Cats

My sister, a cat lover, posted this very funny photo and caption on Facebook a while back. I found it particularly amusing because it reminded me of a cat we once had, whose name was Jasmine. She too was a white cat. I don't think cats are even supposed to be white, but that is another topic.

Our Jasmine was a pear shaped animal with a tiny head and front shoulders, and a bulging tummy with wide hips. She was an extremely wary and distrusting animal, avoiding people, especially me. We were the second owners and we heard through the grape vine that she had come from an abusive situation where there was a nasty canine and another dominant cat harassing her continually. We could not and would not provide therapy for her so we left her alone, and she avoided us. My dislike of Jasmine grew as the months passed. We were feeding her and keeping her protected from those that would abuse her, and yet she gave nothing in return, not a purr, a meow, or a jump onto a lap to keep one warm on a cold winter's night. When she walked into a room where I was sitting, she would give me a wide berth and never lose eye contact. The slightest move on my part would send her scurrying into a corner or under a sofa. I never once raised my voice to her or did anything to hurt her. We simply grew more and more distant. She had "man issues", without a doubt.

Then one day, this poor brain damaged cat did a stupid thing. She tried to jump onto the clothes dryer. She was fat and out of shape and probably thought she was a normal cat and that this would be easy. She only got her front paws onto the top of the dryer and because there was no purchase for her claws, she slipped back down to the floor and landed on her hips, breaking one of them. We are not totally heartless, so we took her to the vet and the prognosis was not good. After a quick administration of euthanasia, she slipped into that big litter box in the sky where she is probably being harassed by the other cats.

I remember her, but I do not miss her.