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Sunday, 31 October 2021

PostScript Diamonds and Stones


Djego poor puppy found on the street




 "Teach a child not to be cruel to an animal and you will teach him one of the basic principles of the human condition." Caroline Earle White.                                               In Tunisia you can find them both, those who love and those who hate animals. James Baldwin once said: "People will always hate what they can't understand and they hate so much because they understand so little." A woman from the neighborhood accused me of feeding cats in front of her house and causing dirt, stated she's allergic to cats and her children are sensitive too. I actually don't, she saw me being followed by cats and drew the wrong conclusions. A neighbor told her she's mistaken, the rubbish near her house has nothing to do with me and why does she live here if she wants a sterile clean surrounding. My husband adviced her that Allah punishes those who hate animals, that is why countries where they respect and love them are better off and they have clean streets. Humans, children and adults, dump their rubbish on the street, not cats! Running out of arguments that woman accused me of loving cats too much. Poor cats and dogs have to look for food among the rubbish, often real beauties, surprising to see them  there. Some folks discovered that their ex family member on four legs attends my Cats' Table. So I pay for their food, but I don't know where they are sleeping, nights are getting cold and we have a high amount of moisture  in the air. These cats miss their families and love cuddling, I often noticed this, kicking them out for convince is so cruel. If I could I would offer shelter to all of them, not just food. Many Tunisians feed what is left over from their meals, thus noodles, couscous, rice, vegetables, a bit of sardines, bred... (spices are not ideal, in particular salt, nor are beans etc). Unfortunately those who feed often forget to tidy up afterwards, as cats can't do this themselves, the remains stay on the ground, usually on a bit of plastic. Still, good to see folks who care and don't treat cats and dogs like vermin. Only yesterday I watched two boys throwing stones at a dog (not a stray, gentle, but outside on his own). A few days ago, after 5 a.m. I heard a dog wimer interrupted by cries with pain. Following a short search I discovered a puppy lying on a piece of cardboard, throat wounded, a cut or a bite? Close to dying, suffering a lot of pain. I informed my husband and we decided to take him to our vet and try to save his life. The poor soul just fitted in a cat's transport box. After the vet cleaned the wound (deep but not as big as it seemed at first sight), it become obvious that the poor puppy had been bitten by a dog,. I presume a dog trained to fight, those illegal street fights, for which cats are misused for training. The poor little treasure stayed a few days at the vet's, she did an excellent job. Now Djego, as my husband named him, is on the road to recovery, still a bit weak and we are happy he hasn't got a broken leg ( at first it looked as if ). A neighbor informed us that the puppy had been seen sleeping underneath a car the night before the attack. Various folks inquired what happened to him. Nobody knows an owner. We won't put him out on the street again, but with so many cats it won't be easy, if we can find a good family for him, he can be adopted. He is so sweet, gentle and shy. Parting from him won't be easy, we will see. By the way, at present, end of October, the puppy weights 2,5kg and is 2,5 month old.- Near a rubbish heap I viewed a Burmese cat, once a upon a time the most expensive cat in the world, the poor little treasure most probably had a home in the past, these cats are highly in fashion here. But this doesn't protect them against being kicked out if they cause any problem or require medical treatment. Superfisional love, it is better to never depend on such folks. We decided to take Allan, as we named him, to a vet for a check up. He didn't seem to be well and suffered from diarrhea. The vet kept Allan for a few days for control, it turned out that he is approx. seven years old and must have been homeless for quite a while, which means aging quicker, such a difference to mine indoors darlings of the same age. "Animal Hearts Tunisia" met the costs for Allan, much appreciated. Having been washed in Fatima's clinic one can see his still remaining beauty. I hope our other cats will accept gentle, modest, elderly, Allan and he will have a good life with us for his remaining years.

