by Ruth
(England)
Please see Part 1 – Part 2 – Part 3 first (a list of links is being prepared – the links above open in new widows or tabs).
Monday (a fortnight later)
My life is so different now to how it was with my old mom and to when I first came to live here. I sleep a lot as the only other thing I have to do mostly is to look out of the window.
When Julie is home she cuddles me and plays with me. I try to act happy for her but it’s very hard. I can walk now without constant pain but it still feels very awkward and my muscles ache. I long for a good stretch but my claws have not come back and I’m beginning to think they never will.
Photomontage by Ruth
Sometimes when I remember the throbbing pain in my feet and think about how it hurt digging in the litter, I just can’t face it, so I’ve found another place to go.
I mostly stay in Julie’s room so as to be safe from Jake and Rusty and mom doesn’t like it but I think Julie has made her feel guilty that I am so sad nowadays.
I can get into a corner of her room behind a chair and the carpet is soft for my feet. No one sees me so I don’t have to worry any more about being yelled at.
Thursday
I’m in serious trouble! Mom came into Julie’s room earlier today. She sniffed the air and said
‘What on earth is that smell?’
Well Julie had been having a secret smoke of a cigarette and although the smell is horrible and gets into my lungs, I’d hate her to be in trouble with mom.
But mom sniffed all around the room and pulled the chair out and found my new toilet. I ran for cover under the bed as she yelled,
‘That’s it, I’ve had enough, that cat goes!’
Julie and Jake ran into the room and mom shouted,
‘Get that cat from under that bed, out he goes, defenseless or not’
and Julie screamed at mom,
‘No, leave him alone, it’s all your fault. I’ve read on the internet at school that having a cat declawed is not only cruel and painful for the cat, it causes him to be frightened to use his litter box as he remembers the pain and …’
But mom wouldn’t let her finish, she yelled,
’Don’t be so stupid Julie, the vet wouldn’t do it if it was cruel’
and Jake laughed and shouted,
‘Dogs are better than cats’
and Rusty ran in and barked and I shook under that bed as they all shouted at each other.
Julie shouted
‘LISTEN, vets DO know it is cruel but they still do it to make lots of money and LISTEN declawed cats bite because they feel defenseless, PLEASE listen mom, it’s NOT Seb’s fault’
and the shouting went on for ages.
I stayed under the bed for the rest of that day…
Saturday
Mom has been kind to me today. Yesterday Julie brought home a lot of papers all about declawing cats and said,
‘Mom,please just sit down and read this I’ve printed off at school’
Mom sat for a long time reading and crying and saying that the vet hadn’t told her all this and she wished she’d known about scratching posts and how cats need to exercise and de-stress and mark their territory with their paw scents.
She phoned the vets to ask what could be done now but was told that my toe ends and claws had gone and I could never have them back. She asked why no one told her all this and the lady on the phone said well surely she had realised the claws were in bones and those bones had to be removed too. But mom said no, she hadn’t known that.
Later on I heard Julie crying and when she picked me up to cuddle me I purred to make her feel better. She has cried all day and is still crying now……
Monday
My carrier is down again and mom is putting her coat on and looking at me. I am very frightened, where am I going now?
Part 1 – Part 2 – Part 3 – Part 4 – Part 5 – Part 6 – Part 7
