Tag Archives: pet

MORE ABOUT CATS IN ISTANBUL AND SOMETHING ABOUT CATS IN MY LIFE

Posted on by
Reply

I HAVE ALWAYS LIKED cats. Once, when I was about 7 years old, I was in bed suffering from one of my then frequent attacks of tonsillitis. I was recovering in bed when a small black cat wandered into my bedroom.

Knowing my love of cats, my mother had bought one to cheer me up. I christened it “Crumpet”.

There was a big problem. My mother was not keen on cats. As she thought I was too young to be trusted with a tin opener and she was worried that I might cut myself on the opened tins of cat food, she became Crumpet’s feeder.

Because Crumpet knew that Mom was the source of her food, she took a liking to her, often rubbing herself against my mother’s legs. This did not please my mother, and I believe that Crumpet sensed this. After a few months, Crumpet abandoned our house, and moved into another house along our road, where she found a more appreciative host.

Cat shelters in Üsküdar

We are now visiting Istanbul, which is swarming with cats. As I have already written previously, street cats seem to be well treated in this city. People put out food for them, and various organisations, including local municipalities, provide them with cosy shelters.

Today, whilst sitting in a garden outside a mosque in Üsküdar in the Asian part of Istanbul, we saw many cats – as usual. It was a cold, rainy day, and one cat, lacking in shyness, spent time keeping warm by sitting on my wife’s lap, and then mine.

What we have seen of the cats of Istanbul reinforces my affection for these furry creatures.

My cat

Posted on by
2

I love cats. I have only ever ‘owned’ one. I named it Crumpet.

I was less than ten years old when Crumpet entered my life. I was lying in bed at home, recovering from a bout of tonsillitis, when my late mother brought Crumpet into my bedroom. She had only just bought the cat at a pet shop to cheer me up.

My mother, who was always nervous about me risking injury, would not allow me to open the tins of cat food that Crumpet enjoyed. She was concerned that I might cut myself on the sharp edges of the open tin lids. So, as my mother did not want to disturb my father, who did much of his academic work at home, she became responsible for feeding Crumpet.

Cats tend to be quite self oriented. They favour the people who feed them. In Crumpet’s case, it was my mother who received much of the cat’s attention. Our cat used to rub herself against my mother’s legs affectionately, especially when my mother was opening the cat food.

Now, here’s the rub. My self sacrifying mother could not bear cats. She put up with Crumpet for my sake.

Crumpet must have realised that my mother was not keen on her because after a few weeks our pussy abandoned our home for another about one hundred yards away from ours.

Since Crumpet deserted us, I have never kept another pet, but my fondness for cats has remained.