Allan, Burmese little treasure

Thursday, 14 October 2021

Diamonds and Stones

 "Our country produces enough to feed us all. Alas, for lack of food organization, we are forced to beg for food aid. It is this aid that instills in our spirit attitude of beggars.            Thomas Sankara 1983.                                                                     When prices are raising it is good to receive lemons, cactus fruit, olives, etc. for free, but unfortunately they are thrown onto our roof and not yet ready for consumption. Please harvest later and don't be shy if you want to thank us for all the toys and sweets we donated to the kids around here, no need to throw secretly. We learned that stones thrown at our house are part of an old local tradition (historic documents already mention inhabitants in North Africa costal  area throwing stones), kids like to spend their time either playing football or throwing stones, they think it's funny. But to be fair, not all are like that. Some ask me to help cats in need. They watch me a lot, so I can't complain about too little attention. Every morning my cats test how many fit into my small kitchen. Once they are all fed, I attend to my visitors to my cats' table. A new arrival is a bitch, German Shepherd with four puppies (she had seven, three died I am told). The female is very gentle and patiently waits whether there is any food left over for her. I am disappointed with my little darlings, they want to steal the doggy food from her, but the bitch remains totally non aggressive, I have to chase some cats away, so she can enjoy her food more or less undisturbed. Her puppies are in the meantime sleeping on a matrass that kind persons provided in an unfinished house. The bitch seems to be known and tolerated around here. This is in line with the demands of the Quran the teachings of Prophet Mohammed, thank heavens for that.

At first I wasn't sure whether I can feed a dog as well, not just financially but also because usually dogs and cats don't get on well together. I guess my feline darlings, my little diamonds, have to get used to the new situation and they sometimes even chase new comers away. (Closed shop?) - A lot of noise, a car parked next to a motorbike, both engines running, men shouting at each other aggressively, close to having a fight, not an unusual sight here, but still, I walk outside and ask them to please not start a war. They look at me with surprise. What do you mean? I repeat my request not to start a war, we had a revolution not long ago, please calm down. Well it worked, following their encounter with that strange woman they departed peacefully. - My doctor advised me it has been recently discovered that 70% of the Tunisian population have too little vitamin D in their body. I remarked it is the result of the way many woman dress, allowing hardly any skin to be exposed to the sun. He replied that is one important aspect but others are effected as well, strong sun doesn't necessarily mean plenty of vitamin D, which bones need. Tourists like to gain a bit of colour on the beach, while face cream on the shelves here try to attract customers with the slogan: Perfect White. Whens  you are required to pay a larger sum, e.g. by a dentist or optician, and are offered installment payments, you will be surprised to learn they actually mean one advance payment and the rest on delivery/ completion of work., rather than the sum being paid over several months.  Hard luck for those who can't manage. - The director of a university in Sousse issued an order that students are not allowed to feed cats on the campus. I wonder what is going on in his head, does he seriously believe this will keep the area clean or is he just one of those ignorants that hate cats and dogs? He should be proud of students showing empathy. Surely students are not too stupid to understand the need to keep the feeding area clean and cats are by nature clean and

 ( unless they are sick) they kill cockroaches, mice, rats, etc.

Amazing, clean cats among a lot of rubbish, so who pollutes the environment?

Samples of fruit donations

A stock of stones in many places

  In the Middle Ages, when cats were killed on a big scale, this led to the spreading of the pesticides, millions died. When Egypt was more advanced, going back in history, killing a cat mend capital punishment. The citizens knew their value to protect cereals. A clean environment without cats? Folks "wash" the streets with a lot of water, they try to protect the roads and pavements against Corona by throwing their face  masks on the ground and " decorate" various areas with plastic and papers. So cats are the problem?

