Hello Dolly!
23 July 2007 17 Comments
A wise man once said, “You don’t choose a cat, a cat chooses you…”
I wasn’t looking for a cat considering the health scare I just had with Harley, (the FIP test was inconclusive, but that is not unusual in a vaccinated cat) but after six years, it appears that I have been chosen again.
She is an eight-week old calico that belonged to a litter out where my step-dad works and was in need of medical attention. I was not too involved to start with. Not only does step-dad have a soft spot for animals, he tends to exaggerate the state of outside cats’ conditions. Therefore when he told me about the kitten that had a sore on her neck, I figured she had just been playing too roughly with her siblings.
But on Friday morning he told me that the kitten had taken a turn for the worse and he had taken her to the vet’s office. Apparently she had gotten some sort of parasite and it had led to an infection. The vet removed the parasite, lanced the infected area on her neck to let it drain, and sent step-dad home with the kitten and some antibiotics.
I took one look into the carrier and knew at that moment that I had been chosen. The kitten attempted a half-hearted hiss as I lifted her out of the carrier, but it turned into a purr as soon as I held her close to me and presented her with water and kitten food.
Not twenty four hours had passed and I was already a surrogate mother to the little doll: I was feeding her, showing her the litter box, and giving her baths. I felt the sting of sharp milk teeth and the even sharper scratch of baby claws. I kept calling to her my little dolly and when I noticed she responded to it, it became her name.
Dolly has not yet met the rest of her new family and I doubt Mouse, Scooter, and Harley will be as enamored with her as I am when they finally do meet. However, I am sure they will get used to her… eventually! 
