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Dear Chris
In October 1988 having
decided that I needed a cat in my life I contacted ‘AS’ from their ad in
the News Shopper. I asked for a cat, ideally ginger and white only to be
told that there was only one available, she was grey and white. I went
over to Honour Oak Park where was in a foster home which she was sharing
with the fosterers pet dog.
On the top floor of the house
she sat on the settee, she peered around of the settee, gave a look as if
to so, "yes, what do you want?" followed by "oh well you'll do". I had
been advised that she was about 8 months old although the vet established
that she was closer to a year (so she was born around the time of the
great storm).
I was told by her fosterers
that she had already had one litter and was pregnant for a second time and
subsequently handed to a neighbour saying that "they never wanted to see
her again". She had such a pretty face and the only name I could think of
was Cleo - however as no name really seemed appropriate for such an
individual looking cat she became HG (as my surname was Wells).
‘AS’ had advised me to
introduce her to one room at a time when I got her home, as I let her out
of the pet carrier she looked up the stairs, ran up and investigated all
rooms, then she came downstairs and did the same - then she looked at me
as if to say "ok, I'll stay, you can feed me now".
In the early days she would
try and follow me along the road whenever I left the house at fear of
getting left behind, but she soon settled and become very much mistress of
the house. I have many special memories of her as my great friend and
companion, not least of all when David Attenborough was on TV
impersonating birds of paradise - she started watching the TV, then jumped
up onto the unit trying to get into the TV where she thought that real
birds were (oh for a video camera!).
HG and I spent fifteen and a
half magical years together, until she had heart failure and died on 4
March. She was one of the greatest and totally irreparable. Now the
time has come to move on and on 1 May, I adopted Henry and Tabatha, a pair
of tabbies. They are a brother and sister aged 4 and 5, they have been
well cared for by the elderly owner who died recently. They are so very
different in nature and I am sure we will become good friends; they are
settling in and still grieving for their late owner. They are waiting to
go out in the garden - three weeks is a long time for any cat!
Without ‘AS’, neither of
these introductions would have been possible and my life certainly would
not have been so rich. Perhaps I will let you have another story when
they have settled in".
Linda Wells |