Monday, 4 October 2021

PostScript Positive Changes are Possible




 "Let everyone sweep in front of his own door and the whole world will be clean." Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Prices are raising for medication, fruits, vegetables, animal food and other items. A misunderstanding? The president had asked for the opposite in aid for the country. One explanation one hears is the exchange rate for the Dinar, it lost value. While this of course makes imports more expensive, why should it effect locally produced goods? Folks employed to harvest fruits and vegetables are badly paid and without women willing to accept this there wouldn't be much on the market. I wonder whether they profit from the higher price or is it all pocketed by the sellers? You may think the sausage produced for animal consumption is a luxury product, hungry cats and dogs feel differently. Many Tunisian feed the leftover from their meals, thus heavily spiced couscous, noodles and rice, bred. Not exactly what veterinarians recommend and it explains the often bad immune system and short life of pets and strays. I buy the special sausage for cats in addition to the croquettes. Since the prices keep raising and raising, I am forced to reduce the amount I donate to my in-house cats and outside guests. By the way, from time to time a dog or another one arrive without a collar, not sure it's a stray, always well behaved and gentle. Cats don't fear them, one or two even dare chasing the dog away. Lately a bitch that appears to have puppies comes looking for a bit of food. Her tail she presses between her legs, looks like she has been abused a lot and accustomed to having stones thrown at her, a German Shepherd dog. I feel sorry for her and will try to find out whether she has a house and if perhaps an animal protection organisation can help her. Poor darling. - Bad habits die hard. In Tunis folks who damp their rubbish anywhere, if caught pay a 60 Dinar fine and 300 guys are employed to trace those who pollute the environment. It happens even where better-off residents live. For unknown reasons some consider it too much effort to drop their waste in available containers or waste bins. The ignorant just don't care and kids watching this act like wise. Certainly no way to attract tourists. We used to have a place close by with three containers for the residents' waste, a lot used to be damped around the containers, leaving an unpleasant job for those who collect the rubbish. Following a person's  certificate of a doctor that it can be harmful to one's health to live in the direct neighborhood, the containers got removed and a waste collecting lorry arrives at night instead to empty the household bins or pick up the waste bags. I use 2 or 3 small cheap bins since expensive ones might get stolen, and leave them in front of my house, as I am not sure at what time the lorry arrives, usually fairly late. For several days some badly wrapped bags,  partly torn, with  food and other waste were placed next to my rubbish. Neither wanting flees nor cockroaches attracted, nor other neighbours perhaps also deciding to do like wise, I had to find out who acted so selfishly. One day, with two bags containing rubbish already standing next to my bins, I view a neighbor with another bag, seeing me he goes past my house and leaves the bag at a little distance. Next day I see big open black plastic bags in the middle of the road, open,  containing rubbish spread. Where does it come from? Usually our street is quite clean.  Surprise, surprise, a direct very special neighbor, I have written about him before, he invented laws just for us that no one else ever heard about. Further, he advised me that Tunisan folks are very clean, unlike those from the Middle of Europe; my cats are too loud, his son's motorbike tuned to be extreme loud and his racing around here are perfectly okay though. Some people are happy with themselves and as they never do anything wrong they see no need to change.- My husband dreams of a medicine that cures cats from sneezing and running noses. A lot of cats can quickly mean a lot of sneezing, in particular with those cold, damp nights. At present we are all still enjoying the gratuite sunshine, put up with a bit of sweating, early darkness - well not quite, there are too many street lights for that, in our opinion less would do. We hope our President will introduce animal protection laws. Unlike what the uneducated and ignorant believe, there is nothing in the Quran stating that dogs are unclean, dirty, stinking, should be killed, it is fake news! And hopefully folks will learn to protect the environment, it is worth it, Tunisia can be beautiful. I heard expats' children watching people dropping wrappings on the street asking: "Why do they do this?"

Tuesday, 28 September 2021

Positive Changes are Possible




 "Hear with your ears, watch with your eyes, close your mouth and learn." Hawaiian saying.                                     With all the communication methods nowadays, we are provided with a lot of possibilities to learn from each other. Ideally national radio and TV are employed to gently teach the ignorant. (Albert Einstein: "Most stress comes from the daily contact with idiots.") At long last the government tackles the problem (meanwhile solved in many countries) of stray animals possibly catching rabies. A good chance for Radio National Rue Hourria Tunis to explain to uneducated simple folks the need for vaccination. But no, the presenter proudly declared that when he sees a pack of dogs in the morning (probably hungry and grateful if a kind person would donate a bit of food), he picks up a stone and says a sure, he doesn't know how one can hold these dogs and vaccinate them. Shameful ignorant, wonder what are the requirements for his post? I noticed that radio presenters do a lot of giggling, news are rarely read and at a high speed. I have never in my life felt threatened by stray animals, quite a few had a family before and were kicked out for convince, maybe need of veterinarian treatment and guys either not able or willing to spend the money. Lack of loyality and empathy is a human speciality! Amazing that abused animals are still capable to love man. They comfort old, sick and lonely folks, save humans buried underneath crushed houses, snow, from fire and water, aid the blind, protect humans, animals and properties, detect harmful drugs, etc. Sorry, let me take the liberty to compare street cats and dogs with kids roaming the streets all day. Those picking up stones, children and adults, worry me. These kids are constantly picking up stones, throwing them " just for fun" at cats, dogs and humans. I nearly got hit on more than one occasion, the last stone was big enough to kill or at least cause a servere injury. The usual comment of not very bright bystanders: They are children..... With just one word I can get dogs to leave the scene, when kids scream all day at ear splitting level and I ask them to play elsewhere or at least stop shouting, they use bad language or say "sorry" and continue a few seconds later. When you have up to 20 kids misbehaving in front of your door, it's not much fun. I am no longer the relaxed person I used to be. Lots of noise and exhaust gases are harmful for ones health. Last year 7 million people died worldwide from air pollution. It doesn't seem to worry folks here. Motorbikes are often tuned to be extreme loud and leave a black stinking cloud. Some residence areas are used as racing tracks, number plates are rare on motorbikes, makes stealing them and or using for street robbery easier. I hope vaccination of stray cats and dogs is only the start of animal protection laws and the end of senseless killing of them. Reducing the number of homeless cats and dogs can best be achieved by getting them spayed and neutered and teaching the ignorant empathy and responsibility. In fashion are Persian (here called " Turkish") and in particular Sisamoise cats. I joke: if you are not high class, at least your cat should be. Diana, my Sisamoise cat, was in a poor state of health when children tried to sell her. Following various visits to the vet, having been spayed and neutered, vaccinated as well,   she was fine when she walked outside, doubtlessly intending to return quickly (as she did in the past), but a thief was quicker. She must be kept indoors, without a chance to come back home. Folks here quickly get impatient, no time to waite until it's their turn even at the vet's, surprising with so many unemployed. In a hurry for what? A result of too much fast food maybe. Mediterranean home cooking is healthy, lots of fruits and vegetables, plenty of vitamins, good for the body and brain, but how much is still done? I noticed the urge for instant revenge even in very young children. One wrong word and stones are thrown, I find them on my pavement, with construction/repair works everywhere there is an endless stock of stones. This lack of self-control in kids and adults is not harmless. In the F. Bourguiba University hospital in Monastir family members of a deceased Covid patient attacked staff of that ward and destroyed the much needed material, which in return forced the Hospital to permanently close the Covid ward. An attempted assault on the president's life failed. Eye for eye, teeth for teeth - if practiced leaves half the world blind and without teeth. The original demand was not for such literal revenge but mend that if you feel you must take revenge, don't allow it to be in assess of what has been done to you. Difficult to judge the future development in Tunisia, writings on walls implicate that quite a few are "not happy". What we don't need is an elbow society without empathy. We can do better!

