Story: Part 2

Finally, I'm going to go with Story: Part 2. Refer to Story: Part 1 here. The gist was that any life is important, and save-able....shown by a portion of my book where the gal saves a caterpillar while her friend is thoroughly grossed out. Then further shown by my sweet mom who saves every creature that meanders into her home....even the ugliest of spiders or hordes of ants are spared.

So... the other day my friend's Facebook status said that he saw some guys (he used a more direct term) run over a cat and leave it dying on the side of the road. My friend pulled over, called Animal Control, and stayed with it to comfort it until they got there. SO... it reminded me of our cat, Rocky.

Rocky's Story

About 2 years ago, when RJ and I were engaged I decided for his birthday he needed our first pet. I thought a dog was probably a bit much then, and decided to go with a cat. I called the family I used to nanny for who own two local veterinary clinics (Mtn. View Veterinary) for insight about the best place to rescue a kitten. She said..."Well...are you set on a kitten? We have a great cat that needs a home." She went on to tell me he had been recovering in the clinic for a few months while waiting for a home. I went in to meet him and got his full story.

A few months before, the vet was working away in a room when her receptionist came running in saying, "You need to come out here. Someone is here and you need to come out here." Not knowing what to expect, she ran out. In the lobby stood a tall, built man head to toe in Army fatigues....bawling. He was holding a cat that was clearly in pain. He said that he had been driving along and saw the car in front of him hit the cat, then leave it. So he pulled over, got the cat, and brought it to the vet. She said she'd take care of the cat, and he could go ahead and leave....she claims she's not good with crying men, especially big strong Army men!

Rocky had crushed sinuses, crushed part of his skull, and broken multiple bones in his limbs. It would have been easier to just leave him on the side of the road. Or easier, and surely cheaper, to just put him to sleep. But the vet had mercy on him and fixed him all up. Then she named him Rocky because "he had a rocky start at life". She told me of his spunky, quirky personality while recovering. When I visited him, I knew he was just the cat for us...the perfect first pet.

The day I gave him to RJ I had been giving him clues all day about what his present was...Garfield toys, Catwoman figurines, and other "cat-related" treats...until he guessed what he was getting. Sweet Rocky was quirky from the start, and still very much is. He had some depth-perception problems that turned out to give us a few laughs....he would run into things, misjudge jumping up on to things, fall off things.... He will only drink running water from the sink, and also loves to sleep in the bathroom sink.

Anyway...this is part two of the story because I am so grateful that there are people in the world that will pull over and help a hurt animal...calling Animal Control to help it, taking it to a vet....and kind vets to do the work at their own expense. And it all remided me of the part in my book because, as I said, I come from a home that saves the life of ALL...ugly or cute, big or small.