Every once in a while our rather idyllic life is spoiled by something sad, like an animal dying. It is one of those hard realities of farm life. I”m trying to fight the city girl that I was for over 40 years and learn to take these things in stride. Old habits die hard, though. Today I was going out to give the calf his bottle and milk the cow when I was loudly greeted by our latest batch of barn kittens. They are almost 8 weeks old now and quite adorable. They came running to me, meowing. Only this morning there was a ‘meow’ that was louder than normal. I almost ignored it but it was really loud and insistent. I quickly counted the ones that had greeted me and noticed one was missing. So I followed the noise and found her—alive, but crushed under a cinder block that landed just above her pelvis across her back. Now if this cat had disappeared to be coyote or hawk food, I wouldn’t have batted an eye but when I lifted the cinder block and watched her crawl away dragging her hind end, I was really upset. I picked her up and brought her inside to be cuddled and comforted by the kids while I tried to figure out what to do. I even called the vet to see if we should just put her down or if there was a chance she could recover. I had already decided that this cat was not going to the vet. Barn cats adopt us—we can’t adopt an infinite number of veterinary bills. After talking to a vet tech who was not very reassuring, we decided to keep her inside for the rest of the day and then make a decision. When all else fails, procrastinate! I am happy to report that she is much improved. So much, in fact, that I put her outside with her siblings again. She has one rear leg that still isn’t quite right, but I’m optimistic she’ll recover. The whole ordeal has left me kind of depressed, though.
All is right with the world again
Note: I have learned that cats do not fear large animals with hooves that could crush them into oblivion. This particular kitten has been stepped on twice by a cow that I have observed. Each time I wince fearing what I might see when the cow finally decides to move. Each time I’ve seen a scared but alive kitten run off to a corner, just to be back at the next milking waiting to be crushed again. I suspect that one of the cows kicked the cinder block accidentally and kitty was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
The City Girl Farmer 