediately put him in it and rushed to the Animal House, a veterinary clinic about a kilometer away from where we found it. It must be traumatic for him to be put in a bag but we have no choice. I can't just carry him with my hands because I was scared that he might jump off out of panic from hearing the cars in that busy street.

He's been cleaned, and currently in medication staying in our flat but separated from our four naughty cats. He's still weak but is eating. We will put him up for adoption once he's strong and recovered. We are hoping to find him a loving home that will treat him well soon.

Some of my friends make fun of me as "a crazy cat lady". I don't really mind because I'm not that crazy :P. I just have the heart to care for these helpless creatures, as I would care for helpless starving children victimized by poverty. The only difference is that there are enough people who helps out people - but very little number of people who acts on their compassion for animals.

In my older post, I mentioned that I wasn't an animal person. Not that I don't like them, but I just wasn't raised knowing their values as human companions. But after we got Nishi, everything changed. So why do we keep on rescuing these helpless creatures? Why do we waste time on feeding the strays almost every night in the small park in our village? Why do we throw time and money spaying/neutering stray animals we find? Is it just self-gratification?

People look at me weird when they see me pick up a ran over cat that's still fighting to live, or when we feed strays out of the blue. They give us a weird look when we take time to stop and pick up a cat that's just waiting to get hit by car on a curb. I sometimes get weird looks from other patients in a vet clinic holding their pure bred dogs and cats, while I carry a dirty little stray kitten on my lap. I've been judged by the looks of pet owners a lot of times, but I couldn't care less. Oh well, they can give me their best weird looks on their faces and I won't give a shit.

The thing is, I still believe, that an act of kindness can change things - no matter how hypocritical, discriminating and judgmental the people are around you. I have this faith that if I demonstrate an act of compassion and kindness, if people can see the sincerity of my actions, it could change someone's heart and mind. It has happened to me. I want to believe that there are still plenty of good people in the world. So I won't give up, for as long as Mark and I are able to do these things.

I consider myself very blessed with a lot of good things in life. And for that, I want to pay it forward by being a blessing to others too - not just to my fellow human beings, but to other creatures living in this world we share.

Dramatic, but a good thought to think about this lenten season.

A Cat's Call

The kitty incident last Sunday was a bit traumatic, I must say. It has not left my mind at all and it still makes me sad whenever I remember or re-read my blog entry about it. It haunts me when I ride my car or whenever I pass that street where I found her. I couldn't tell anyone her story without feeling pain (I'm not overreacting) and I honestly want to get over it. I feel so involved with a kitten that I didn't own, that I didn't hit, and I have never known.

I previously wrote about compassion for animals and mentioned I have always have a heart for them but never really took action on that feeling. And so I came to conclude that this might be a calling for me, a chance to act on that compassion and make a little bit difference in this world. So Mark and I started a small project. Every time we go out, we bring our kitty cat relief kit that contains a bottle of water, food container, and Whiskas sachet so we can easily feed any strays that we come across with. I wish I could take them all in - however, it's the next best thing we can do for them at the moment. I find it a good therapy for me too whenever we feed them. It helps relieve that guilt of being a human, but not acting human towards animals. And at the same time, even if these little creatures may not understand, in our little ways we show that there are still human beings that have a heart.

A Sad Story

2 months ago, we passed by a cat that was ran over by a car on a fly-over going to Quezon Ave. I was at the backseat trying to nap when Mark swerved sharply. I didn't witness what Mark and Sid, who's on the passenger seat, saw. Apparently, he was surprised and avoided this cat that had been hit earlier. He was so upset that he cried in the car because he saw the cat still alive, trying to drag itself to safety. We couldn't do anything. We can't stop to help it because it's a highway and we can just post danger to other motorists. So we knew, the little cat will just die there. The thought was depressing enough for me, but I can't imagine what Mark felt when he saw the little cat struggling for his life, knowing that he's a big animal lover. How could a little cat end up in a highway in the first place, specially, in the fly-over? My assumption was someone left the poor cat there when the highway was less busy. That's what irresponsible, heartless, cat owners do when they get crowded with kittens. They just throw them everywhere, anywhere. Instead of spaying/neutering their cats so it won't multiply anymore, they throw the kittens away.

Mark was very upset. So I told him, next time we see a cat in a busy street, we will rescue and pick it up if all possible. We will stop for them. Every time we pass by EDSA and those fly-overs there it reminds me of that cat, and I silently pray to not see another in that condition, in that road, ever again.

This evening, I was driving home from the pharmacy when I saw this little kitten laying on the street of Tordesillas. I knew she was ran over by a car. She was moving her paws, maybe trying to getup. But nobody cared to stop, or no passer-by cared enough to pick her up. So I stopped and immediately stepped out of my car just in time before another car runs over her little body. I signaled the cars to stop. It was a heart breaking sight. She was waving her little paws, catching her breath with her tongue out. I carried her immediately in the car and hurried to the 24 hour animal clinic close by. I started to cry in the car out of pity while i drove my way to the clinic, praying that she makes it and live. I had to pass 3 stop lights and 1 U-turn to get to the clinic, and at every stoplight I check on her, telling her to hang-on. But on the last stop light, she stopped moving.

When I reached the Animal clinic, I rushed in, told the personnel I have a ran over cat in my car and I need help. He came with me and carried out her lifeless body. 5 minutes later, the vet called me and said she didn't make it. The poor little kitten has died in my car. I was heart broken. I was weeping while I talked with the vet, telling them how I found her, and that I have little cats at home too.

I went home with a broken spirit and couldn't stop crying. I couldn't forget her little helpless face when I picked her up. I couldn't forget how she waved her paw and tried to catch her breath. What breaks my heart most is nobody cared. Nobody stopped for her. I don't understand how she got ran over too. She's a white kitten, easy to spot. The street is well lit. Lastly, that street is very short and at the end there's a STOP sign to give way to the main street. So it's probably another irresponsible driver who sped up in that short street where you shouldn't really speed up because you are stopping anyways. Thanks to that asshole who didn't give a shit, she's dead. May God take her little soul in heaven.

It's so sad that majority of our population don't give a damn about animals in general. I hardly know people who loves and cares about animals, not even a handful. I have seen tons of dead cats in the streets. But this one felt different. This is the very first time I've seen one dying in my sight. Yet, this is not the first time I have witness how heartless people can be with animals. Imagine if it was a human being? Imagine if it was a kid? Would you let her die? Of course not. But she wasn't human, was she? So why give a damn?

It's funny how many people supports the movement against the Reproductive Health Bill - because they say we are a Catholic country, we are PRO-LIFE. But by being pro-life should mean you preserve, value, and respect life - IN ALL FORMS. You get to be the judge of the hypocrisy there.

This evening, I remember that cat in the fly-over. But this time I had the chance to stop and help. It just saddens me that it didn't make a difference. The poor little kitten still died. Mark said, at least she died with dignity. If I didn't pick her up, she would have been ran over and over again, until there's nothing left of her body. At least now she'll get buried. And at least before she closed her eyes, she felt compassion, care, and in that short time, loved.

I pray for her little soul.