Raison D'être

I know I promised kittens but sorry, no can do. You’ll understand why in a moment. In the meantime here ya go:

This is ‘Gary’, aptly named by my Spongebob Squarepants loving son. According to my son that freaked out look on Gary’s… um… eye… indicates he wants to come home with us and be our special snail. After much discussion I was successful in convincing him that no, Gary was happy right there where he was and forcing him to live elsewhere would result in depression, anxiety, loneliness, weight gain and possible death (sort of like moving to Germany, no?), and we wouldn’t want to take that chance. Besides, we can visit him every day on the walk home.

As for the kittens I’m lodging an internet complaint. When we first moved into this two family home our landlords, who live right under us, had a cat who had just given birth to seven or eight of the cutest kittens you’d ever want to lay eyes on. To come straight to the point the landlord’s wife seems to have kept the whole litter. Inside her house, mostly, and while we share a common cellar where our washing machines and dryers stand, occasionally when I go past her entrance I can smell the cats. Since this happens only occasionally I think she must be doing a really good job of cleaning up after them. Here comes the part I have a problem with.

First, and least taxing of all, she told us we could use part of her garden for the children to play in. Since that time she’s asked me twice to bring the children out and let them play there. She doesn’t seem to notice or think it’s a problem that this is the area all those cats are using for a toilet, and not wishing to make an enemy of her and be branded a cat-hater I’m reluctant to bring it to her attention.

Secondly, she didn’t spay or neuter any of them, and now one has given birth to a whole new litter and a second is ready to pop at any moment. I saw her outside yesterday cuddling one of the newborns, and since she didn’t sterilize or give any of the first litter away, by the way she’s fawning over them it’s safe to assume she has no plans to part with this new litter or the pending one. So as of this writing we’ve got at least 15-18 actual cats downstairs with another 5-9 arriving at any moment. That could very soon be 27 cats in total, which in turn will grow exponentially.

In addition I begin to smell the cats more often when I go downstairs to do the clothes. Not very often, but more often than I did before. There are three adult humans downstairs. Two are working and one is going to school and/or working, and they vacation pretty regularly. When they’re on vacation for up to a week at a time I smell the cats more often. A neighbor comes over daily to feed and water when they’re away but of course goes home again soon after, so they’re not getting the careful care they’d get from their owners.

I asked my husband about it since this country is famous for its orderliness and attention to detail and law. He told me as far as he knows she can keep as many cats downstairs as she wants until it becomes obvious the family isn’t handling the situation and their lifestyle begins to lap over onto others and cause problems. Then the Ordnungsamt can be called in and they’ll determine what to do.

In our former city, right up the street from where we lived, an elderly lady residing in a single occupant dwelling (50-80 square meters) had around 40 cats living with her and nothing was done about it. The situation was remedied against her will when she was discovered passed out in her bathroom and the hungry animals had begun feeding on her. The city ordered that she not be allowed to keep cats again in her lifetime.

So yes I’m worried, even though part of me thinks it isn’t any of my business. I’m worried about the time when it’ll become my business whether I want it to or not, and I hope with all my heart before that day comes someone else will step in and tell her gently “Excuse me, but what you’re doing really isn’t a good idea” and point her in the direction of a good vet. Hopefully one with a ‘spay 5 get the sixth for free’ program. I’m crossing my fingers.

This entry was posted Tuesday, June 1st, 2010 at 12:18 and is filed under accountability, worry. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.