Monkey Cat as a kitten
'Kuhn Ling' [Mr. Monkey] was his Thai name, but he was also known as 'Monkey Cat' and 'Buster'.
He arrived to stay with me and my Siamese cat 'Wan' [Sweet] in August of 2005. When I arrived home and was getting out of the tuk-tuk on a showery afternoon, my elderly neighbor came rushing down the street towards me with something in her arms. I became aware that she was carrying a very small, wet, and unhappy part-Siamese kitten. Obviously someone had left him on our steet to fend for himself. She handed it to me to hold, commenting that he was very cute. I responded that he was indeed adorable with his pale blue eyes and unusual markings of sable brown and white, but tried to explain that I already had a cat. She then said, "Well, I can't take care of him since my dog doesn't like cats, and besides your cat needs a friend". At that point she turned around and went into her house which left me standing in the street with this abandoned kitten in my hands.
I doubted that my 3 year old neutered female Siamese cat would accept having another cat in the house, but she was very receptive to this new addition to our small family. She taught him how to play, climb, hunt, and become a cat. He received his name on his second day here when he scampered up the drapes and wrapped his tail around the supporting rod, much like a monkey would do. When the proper time arrived he was taken to the vet to be neutered since I knew that tom cats have very short lives due to their constant fighting.
During the past seven years Monkey Cat has been a near perfect companion. He never failed to greet all visitors with a show of his vibrant and loving personality. He was exceptionally intelligent and a phenomenal hunter. He contnually left a bounty of dead lizards, snakes, field mice, rats, and other creatures on the floor by the dining room table. He rarely went outside the fenced area of the garden, but patrolled it vigilantly, lest any interlopers should appear. And if they did, they soon fled at the sound of his loud hissing and yowling.
Monkey cat with a bandage on a sprained leg
Monkey Cat got into a horrendous battle two weeks ago with a wandering tom cat who had obviously decided to exend his territory. He sustained four head wouns which the vet cleaned and then filled him full of anti-biotics and an anti-inflamitory. Wthin a week he was once again in perfect health.
However when he did not appear for his usual breakfast three days ago I knew that something dire must have happened. He was always on time for his breakfast. I searched the neighborhood thinking that he might have been injured, but there was no sight of him. I can only surmise that he got into yet another fight and expired. He will be missed.
Descanse En Paz Amiguito
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