Remember to Dream
MIMI REMINDS YOU that dreams do come true, so it’s advisable to remember to dream every day, no matter the circumstances, so the universe will know what dreams you have and know where to send them, and when they do come true, you’ll know what to do.
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We are following the story of a small group of people who organized a mobile spay/neuter clinic and are rounding up cats in need from people who called for help. They spent last week organizing traps and positioning with volunteers in several different communities, and yesterday trapping all the cats they could catch.
In one case they found a litter of newborn kittens but no mama kitty, so on top of trapping and housing the cats in a protected area overnight and getting them ready for surgeries beginning in the morning, someone is bottle-feeding those five kittens every two hours through the night and the day and until they are weaned if they don’t find the momcat or a nanny cat.
Remember that these cats generally did not choose to go live outdoors. Occasionally a cat escapes and ends up lost and trying to get by outside, but cats usually end up in this condition because a human simply abandoned them. In many cases it was because they were unspayed females who ran outside guided by their hormones, or who were tossed outside when found to be pregnant or after having given birth, or an unneutered male cat who likewise answered the call of his hormones or who marked his territory indoors and was tossed out. Cats are domesticated animals and they don’t go off and become wild—even if they are born outside of human contact they still live hear humans.
These kittens are lucky and are in excellent hands. They will be given all the love and care that all animals deserve, and they’ll eventually find a loving home. Hopefully those trapping these cats or the people who will be monitoring them later will find that mama cat and spay her too. And all the cats who are spayed and neutered today will be fed and cared for, even if they are living outdoors, and they’ll no longer be able to reproduce more cats who need to be rescued.
We just need to inform people who abandon cats like these that their actions are a punishable crime.
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Mimi and I were outside on a cold and dark afternoon recently. The rain began to fall, she was wet, her paws were wet and cold and she suddenly remembered the days before she came inside and was frightened she might not get back inside ever again. She ran for the basement door she had visited so often when living outdoors and I saw her trying to look inside but it was closed, she looked at me frightened and all she wanted was to be in the house, and she got in, as quickly as possible when I opened the door.
Mimi does not forget that she lived most of her life outdoors before she joined my household at about age four, and in that time gave birth to six litters of kittens, constantly looking for food and spending time in my garden hunting, and looking wistfully in the windows and doors at the happy kitties inside and wondering what it would be like to live in there, having little conversations with Cookie and Kelly and Namir through the basement door.
Then, one day, she was the one on the inside, and to her great surprise she remained inside. And so did her children. And she’s not having any more children. Her dream really did come true.
I took the photo above on a frosty January day, and the way she quickly peeked around the deck rail at me, just to make sure I was still there and she wasn’t outside all by herself, reassured that we were still together, I knew she was likely remembering a similar morning when she didn’t have a warm kitchen to return to. But she never stopped dreaming, and now she does have that warm kitchen, and a comfy lap whenever she wants it, and a human who is absolutely devoted to her. And I never forgot that moment with Mimi.
And Mimi and I wish the same happy ending for all the kitties living out there on the streets—keep dreaming, there’s someone out there who will rescue you and find you a home with someone loves you, and some day you’ll be together, and maybe someday people will quit neglecting cats like Mimi.
And from me, we humans have our dreams too, and while they may seem as impossible to achieve as a homeless cat finding a loving forever home for herself and her babies, just keep dreaming. It may not happen exactly as you plan, but it will happen. Please feel free to right-click and share the image!
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If you’d like to help cats get out of bad circumstances, you can help Frankie’s Friends and the Homeless Cat Management Team with donations; no matter how small, it goes directly to cats in need, and larger donations can actually help support an entire mobile clinic. Or find a group near you that is helping bring care and homes to cats who’ve been abandoned.
All images used on this site are copyrighted to Bernadette E. Kazmarski unless otherwise noted and may not be used without my written permission. Please ask if you are interested in using one in a print or internet publication. If you are interested in purchasing a print of this image or a product including this image, check my Etsy shop or Fine Art America profile to see if I have it available already. If you don’t find it there, visit Ordering Custom Artwork for more information on a custom greeting card, print or other item.
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Weekly schedule of features:
Sunday: Essays, Pet Loss, Poetry, The Artist’s Life
Monday: Adoptable Cats, TNR & Shelters
Tuesday: Rescue Stories
Wednesday: Commissioned Portrait or Featured Artwork
Thursday: New Merchandise
Friday: Book Review, Health and Welfare, Advocacy
Saturday: Your Backyard Wildlife Habitat, Living Green With Pets, Creating With Cats
And sometimes, I just throw my hands in the air and have fun!
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Dreams are what give us hope..