It was the cat who started it, not me! Listen to me…
The story begins in April. My boyfriend, who lives far away, was worried I’d be bored when I moved in, so he brought home a cat he had already bought. I, in turn, gave our yet-to-be-met daughter a mighty name: Panghu. (Whispering: I wonder if she’ll hate me for it later?)
And so began my journey of cat obsession. My boyfriend, the hardworking father, leaves early and returns late to earn a living, while I, the useless mother, stay home to accompany, pet, sleep, play, and chat with the cat.
Panghu is a beautiful, lively, active blue cat who needs head rubs to fall asleep. For nearly half a month, my daughter and I did nothing but eat, sleep together, and occasionally mock her old man. Then, I returned to Hunan.
Ugh! Life without a cat to pet is so painful!
So, I asked a friend about prices, looked at cats, chose one, paid a deposit, went on a Taobao shopping spree, and finally brought home my British Shorthair Blue and White boy. Following the naming pattern—since my daughter is Panghu, my son shall be Dundun.
When I first picked up Dundun, he kept meowing in his carrier. The sound of that little kitten’s cries broke my heart.
Yes, it was obvious at first glance—Dundun had a slight eye issue. His eyes were teary, and his right eye had a lot of discharge. That first afternoon and evening, I cleaned his eyes multiple times, then turned to Baidu and friends for advice. It might be a minor infection, so I opened Taobao and bought some eye drops. I won’t go into details, but if you have a British Shorthair, it’s good to keep some on hand. A daily drop is said to be perfectly fine. Now, when I apply the eye drops and clean his tear stains, Dundun doesn’t resist at all. Why? Because I tell him, “After this, you’ll look so pretty and handsome!” (Whispering: Is he already this vain at such a young age?)
Did you think that was the end of it? Nope!
The worries of a mother are endless. A few days ago, I checked Dundun’s ears, and oh my! What is all this? It’s almost clogged! I carefully used tweezers and cotton swabs to clean them, wondering, “Is this what cat earwax looks like?” Then came another round of Baidu and Zhihu searches. The diagnosis? Ear mites.
Late at night, I cleaned Dundun’s ears and fell into deep thought. I don’t care about his breed or pedigree—I just want him to grow up healthy. Eye issues and ear mites are minor problems. It’s okay; I’ll take the time to cure him.
The above are the issues I encountered after bringing Dundun home. Now, let me talk about the experience.
Ahem… At first, I really just thought it would be fun. If it got too troublesome, I could just send Dundun back to my mom to keep her company. But in just a few short days, my mindset completely changed to that of a worried mother.
On the first day, he wasn’t used to the new environment and fell asleep in my arms. At 5 a.m., he nuzzled my face and meowed in a coquettish way, scaring me awake! I was completely startled, staring at him in confusion while he stared back and meowed.
On the second day, while cleaning his litter box, I complained, “Dundun, your poop is so smelly!” He circled around me, meowing as if to say, “How dare you call my poop smelly?” I quickly corrected myself, “No, no, Dundun’s poop isn’t smelly!” Satisfied, he stopped meowing. Aren’t animals supposed to stay animals after the founding of the People’s Republic?
On the third day, whenever he heard the sound of a spoon tapping a can, the fridge opening, or a plastic bag rustling, he became Liu Xiang (the Olympic hurdler)! Yes, Liu Xiang! He’d sprint over immediately.
On the fourth day, he lay in my arms while I, the chatterbox, rambled on about everything. He responded with an occasional “meow,” as if he understood. The night outside was beautiful, and he lay comfortably in my arms. It was probably at this moment that I realized Dundun had truly become a member of my little one-person family. I don’t ask for much—I just hope he grows up healthy and stays with me for a long time. We’ll grow together and become better versions of ourselves.
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