Kirsty and Shadow: a girl and her adored black cat
KIRSTY always wanted a pet: when she was five years old, she persuaded her parents to let her keep hamsters and a fish tank. As she grew a bit older she wanted her own dog, but she lived with her family on the fif th floor of an apartment block, and larger pets were not allowed. She couldn’ t help encountering animals in her life, and she started to come home with a succession of stray kittens that she found by the side of the road.
Eventually she arrived home with three kittens hidden under her jacket, and her mother decided that this was not an urge that was going away. She spoke to the management of the apartment block, and they agreed to make an exception: Kirsty would be allowed to have her own pet cat. Perhaps this might fulfill her need for animal company, and put an end to the continual random gathering of creatures in need.
Every weekend through the summer, Kirsty’s family visited a friend in the countr yside: they heard about a pedigree Persian cat who had produced in unexpected litter of kittens with a local tom cat. Most of the kittens quickly found homes, but the runt of the litter wasn’ t wanted; she was weak and unable to walk. There was talk about asking the local vet to end her life peacefully rather than letting her suffer. As soon as Kirsty heard about this, she knew that this was the cat she had been waiting for; she was a determined eight year old girl. She persuaded her parents to let her rescue this unfortunate six week old kitten. She named her Shadow, because she was a silent black shape of an animal.
Shadow became an indoor cat for the first few years of her life, and she made a strong recovery from her poor start in life. Kirsty’s family eventually moved to their own house, with a garden, and Kirsty allowed Shadow to begin to venture outside. Shadow was visibly terrified at first, flattening her body to the ground and glancing around furtively. But she soon learned to enjoy the extra stimulation of being outdoors, chasing leaves, hiding in bushes and appreciating the fresh air. Studies show that cats that are allowed outside have slightly shorter lives than indoor- only cats, but they suffer from fewer stress- related diseases because they are able to carry out more natural cat behaviours, such as running, jumping and chasing. Shadow has the best of both worlds, spending most of her time indoors but going out for a couple of hours every morning to enjoy the fresh air and open space.
The one issue Kirsty has had with Shadow is grooming: she is a long haired cat, taking after her Persian mother, but she has the sparkiness of her village cat father. She used to allow herself to be brushed and combed for five minutes but then she became irritated and aggressive.
She had to be intermittently taken to the vet to be sedated, and a “lion cut” was given: clipping off most of her body fur, leaving her with long hair around her head and tail, so that she resembled a lion with a mane. As she grew older, she started to have an increasingly prolonged hangover after her vet visits, taking a few days to return to her usual active and playful self. At this stage, Kirsty invested in a set of electric clippers. Her father and brother now gently but firmly hold Shadow, and she purrs as Kirsty clips any tangled or matted fur from her body. If Shadow gets unduly upset, Kirsty stops, and then has another go a few days later. The new system is working well. Shadow no longer has a radical lion cut but she’s kept free of uncomfortably matted Shadow is now fourteen years old: Kirsty is a twenty two year old young woman. She - and Shadow - still live in the family home. Shadow is as dark and silent as she has always been; the only sound she ever makes is a loud purr when she sits beside Kirsty.
Kirsty brought it to me recently for an elderly cat check up. This is a good idea for any cats over the age of ten. An annual consultation with a vet often identifies hidden problems that can otherwise cause a reduced quality of life as well as a shorter lifespan.
Before I examined Shadow I spent some time talking to Kirsty. She told me that Shadow is fed on a top quality diet designed for older cats. Kirsty gives her a worm dose every three months. She has no unusual behaviours that Kirsty had noticed. Normal thirst, no digestive disturbances, no coughing or sneezing. The only change was that Kirsty had noticed she was finding it more difficult to jump onto the bed than in the past. ( She spends most of her day sleeping on the bed). When I examined Shadow’s joints I found that she had pain in her knees and hips. She was suffering from the very common condition of arthritis which is seen in many older cats.
There are different treatment options and the first approach for Shadow is to give her a daily pain relief medication in her food. This is likely to make a big difference to her. When it stops working so well there are other options such as a once monthly injection that will relieve pain in a different way. She’ ll need regular checks to fine tune her treatments depending on her response.
Shadow may be elderly, but Kirsty’s going to make sure that her life is as long as it can possibly be, and that she enjoys life right until the end. So far, so good. She’s still a very contented cat.