Treasures discovered in Tunisia

If you think I'll be talking about diamonds, gold, silver, etc. I have to disappoint you, beauty/ preciousness lies in the eyes of the beholder, I never before encountered so many gorgeous cats in one area, some purebred, others an interesting interbreeding, usually homeless little darlings - apart from my meanwhile housemates. Several were dumped in front of my door, often still kittens, or I discovered them with injuries. Lovely Tareqqa, white, brown and black coloured fur with an upward bent tail has only one eye, but she can really examine you with a fine-tooth comb,. lately Myriam arrived (mentioned her before, got caught in an accident), fur fox-coloured, with white and brown, lost one eye. I was wondering how Tareqqa would react seeing her: not too happy, looks like she would prefer to be the only original with just one eye. Amir is a gentle easy-going Persian cat (folks here call them "Turkish" as the Turks brought this breed to Tunisia). He is getting more beautiful every day. When I first saw him, a little fury bundle of joy, I couldn't believe my eyes, how can anyone put such a gorgeous little sweetheart outside (at least in front of my house) the same applies to Saladin, my other Persian cat, who is always hungry and checks all the places where I put food for my little treasures. Even though he likes to eat from every plate, he is very slim (what many people dream of, eat plenty, stay slim). Well, he suffered from diarrhoea and I gave him medication against worms, to be on the safe side. What helps to stop diarrhoea is no food for at least one day. That was hell for him. After 20 hrs he had enough, climbed on my roof terrace and jumped from there onto my awning. Luckily children discovered him and informed me, thus I managed in time to get him down with the aid of a ladder. Took the poor soul indoors. Having to refuse his constant requests for something to eat, looking at me with his big eyes, was tough for me too. Did he think I don't love him anymore? Did he think it's no good to stay in a house that doesn't provide food for him? We were both happy when his little "Ramadan" ended and he even enjoyed his diet: boiled rice with finely chopped carrots and a special tinned paste bought from the veterinary surgeon to built him up again. For a long time we thought that Saladin can't speak, the first time I heard his voice was at the vet's and then when he got really hungry. Reminds me of that joke, parents thought their boy was dump, never said a word until one day, 8 years old, he complained at the table: "Salt is missing." When his surprised parents enquired why he never spoke before, he said: "Everything was always there." Felicitas was my first black cat, I discovered her as a kitten climbing a lot underneath my metal fencing, looking for shelter. So I decided may be she'll be happy to live with us inside. She grew up to be a beautiful lady cat with shinny fur, like velvet, shining black eyes. Then one day children knocked on my door and asked me to help a cat they discovered near my house. She had an injury on her thigh (dog bite) and a big bump on her head, caused by a boy who hit her. The cat appeared to be traumatised and I took her to the vet's. She soon started  to recover and I named her Lilly. When Felicitas saw Lilly she instantly liked her very much: Wow, she looks like me, just beautiful. They stick a lot together, but also welcome all other cats, great gentle characters. I often enjoy having my two black ladies and maybe a third one also, sitting on my lab, cuddling and puring. Honey I found one day near the rubbish containers (so-called stray cats often search there for something to eat), tail chopped off for unknown reasons and bleeding. I noticed that when the bleeding stops, a crust forms partly consisting of dirt, then it brakes off, the bleeding starts again, etc. In the beginning I wasn't sure if she would let me pick her up and take her to the clinic for animals. Well she did, something we both never regretted. Now  she spends most of her time (during the day and all nights) in my house. Honey has a white "bib" and tummy, brown, black and orange coloured fur on her back. She loves the croquettes, a balanced mix with vegetables, taurine, etc. that I buy in a 20 kg sack from the vet. Cats need taurine, those sausages that are sold as joint food for cats and dogs don't provide this and they can cause cancer. I presume it's due to old mouldy bred. The men who collect waste bred take and sell it like that as well, but heat does not destroy mould, so if added to animal food, it remains and eventually makes our animals sick. Food from the rubbish dump is of course also not healthy and in Europe, tinned food contains all sorts of strange additions, mainly to make it appear to be more valuable to the buyer, but also sugar, which one won't  expect to find on an animal's menu - I guess it's added to provide colour and to make the pets addicted to that particular product. One of my cats there suffered from diabetes. I had to buy suitable food from the vet's, and also tablets. Money not wasted on Filou, who as a respected family member managed to reach the age of 18, a rare age for cats living here. Anyhow, Honey is great, when she's outside and sees me leaving the house, she comes running after me shouting, sounds like mourning that I shouldn't leave her. Well, I can live without a lot of things but not without my little treasures. They are my angels, my sunshine on a dark rainy day, a present from heaven. Cinderella is a little beauty with white fur and blue eyes, easy going, loves to cuddle, always the first one to great me in the morning. Found her one day in front of my entrance door in a cardboard box, several months ago, now well integrated. Jousef lived with us for a while, but didn't get on well with the other cats. He still sometimes sleeps here, needs his food fine chopped, even though I had taken him for dental treatment. He is only 3 or 4 years old but looks very tired. Living mainly outside makes cats age quicker, I feel sorry for the little darling, he loves  to sit on my lab. One of my neighbours also feeds him, the lady has a lot of sympathy with the poor little sweethearts and when I first arrived explained to me how to treat cats' eyes and ears. Jolino has white soft fur, gentle modest cat but suffers a lot from colds. This is the time when I have to wipe a lot of noses as my little treasures can't use handkerchiefs. Cold weather can be really tough on them. I try to keep them warm at night with little blankets, yet sometimes they decide to get up again, but they are good at keeping each other warm. Our latest new comers (just as I thought full house now) are Alien, a white cat with grey spots, a few months old, loves chicken and cheese, gets along with all his colleagues, and Suzy, tri-coloured, 2-3 months old, who sneaked in our small corridor, appreciates a cosy place there to sleep. Many more little darlings outside, when I return from shopping, they come from all directions, including roof tops, to greet me. Before the revolution cats were very skinny and they also did this, made me feel very welcome. I always regretted not being able to provide more food for them, was difficult to find at that time. It is amazing, how these little treasures manage to look so neat and clean and remain good-natured in spite of a lot of stupidity they have to put up with every day. But there is hope, more and more folks care and are willing to protect animals. How civilized a society is can be judged by the way they treat and help those in need, human beings and animals.