Tale of a Lost Cat

I love cats.  In 2008 we adopted a beautiful 1 year old female Torbie (Tortoiseshell/Tabby) from a cat rescue.  She had been abandoned and was very fearful of people.  It took much time and patience but she came to be my sweet and loving companion.  It was very tragic for me when she passed away in her sleep at the age of 4. I found her curled up in the cat sleeping position, dead and rigor mortis had set in.  After that we bought a puppy and there have been no more cats.

Last Saturday morning I was outside watering the front garden when a beautiful orange tabby walked onto the neighbour's driveway and over to me.  He allowed himself to be petted but he was definitely not a cuddly cat.  It was a very hot day and he hung out under a cedar hedge beside our home.  I put out food and water for him which he gobbled down.  Not having any cat food he ate good quality dog food instead. I let him in the back yard where he made himself at home sitting on chairs, even beside me.  I let him in the house but he beat up our little Shih Tzu so out he went.  I wondered  where he came from and had no idea how to find his owner.  I contacted the SPCA and was told to contact the local animal control but I did not want to do that, fearing what his outcome would be.  Saturday night into Sunday morning he walked around howling as male cats do and woke up the neighbours who were not pleased.

After church on Sunday we went to a pet store and purchased some cat food in case he came back.  I told the clerk that it was for a lost cat and she said I should look in his ear for a tattoo to trace the owner.  I wondered if he would ever allow me to get close enough to look in his ear if indeed, he came back.  I put out the new cat food and early Monday morning we heard him howling again and then I looked out to see him eating the food.  I took a few photos of him and went down to pet him and I must say that by now I was getting attached to him, even naming him Buster.



 By a miracle I am sure, he let me look in his ear and sure enough there was a tattoo, the number of which I recorded in my brain.  I phoned the veterinarian and found out that this was one of their numbers which traced back to the SPCA, the same branch I had earlier phoned.  The lady at the vet's office got the address of the owner and it was clear what I had to do but I didn't want to do it.  By this time my husband had put a dog crate together and I had placed a blanket inside.  I opened the door and he entered, checked out the living room and fell asleep on the arm of a recliner.  Our dog was kept in another room to avoid another confrontation.  It  was easy for me to pick him up and place him in the crate.

But now I had a hard decision to make, should I ignore the information of the owner and keep him and hope that he would adjust to our dog, or should I take him back to his owner who lived not very far from us but across a busy road where he could easily be hit by a car crossing that road.   I did what the right thing was to do, I picked him up and put him in the crate.  We put the crate in the car and drove him back to his home where his owner was happy to have him back.  I admit I was tearful as we drove back home.

It would have been very easy for me to keep him, but being a Christian, I knew that this would not be possible.  How could I live with myself if I had ignored the information and kept him away from his owner?  There is a perfect bible verse concerning this:

James 4:17 "Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin."

I am making this post to encourage anyone who might find themselves in a situation where they have a choice to do the right thing or to ignore it.   One thing is sure,  God will know your decision.  Choose the right one.  You will have peace in your heart even though making that decision might be painful for you.

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