Tuesday, 21 September 2021

Living among lots of Fur Angels

Sweet Aisha with fur like silk following previous lots of problems with her fur and skin.

The end of a short feline life after having been torn away from the innocent mum that nature had provided with milk for her babies. Those stone hearted people are deaf and therefore can't hear the babies crying for their mummy. It is so brutal and wicked!!!

Well equipped thanks to Animal Hearts Tunesia

"Everybody is a genius, but if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will spend it's whole life believing it is stupid". Albert Einstein
Tinned cats' food can be mixed with a bit of rice or noodles. My black lady Lily and white honey Milka are a bit skinny, I gave them Kippy Pate with noodles. They liked it a lot, but Lily, a real gourmet, left all the noodles on the plate. When my husband gives her tinned sardines, she manages to sort out the tiny soft fish bones - most humans eat them, some street cats even raw fish completely (but the bones can injure the bowels). Stray cats love fish mongers as they and those who sell their fish via vehicles, often donate a bit to "nicely begging" cats. By the way, my kittens love Kippy Pate for kittens. Several tins were donated by Animal Hearts Tunisia, as my little ones came from the street, I picked them up in front of my door (in boxes, plastic bags or just left like that e.g. between my cactuses). Some look okay, others have pus in the eye, dirty fur, flea. Black and white Nena has skin problems (mushroom, can be treated) and suffers from hernia. She is still very young, the vet informed us that the growth near the navel can best be removed later when she gets spayed and neutered. My lovely big boy Ricardo, once found as a kitten underneath my Yucca plant, suffers from jaundice and had a cyst on the left side of his face/neck. The vet cut it without anaesthetic, my gentle white boy ( with some golden spots) let it happen without a whisper. He has been with us for two years now and knew he is getting help. Ricardo lately lost some weight, but his appetite is excellent now, which is a good sign. With Fury it was a different story, tiny he or she was on my pavement screaming. Afraid the little one may get killed by a car and no mother in sight, I took her indoors. For some unknown reason she/ he then decided that I am the enemy and kept running away from me, often hiding. When Fury had pus in one eye, which means losing the eye if untreated, it was quite a job catching the tiny kitten and cleaning the eye. I ended up with several deep scratches. Feeding is another problem, I solved it more or less by pushing the food bowl in the direction of my crazy babe. I decided not to force her/him and waite until I am accepted, maybe the other cats can prove that I have nothing evil in mind. Unfortunately there is no happy ending to this story. Fury died the other day, I could not comfort the little one. There is a statistic that shows how much a cat family can grow if no "family planning" takes place. Even though most kittens die before they are 1-3 months old, getting cats and dogs spayed and neutered makes sense, unless you wish to look after a four legged big family. My babies come from the street, all old enough and living with us had to accept and undergo the operation. Generally speaking it makes them more relaxed, "the boys have no problems with the girls/women" as a vet put it once. No more marking with urine the hunting grounds and less fighting. The same applies to dogs, following the operation they get more attached and less willing to run outside uncontrolled, wanting to "get engaged". One man somewhere else decided that doing so on the street is indecent for a dog and beat him to death. This happened in North Africa, not Afghanistan! Anyway, for a poor family that saved a street dog from a hard and dangerous life, Animal Hearts Tunesia decided to meet the costs for that lovely gentle black dog Jake getting spayed and neutered and receiving vaccination as well. Many thanks to Gisella Romdhani, Chayma Labidi and the donators. They also paid for the muzzle and lead. The other day a young girl passed my house together with her mother. Seeing me she stopped to say thank you for the sweets and chocolate she received several years ago, when she still lived in my neighborhood. Strange, one day later a woman with two little girls, approx. 2 and 3 years old walked near my house and I heard the older girl insisting that she wants to visit me as I would give her sweets. The mother didn't know me and tried to pull her away. She was very persistent and I rushed to get her Bonbons. Then the little girl asked me to give her a cat. The mother told me that her daughter loves cats,  but she herself doesn't, unfortunately. The little girl gave me hope. Maybe she can convince her mother one day that living with a cat is great and worth the effort.

