I DID A THING! (& other fun stuff)

Yes, I did. Accidentally, I swear.

See this scraggly little ragamuffin?

I better back up... Last Friday evening, Kanchan (neighbor) and I were enjoying coffee on the terrace, when one of her girls came up frantically asking for water for a lost kitten in the apartment complex area. Important context to understand: India's streets are filled with dogs and cats, so finding a kitten is not all that remarkable. However... in this case, the kitten was quite tiny, no sign of a mother or other kittens around, and crying desperately for food. She was in terrible shape, and even the adults were saying she wouldn't make it another night outside on her own. (She'd been there at least two days.) "Can anyone take her in?" I asked the mini-crowd of kids and adults that had now gathered. Kanchan immediately said, "You can!"

Impossible. No way could I take responsibility for a street kitty in India... Absolutely no way.

[No one] ...

[Me] ...

So... I did.

I had no cat food, no litter box, and no idea what this scrawny fleabag had going on with her pathetic little self. I had some frozen chicken patties and broke one up which the kitty DEVOURED instantly. I set down some newspapers where the kitty promptly had diarrhea (yes, actually on the newspaper, smart girl). I gave her a bath with my shampoo to at least wash off a layer of grime. The next day, Saturday, the neighbors and I tried to take her to the vet's. It was closed, but the pet shop next door was open and I bought kitten food, small litter box, scoop, bag of litter, and some flea shampoo. She got another bath to kill the fleas, and she instantly learned to use the litter box, smart girl.

Sunday and Monday were busy days, but Monday evening (yesterday as I type this), I hailed a rickshaw and brought her to the vet myself. The vet was great! He gave her a de-worming treatment and I brought in a stool sample for them to test. He also gave me a pro-biotic for her, and he told me to buy some wet food to mix with the dry, which I did. I will continue to bring her back to the vet's over the next few weeks (couple of months) to get all vaccinations and a microchip for travel.

Here's a photo of the plastic toy carrier the neighbors gave me to transport her:

She can easily (and angrily) bust right out of it, so I went online last night to buy a cat carrier through Amazon-India. It should arrive on Saturday. (Also, yes, she pooped diarrhea all over it and ME while I was bringing her back home yesterday.)

And a photo of the vet place. You just wait outside until they call you in to the little space!

As for her name -- the neighbor girls (ages 5 and 9) and I decided to name her "Narangi" (pronounced "Na-rung-ghee") which means "orange" in Hindi and Marathi. And for short, we call her Nini! The girls and I all have the sound of "Nee" in our names, so we love the nickname for her. (The vet is not 100% sure she's a "she," but we all think so.)

In other news... I've had a few really nice outings with the neighbors (my landlords who have basically "adopted me" into their family). I went to a fun outdoor market with Kanchan one day. The market is busy, colorful, loud, and FUN! There is also a temple in the midst of it all where you can find a bit of peace and quiet. You will find representations of Ganesh (or Ganesha or various other names) everywhere as the "favorite" deity here in the state of Maharashtra. (In the 10th century, there was a religious movement in the area that influenced the popularity of Ganesh.) Ganesh represents wisdom and the intellect and is the remover of obstacles.

On the weekend, I went with Sandeep (landlord/neighbor) and the girls on a couple of small hikes/walks in the area. The first is within walking distance of our building, and it is truly nature's sanctuary in the midst of a big city. It is called Vetaal Tekadi (or Tekdi), and has numerous trails, a quarry, and a small shrine. Loads of people hike the hill, especially in the evening when you can watch the sun go down. (Once it's down, though, you better have a flashlight to get back down those trails!). (The littlest child didn't accompany us on this hike.)

Then on Sunday we visited the Parvati Temple on the highest point of land in Pune. The temple offers a stunning view of the entire city. There is also an amazing Peshwa museum with artifacts that are 200 to 300 years old! (Click this link for more.)

I guess that about wraps up the past week for me! Let's just finish the post up with one more adorable photo of Nini on my lap!