Mini Rant

I am a sucker for animals. Alan knows this and tries to temper my impulse to take in every stray with a practical dose of "No, we don’t need/can’t afford/ have no room for a ____." Since in most cases I’m the practical one, it’s nice to know he can step into that role as necessary.

But that doesn’t mean he’s heartless about animals. For the most part, he shares my view that a pet is yours until it dies. If there is any reason that you can’t keep it until it has lived out its natural life, don’t get it in the first place. Our cats are family. And despite his protests that people who call their animals their babies are weird, he still tells the cats to "go bother Mommy," if they want something. And while he really wants to get a puppy, he hasn’t pressed the issue because many military families are forced to give up their pets at various points throughout their military lives. This is especially true of people with more than two because on post housing will only allow two pets per household and because it’s very difficult to travel overseas with multiple animals.

My rant, however, doesn’t apply to military families in general, but the Faulks in particular. When we met them, they had one cat, Belle. She’s only a few years old. Now, since moving to Colorado less than a year ago with this cat, they have added a puppy and another kitten to the mix. And although Charlee asked me for advice on how to get Tork (the dog) and Belle to like each other, she didn’t actually listen to any of it. She just sort of threw them together. And Tork, being a puppy, requires a whole lot more attention than an adult cat. Enter Coral. Adorable, tiny ginger kitten. Do they allow the animals time to accept a new member of the family? To get used to a new smell on old territory? Of course not! They just dump them all on the floor and let them go.

Is it really any wonder then that Belle is pissed off? She’s being ignored at best and actively hated at worst. Both Kelby and Charlee "joke" about leaving the window with the torn screen open so that she’ll get out and hopefully run away. Then of course they say they can’t do that…. not out of concern for Belle, but because they’d be afraid of losing Coral too. Kelby is already talking about replacing her with a German Shepherd puppy. They’ve even discussed having her put down.

Are you fucking kidding me?

They’ll claim it’s because she has a heart murmur and she wasn’t even supposed to live this long. Well, clearly she has! My cousin Joy wasn’t supposed to ever be able to walk or talk and she’s doing both. Does that mean Annie should keep her in a wheelchair and tell her to shut up because she’s not "supposed" to be able to do those things?

In reality, they’re just bored with her. She doesn’t pounce and play like a kitten and they can’t take her for walks or to the dog park. They got a cat and she didn’t turn out the way they wanted her to. Tough shit, guys! That’s life.

I haven’t talked to Alan about it yet, but I’m tempted to take Belle in if it comes to the point where they are going to put her down. Not permanently, of course, but in a fostering capacity. Because apparently I’m the only one willing to contact the Humane Society to help this poor cat find a family that actually wants her.

~Liz