Pet Refuge

 It seems as though the animals in the neighborhood have designated my dwelling as their sanctuary.  Last year I was on rescue duty for a yellow lab puppy that like to escape its fenced in backyard.  She would come over to my yard and play with me.

This year I've had more than one cat late at night come into my fenced yard only to run when I tried to open a door for it.  Wednesday was the neighbor's English pointer that I took in until the owner could be found.  See the picture of the dog to the left and slightly above.   Last night around dinner time it was an orange tabby.  See the photo below taken in my dining room.

I always keep on hand cans of white albacore tuna.  I guess its a good thing because I've fed more than one cat an emergency meal of tuna, milk, and water all in separate bowls of course.  J and I took turns going up and down the street as the soldiers came home asking if any one was missing an orange cat.  There are several orange cats living on our street.  It was on my final round about the neighborhood that I got lucky and found this particular cat's owners.  I was about ready to send my spouse out for cat food, and a liter box too since it was already past 1900 hrs.

I can't say that I liked how either the dog or cat owners treated their pets.  Why do people have pets if they are going to ignore them?  Why do people have pets if they are going to neglect to feed them.  This particular cat was scrawny, dirty, but yet loving.  It wanted attention, food, and a warm place to stay.  It was making itself at home in my house and it would still come up to me and rub against my legs too.

In trying to find out who owned this cat my husband happened to walk down to the English Pointer's house.  From what he told me he saw that particular dog has a good excuse why it would want to run away.  I think I would too.  If it wasn't for the dog being chipped I would have found a way to keep it.  But as a child when a pet of mine would wander off I felt devastated.  I had to have my pet back.  That is the only reason why I try so hard to find out who owns all these animals that come into my yard.  I think I'd keep them all and have my own zoo if possible.