The Cat Who Started a Family War - Part 1

Who could resist a face like that? That's what I thought when I saw this photo of an obviously distressed gentleman in a Kijiji ad about lost cats. Someone, and nobody really ever knew who, had been diligently compiling lists of animals that had been picked up by various animal control units throughout the city, and were now officially designated as strays by local shelters, and posting their pound-photos to the appropriate Kijiji listing. Whomever that good-hearted individual was, they saved a furry life that day, because that is how Einstein first came to my attention.

My stunning red and white bi-color Persian had died the previous year after almost seventeen wonderful years with me, and I had been looking for a companion for my other Persian so that he wouldn't be lonely. I was unable to find a suitable candidate, however, and had given up looking. Instead, I spent my time browsing the lost pet section of Kijiji seeing if I could match up pets that had been found with owners who were looking for them. That is when I spotted Einstein. It was a fateful fluke that his photo was the first in a photo album of cats being held at the Berger Blanc. If he hadn't been the first, I would probably have missed him.

To make a long story short, I called the shelter and told them that if his owner did not reclaim him, I wanted to adopt him. They took note of it, and promised to let me know. A few days later, they called me back to tell me that he was unclaimed, but not going into adoption. That meant they were going to euthanize him. They believed he had feline viral rhinotracheitis, which can be highly contagious. He was also in a sad state of grooming, and someone had cut into his skin while trying to liberate him from a full-body mat before giving up and dumping him who-knows-where? They told me that if I still wanted him, I could have him for 40$, with no health-guarantee.

I called my vet and told her that I was going to be pulling a cat from a pound, and was officially taking her up on her offer to board and quarantine any cat that I found and wanted to adopt. She cautioned me that this cat might be old, might have bad teeth, and generally just to think it over. I refused. I told the crazy woman florist that I was helping out that day that I had to spring a Persian from the Berger Blanc before 4pm, and took off on a two-hour journey straight to the other side of the city.

When I finally found the Berger Blanc, and stepped inside, I immediately spotted Einstein slumped in cage at the back of a room adjacent to the adoption area. I told the attendant that I was there for him, and when she took him out of the cage and let me hold him, I discovered that he was a very docile little guy. When I put him on the counter and stepped away in order to purchase a carrier for him, I told the other attendant to keep an eye on him so that he didn't take off. The first attendant then commented that he wasn't going to, and when looked behind me, I saw him slumped against my purse (which I had left on the counter beside him).

So, paid for him, popped him into the carrier and began the long bus ride downtown.

When I finally arrived at my vet with him, our arrival created a flurry of excitement. The technicians began shaving him out of his skin-tight matting, while the little guy just stood there and took it. At one point, my vet, who had not been in the clinic when I arrived, came bursting into the room saying, "They were going to kill him?!" The techs had obviously filled her in on the stray cat Ms. Dohmen had just brought in!

Einstein's mats were so bad they had formed a protective armor over his body. The vet believes that the reason he never picked up any parasites was because they were unable to penetrate his fur and get to his skin!

In total, Einstein spent almost a week at the vet. It took approximately three days to shave him out of his furry prison. Throughout his shaving ordeal he remained placid and agreeable. He was tested and found to be FeLV and FIV negative. He ate well, but did seem to have respiratory issues. These, however, could also have been attributed to the fact that he lacked proper drainage ducts in his eyes. He was given antibiotics just in case. Finally, he was neutered and ready to be taken home. My vet, and the surgeon, both recommended that I place him with a friend or relative in order to let his hormones decrease a bit before introducing him to my other cat. The surgeon also thought it was a good idea to keep them apart until we were sure that his respiratory tract issues had cleared up. My cat at home already had enough issues of that sort, and didn't need more.

I was torn between taking him straight to my home, and bringing him to my sister's place. I was supposed to work some crazy hours in the next days, and I had a bad feeling that Einstein's respiratory issues were going to blow sky-high, so I decided to bring him to my sister's, where my mother lives, and where there would be someone to watch over him 24/7. I was dead-on right, and it was to also be a very fateful decision... .