Sunday, 12 September 2021

What Might Surprise Folks Coming/Returning From Europe




 "You can easily judge the character of a man by the way he treats those, who can do nothing for him."Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.                                                                                           Cows' heads hanging in front of butcher shops, mend to proof all meat is fresh, but for Europeans, especially children, a shocking view and might well convince several that it is time to stop eating meat. In Germany 13,5 million cats and 8 million dogs live in households, seeing such pets here frequently being treated like vermin, kicked and hit with stones or sticks, shot or poisoned by kids, adults and authorities, is horrible. By the way, more than 50% of the Russian folks keep a cat. While Turkey is a Paradise for cats (going back in history Agypt used to be too) it is nowadays hell for cats and dogs in Tunisia, North Africa, Agypt and Afghanistan. Only the devil knows why, it is contrary to the preachings of the constantly praised Prophet Mohammed. For those who lived in East Germany (DDR) it must be like a deja Vue, finding several items, in particular imports, in shops  and pharmacy not always available, some due to the slow working custom people or unpaid bills. The so called salami is sold as for dogs only, anther type for cats and dogs (though their requirements are not identical, (e.g. only cats need Tourine for their eyes and heart), and lately one for cats only. Having ordered the later, the shop handed two boxes with the brand for cats and dogs to my husband, without a mention of the substituted item. You would have thought that my husband would at least be questioned whether he is willing to accept a different product. Such behaviour is not untypical. My hairdresser was asked whether she can put red streaks in my hair, she declared no problem and the result was really beautiful, several women told me so - but there is a problem she never mentioned, the colour is not waterproof. My hair discolours my clothes, my pillow and even my skin. Got caught in the rain, it looked as if my face was bleeding. The price by the way did not reflect the poor quality of the product. Lend a drilling machine to a neighbour, a drill item broke off, not mentioned, lend orthopedic walking sticks to a nother neighbor who had an accident. When he obviously no longer needed these, asked him to hand them back, it turned out he had lend them to a nother person. When kids are acting like hooligans, are extremely loud, you will be advised that they are children! When dogs bark loud and the town authority receive complains, the animals receive capital punishment. When young folks play very loud music from the roof of their houses, you are advised by their family or others that they are young and it won't carry on much after midnight. In most European states people would call the police, in France they would call the bailiff. Rest hours, during which one is supposed to avoid making noise, disturbing the peace, are unknown here. When schools are closed (seems to be most of the year), children sleep until lunch time and then stay up until after midnight, this includes the very young. You can see daddies taking their toddlers for a walk in the middle of the night. A Tunisian who had worked in Italy for ten years remarked that the people there are great, unlike here they help each other and that he misses the solidarity, respect and consideration for other people he experienced. Even though many are unemployed, everybody is in a hurry.  At the doctor's some lie that they were first, or insult, threaten the doctor's receptionist because they have to spend their precious time waiting. Several young and fit girls, women and men are happy to take the taxi you ordered, guess they think the elderly won't be missed anywhere. Don't know what to make of Aljazeera English, after they changed their channel, it can no longer be received without a receiver and some monthly payments, so I am told. By the way, a small fee, five Dinar for TV and radio, is included in the electricity bill. No problem with receiving Aljazeera Arabic on the new channel.  The programs in English and Arabic are not identical, the English one has brilliant journalists and received many international rewards for their documentations. I understand that several countries are interested in stopping their crimes becoming public. I cannot judge the quality of Aljazeera Arabic. On the Tunisian radio programs one doesn't receive much informations, the women who work there seem to be mainly occupied with a lot of giggling. Not looking forward to the winter with cold nights and many cats sneezing and coughing, but the really hot summer can also be trying. Not all is bad here of course, I receive a lot of love from my amazing cats and we have met good charming and helpful men and women, nice kids also. Plenty of sunshine, gorgeous flowers, a lovely beach if kept clean, the sand is of top quality. The high amount of moisture in the air doesn't only make clothes damp, it also makes ironing unnecessary, if you put on a piece of clothes with lots of creases, it will all look like well ironed after a short while. When the sun goes down, it quickly gets dark. Bred is very cheap, so nobody should remain hungry. In spite of Diabetes being wide spread and medication not always available, most processed food including fruit juices are sold with a big extra portion of sugar or honey, chocolate. One can't see the amount of sugar or fruit contained in the juices, etc. at first glance, the information is kind of hidden.

