Cat lovers of the world, unite!
By Zena Lazarus

I adore my multiple cats and each one seems to have his or her own personality or should I say, “catality”? The latest two to join my family are part-Siamese brother and sister, whose owner had to leave them behind.

He had named them Basil and Thyme which did not seem suitable so I now call the female Pretty Baby and the male who is like a Siamese in reverse, white nose and legs where a Siamese would be dark brown, Esemais (get it?). Nevertheless, there is an abundance of adorable cats and kittens available for adoption at the shelter and all need cuddles to socialize them.

Groucho, Harpo and Chico are three identical male kittens. Their mother turned up one day at the home of a friend and neighbor who already had more than enough cats in her entourage but who could not refuse hospitality to a small gray tabby whose tummy seemed about to burst. She soon produced seven kittens.

The reason for this unusually large litter may well be that the three mentioned above are in fact triplets. They are now ensconced in a basket at the SPA, awaiting loving homes which their lucky siblings have already found.

Not to seem unfairly prejudiced in favor of cats, dogs have also proven their worth as companion animals, and petting them is shown to reduce high blood pressure.

Two anecdotes the reader may have already seen on the Discovery channel: the first concerns a man who regularly took his two dogs for a walk each evening, until the day they refused to go beyond the garden gate. Unable to persuade them to go farther, he went back into his house where he suffered a massive heart attack which he survived due to prompt medical attention. The second story is of a special-needs child in Florida who was given a “helping hand” dog. His mother reported the wonderful change in her son, not least because “now other children want to play with him, because of the dog.” 

Please open your heart to our wonderful furry friends. The Sociedad Protectora de Animales shelter is at Los Pinos 7, just off Calzada de la Estacion (which begins as Canal) not far from the central bus station. We are open Monday–Friday, 11am–2pm for visitation. Please call 152-6124 for more specific information. You are always welcome! Also visit us at the Jardín on Thursdays, 11am–1pm when we bring cats or kittens, dogs or puppies to share and show off. You may check our website at www.spasanmiguel.org  to see who is new and who is waiting.