I have always loved animals. My favorite toys were always stuffed animals. I remember when I was really young maybe 5 or 6, I used to sleep on the edge of my bed because all my stuffed animals took up the rest of the bed. And I couldn’t bear sleeping with just one or two at a time. It had to be all of them!
Growing up in Romania, there were always stray cats and dogs and I felt so sorry for them! I remember walking to school in second or third grade and there was a dog on our street that used to walk with me all the way to school. And then sometimes after school I would find him somewhere on my way back home and he would walk home with me. Needless to say that I always gave him my sandwich! And if he wasn’t there one day, I would give my sandwich to another stray. I remember sneaking bread out of the house so I could give it to the strays.
We always had dogs growing up but my family always ended up giving them away for some reason or another. It made me sad and I looked forward to the day I would have my own pets and I swore I would rather be homeless than give my pets away.
Fast forward to April 2009. I was now living in Australia (since 2005). I was living in a small unit with my sister and 3 other girls. The rest of my family was back in Romania.
I had recently returned from a visit to Romania where I fell in love with a stray little kitten who lived at the front of my grandma’s apartment building. She had been hit by a car and as a result something was wrong with her hip. She was destined to a painful and most likely short life, especially considering it was winter and snowing. But then a nice lady from the apartment building raised money with the other neighbors’ help, and the kitten had a successful operation. I was ecstatic! This kitten was saved from almost certain death and suffering and was going to have a chance at a normal life.
A few hours after seeing the kitten fast asleep post surgery, it all came crashing down! The kitten died due to hypothermia. I couldn’t believe it! The nice lady had it in her home near a heater, but because it was so cold outside the kitten got hypothermia while the lady walked home with her from the vet. I cried for two days. I took small comfort in knowing that she was in a nice warm place in her last moments. Soon enough, I made the decision that I was going to rescue a cat from the shelter as soon as I returned back to Australia.
So, as I was saying, April. Early April. It was my housemate Monik’s birthday the night before and we were all hungover. Since returning from Romania, I had asked her if I could get a cat but the answer was always “NO, it’s not practical” ( as there were 5 of us living in a 2 bedroom unit). This morning everyone was hungover, maybe still a little drunk even, so I took advantage of the situation. I casually said: ” Hey, let’s go have a look at kittens at the shelter. We don’t have to get one, we can just have a look”. To my surprise, they all agreed and the five of us set off… A few hours later, we returned home with TWO KITTENS!
They were both 9 weeks old. One was mine, his name was Jasper. He was named by his foster family and I decided to keep his name. He was the cutest little ball of grey fluff. The other kitten was one of my other housemates’ and she was named Cleo.
Even though we have since all moved out, I still have Jasper and my friend still has Cleo. They are both 5 years old now, living separate but happy lives.
I was going to tell you all about how I got all of my pets but since this has turned into a somewhat lengthy post, I will leave it at that for now.
Here are some pictures of Jasper and Cleo. Enjoy!
Jasper and Cleo as kittens
Me with my new kitten Jasper. The morning after I got him.
Jasper and Cleo cuddling
Jasper dressed as a girl. He was not impressed!
Such.Is.Life 