Thursday, 9 September 2021

Poor Lovely Beauties

"The problem with the world is that the intelligent people are full of doubts, while the stupid ones are full of confidence." Charles Bukowski                                                     A lady from the neighborhood complained cats ruined her door curtains (those that some houses here hang outside in front of the entrance door). Knowing that she doesn't like cats, she would suspect it was them who did the damage. We had a look, 0,80-1m high there are 3 horizontal approx. 20cm long cuts in the heavy curtains. Since cats don't use knives, and it was pretty obvious that a knife had been employed, disturbed kids or hooligans are most likely to blame. They like to take revenge, one wrong word.... and sometimes do damage "just for fun". Just the other day, as we stepped outside, 4 cats in front of the door, a stone the size of a man's head comes flying, thrown by a young boy. Luckily it neither hit us nor a cat. Comment of a watching adult: " They are children."  From those who believe kids don't need to be educated, taught manners and values, I hear that sentence all the time. I advised him that kids can kill and need to be taught how far they can go. Homeless cats and dogs usually have respect, are they easier to teach than children? Feeding cats early in the morning, I view a black and white one approaching from some distance, it must be hungry. But no, he is more interested in cuddling with me. To some it is really important, they must be those who had a family before. Amazing how neat they are, my beautiful guests. They come from all directions, it makes my day to see those amazing little treasures, a few stay in the direct neighborhood and if there are no Kroquetts in the bowl outside, they energetically demand this, good, I like it. I found my treasures in front of my door, there are those that live with us and those who are regular welcomed visitors. I have never seen anywhere so gorgeous cats and dogs as here. Unfortunately folks all too often are too blind to see. Of those three on arrival still blind (thus less then ten days cat babies two died now. I did my best, feeding mummy milk every four hours, but I could not replace their mother, so brutal to tear the babies away from their loving mum. Folks usually when asked where the mother is say she died. They are mixing something up, salmons die after "giving birth", cats normally don't and fed the milk nature provides them with. The third baby was a bit bigger right from the beginning and is getting bigger and bigger, crazy about mummy milk, my sweet little grey Jean Paul. At least he should be okay and hopefully my other babies also. One golden white sweetie, perhaps six weeks old, left in front of my door, gets on well with my other cats but mistrusts me, I will give it time to accept me. A black and white little sweet handful baby seems to be very fit and full of energy, happy to be here, hope she stays healthy. Luckily I received some more mummy milk powder, tinned food and a tube of multiple vitamins paste  for adults and one for kittens from the animal protection organisation Animal Hearts Tunisia. They are very devoted and do a great job, thank heavens. Some products are not on the market here, like that vitamins paste and cats grass also. I just got a pile of packets with grass seeds from Gisella Romdhani, couldn't find those anywhere in Sousse.




. Cats love and need that special grass to get rid of hair they swallow while cleaning themselves. When nothing else is available, indoor cats try flower or green plants as substitute, which of course is not always appreciated by the owner. Anyway, years ago, when I first arrived here there were no Pet Shops, very few veterinarians for all I know and I couldn't find any animal protection organisation, I am happy this has changed. There is so much to be done to save innocent cats and dogs and it is worth it.