So You Think You Know @Bubbba?

All photos on this post Copyright of Patrice deAvila

Hello everyone. You may remember late last week I asked several of the male kitties to share their takes on being a ManCat. Well, the response was great and the respondents proved that we are all very unique. One of the kitties that responded couldn't really relay his perspective though, without telling more of his story.

His beginning was less than ideal, but as you will see he had a couple angels looking out for him, and ultimately introduced him to a better life.

My friends, this is the story of Bubbba. And, as is the case sometimes, no one can tell the story better than Bubbba himself... (It's in catspeak, but don't let that deter you from reading this incredible story.)


Bubbba, I was hoping you could tell me a bit about how your current family came to know you and take you in?

Mai momz wuz working, volunteering wiff, and helping a Persian and Himalayan Group (they sayz they iz Persian and Himalayanz, but dey helpz and anipal dat comes there way and dey also do lots of workz wiff the local SPCA...http://persiancats.org/). Dey wuz called when the evil breederz ladee gots arrested and they gotz all the exotic shorthairz and persians that she had. So Carolyn, the ladee dat runz the rescue and helps hunderdz of kitties and doggiez each year called mai momz to see if she hadz room for just one more foster.

And my momz never sayz no if she canz helpz. So she came to da place where I wuz staying for safety at the V. E. T.'s office (my hoomanz always spellz dat for sum reazons). And der I was, hiding. And dey wuz calling me "Rush Limbaugh", it was so embarrazzing, cus I is a Democat, with Liberpawrian leaningz. But I wuz fatz and 23 pounds from being stuckz in a cage my whole young life.

When I gotz der, I wuz a mess, I had ring wormz on my skins, and mites in my earz. The breederz ladee didn't get my momz her right shots, and my momz gave us all kittenz "Ataxia"(datz wut wobbly catz haz). I onlyz barely haz it and if I turnz a corner too fast I spin out cause my back legz and hipz iz very weak. I don't like to jump up and down much eether. But Iz lucky and not like most kitties that is very wobblie from der Ataxia. And, I also gotz da, ...sigh (dis kinda embarasssing), feline eye herpes. Dis very common in da kennel environements, and lots of kitties getz dis. My eyes just water a bit, but I gavez dis to my step brudder and fursister. Dey izn't so happeez wiff me, but we allz haz fureverz homes, and momz puts dropz in our eyez, and dis powder stuff ... um L, L, oh yeah, L-Lysene in our fudz dat makez it so we don't haz outbreakz much. And da last theengz I gotz iz da one I hatez most, I gotz really bad teef that fall apart easy. And datz from bad breeders who makez us "unique" cats (i.e. deformed) and we gotz da mud puddle of da gene pool when you gotz a bad breeder working from greedzy motivez.

I hadz two step brudders dat wuz persians die from gongestive heart failure from biff defects compounded by breething issues. Mom's luvs us, but she said dat we iz not nature made and dat, we haz trouble from breederz datz inbreedz us only for lookz and doesn't care abouts how our health iz.

So back to momz and hiding in da closet. Mom believez dat kittens should be held and stroked and turned upside down gently all da time from da times dey is borned... den they getz to loving hoomanz contact. I didn't getz any of dat. But den came mom and she helds me beside her on da bed and I luved chin scratches, so she petted me in all da wayz dat I liked and she just kept doing it, till I figured out dat dis wuz a nice place. But she always made me come out of hiding to eat. And at 23 pounds when I gotz ther, I risked life outsidez the closet for a few minutes at a time for fudz. And pretty soon I liked da house and da space wuzn't scary and I liked being on da warm soft bed. Before you knowz it I wuz hanging out with my hoomanz and I wuz almost like a cat dat wuz raized in a furrever home from birff.

I still dontz like sitting on lapz, I feel wobbly and I don't like being off da ground.

And almost the bestest thing wuz dat I gotz a much better name. I wuz only der a day and learned about fud, and I would plow thru da other catz to getz fud. And I wuz really big, so mom started calling me Tank. But she felt like Tank was too abrupt sounding by itself, and I wuz still really big, so she started calling me Sherman Tank. Den Sherman and then somehow mai frendz all started calling me Bubba, cause Iz not so graceful. So datz mai name, Sherman Tank, but Bubba to mai furrends. (But to da V. E. T., dey can callz me "Mr. Tank"... )

Da other catz here (der iz four of us) dey iz alwayz trying to be bad, but all I do iz getz mai food, poops in da box, and purrz (I luv da soft bed now, dat I luvz to get on da bed and purrrz and make buiscutz wiff mai feetz)... I iz very happee and I iz very lucky.

Da biggest hero of mai storee is problee Carolyn at http://persiancats.org/ cus wiffout dem, I would have gone to the county animal control, and wiff my ring wurmz and not knowing how to be held... I would have been distroyed and a lot of mai brutherz and sisterz. Carolyn made room (wiff helpz from people like mai Momz) for all of us... and she does this time and again. 6 county animal controlz callz her organizashun every weekz and she is alwayz saving da kitties and finding furever homez for dem. Her husband is a V. E. T. and he dus lotz of thingz for da sick kittiez dey getz and stuff.

Mai Mommee haz known Carolyn for almost 15 yearz, and Carolyn is TIRELESS in helping all da Anipalz, dogz too.

She and other pplz likez her should be NOMinated for Pet saintz hood...

All I ask iz dat da hoomanz help all the anipal orgaizashunz dat dey can. And try to adopt a critter too. If you just gotz to haz a piece of paper dat sayz your petz iz specialz somehow, den plz do da research, and only uze da gud breederz

Thx for readingz mai storee. Datz da most Iz ever typed. I'm tired now, so I'z going to my bed (Mom made me a cat bed in a empty clothes hamper on itz side... I still likes to feel safe when Iz sleeping).

=^..^=

Thanks so much to Bubbba (aka Sherman Tank) and his human for sharing his story. If you would like to learn more about Bubbba and his hooman please stop by and visit these sites:
gallery of some of Patrice deAvila paintings... www.flickr.com/photos/patricedeavila/
Her virtual studio at patricedeavila.blogspot.com

If you want to keep up with Bubbba follow him here.

I hope you carry a bit of Bubbba story around with you for a long time. I know I will.

Thanks for stopping by!

OscarTheCat and Henry