Elwood’s Life – I am captured!

I am a fortunate kitty… I wasn’t born in a place where cats are eaten or put into fighting pens. While you might tend to feel sorry for me when you learn that I grew up on the streets before being rescued at 10 months (they think) I encourage you not to feel bad for me. You see, I’m a special kitty… not because I sez I am.

Other roaming cats and dwags teased me cause I don’t have a tail. They told me my Daddy was a rabbit and my mummy was a cat! I didn’t think that was a bad thing, so I didn’t take their bait… I didn’t fight, but I didn’t walk away either. Because of this the other cats began to think that I lost my tail in a fight! I let them think what they want.

One day while I was on the prowl for empty tuna tins – one with a little juice and a morsel of tuna was a blessing to find – I was captured! At the time I thought this was very bad… I was behind bars and the cell moved! But I couldn’t see outside! For the first time in my little life I was truly scared. Everything was so much bigger than me… and the peoples… I hadn’t had much contact with peoples.

After what seemed to be a lifetime, my cell stopped moving; I was taken to a room with lots of little cells and lots of cats – all different colours, shapes, and ages! I’d never seen so many kitties in one place at one time. Some were crying, others were sleeping, some were eating… and one old bandaged, scruffy cat looked at me and meowed “Youse be okay, youse young, youse different, youse special, youse be outta here before yer time is up.” Barely getting “fanks” off my tongue, I was placed into a cell… very high… above the other cells. There I found new paper, some food and some water. Then the light went away… and wez all left in darkness.

That was a long night. I ate some – it was crunchy… I liked dat sound. I drank some and then went to sleep. In the morning, I had to go to the garden – real bad… but there wasn’t a place for that and I ended up going in my cell. Oh the horror! Eating, sleeping and now “gardening” in the same place. I didn’t like that. Not one bit. A human reached in and took me from my cell.

I meowed that it wasn’t my fault, “eyes a kitty, eyes didn’t mean to do that in my cell…” the human cuddled me and talk very softly to me… I don’t know what was said… I only know it sounded real nice… I was comforted. Until I was brought into the bright light place… peoples had things over their faces and their paws… this was a trap! I knew it! I struggled to get away, but couldn’t… the biggest human took me firmly but kinda gentle too. Their paws touched my coat, my paws, my ears, my nose, my eyes, in my mouth, and finally my behind – with no tail! The peoples make a funny sound I never heard before. Then I felt very sleepy, I tried to stay awake but just couldn’t.

At first I thought I was dreaming when I woke up… funny dream of being captured and fed, and celled. Then I really woke to find I wasn’t dreaming and worse – I was hurting, like my tail had been chopped off. But it wasn’t my tail. Uh oh! I feel asleep again.

The days passed – no longer did I have to search for food or water, it was brought to me. Even gardening in my cell wasn’t too bad, if I did it right before the paper was changed, but then I heard whispers. Whispers after the light goes away and the peoples goes away. In the darkness the whispers about the kitties who stay too long and then disappear! To this day, I don’t know what that means but I still get real scared that something real bad happens to kitties who “stay too long.” Was this going to be me?

One day I heard a beautiful voice… it was the first time I heard it and the first time I understood human words. The voice said “Sweetie-pies, how are you?” I looked through my cell and saw two humans not dressed like the ones I usually see. Theys were talking to a ginger cat with a long beautiful tail and yellow eyes – directly across from me. They stood there talking with that kittie for a long time and then they went away. They hadn’t seen me…

The light went away and came back and went away again, when the light came back again – I heard a familiar voice. It wasn’t the sweetie pie voice, it was the other one. I sat up real straight and put on my best smile. I was right – it was the bigger person and a small person who looked the same?! The small person looked at me – saw me – and pointed to me! The bigger person was tall enough to reach a wee finger into my cell and I licked it and smiled my best smile.
When the cell people came by the bigger person pointed to me! The cell people opened my cell and brought me to another place… the big and little person came, too. I began to purrrrrr my best purrrrrrr, I rubbed my best rub, and the little person picked me up ever so gentle and said “Hello Elwood!” Elwood… what did that mean? I didn’t care. The cell people put me in a box with holes; I felt like I was moving again, only this time isn’t wasn’t so scary. I could hear those voices… the little one kept repeating “Elwood.” Maybe it was a greeting! I think I fell asleep, I felt so safe and tired!

I awoke to the small voice now booming “Mummy come meet Elwood!” The box opened and I blinked to get used to the light and looked up at the Sweetie-pie voice, who was smiling until I climbed out of the box. Something is wrong… the big people look at each other… the bigger one moves his shoulders, they look at the little person who pets me and I purrs and rubs… and Sweetie Pie voice smiles at me and say “Hello, Elwood! Welcome to your new home!”