Rest In Peace Robyne
Since 16 June, I had barely been giving food to Robyne. In fact, she was the one who ran away whenever I put the food down. I could tell she was hungry, but her strange behaviour ultimately cost her life.
I had been painting the middle to upper part of the façade after the three sides of the yard were levelled. I was also installing the window awning. On Sunday, 21 June, I was taking a break from painting when I saw Cross come into the yard. I gave him food, and then I noticed Robyne lurking nearby. I sat close to the cat house while feeding Cross. Robyne went inside and started eating. I couldn’t help trying to pet her. All of a sudden, she turned around and bit me. I had taken off my left-hand glove before feeding Cross, so she bit me extremely hard. I tried to grab her with my right hand, but with the glove on, I couldn’t hold her tightly enough after she released my left hand. She was still inside the house, and I kept trying to catch her. I finally did, after a few more bites and scratches. My left hand was bleeding heavily—my blood was even covering her face and teeth. I lost control again. I hit her very hard and threw her into a neighbour’s yard. I told myself that was enough. I wouldn’t feed her anymore. She wouldn’t get even a grain of rice from me.
Ginger and Cross appreciate that I feed them, groom them, and give them shelter. I see them as my babies. I care about them deeply and always look for solutions whenever something seems wrong. But Robyne never showed affection or appreciation. Instead, she always looked at me as if I were a monster. Again and again, I forgave her. But eventually I realized that Robyne didn’t deserve my love at all. I had to be firm this time.
I’m a cat person. I’ve never met a cat so unpredictable. Searching online, every result pointed to “emergency room.” My hand was swollen like a pig knuckle and extremely painful throughout the night. The next morning, I went to the Community Health Center, about a 15-minute walk from my place. I was reluctant because my previous experiences with medical centres here weren’t good. But my hand was so painful and swollen, and I was worried about rabies, so I had to see a doctor. The centre wasn’t well organized, but I didn’t have to wait long. The doctor said I needed a tetanus booster and prescribed five days of antibiotics, paracetamol, and antibiotic cream. The antibiotics gave me runny stool. After three days, the swelling was not as bad as the first day. Now it’s still a little swollen and painful when touched. I hope I can get back to painting soon.
Robyne continued coming back for food every morning and evening. To stop feeding her, I placed the food tray inside my house. Ginger and Cross eat indoors, and Robyne never wanted to come inside anyway. The only thing she could still get was Ginger’s milk. She tried to suckle from Ginger when Ginger was outside, but Ginger must have been hurt by their teeth—she always moved away or kicked them when they tried.
On Thursday night, 25 June, I found Robyne’s body. She probably ate poison somewhere while searching for food. I don’t feel sad about it. Perhaps one day I will cry for her. But the bite, the pooing in the living room, running away every time I tried to feed her… the bad memories outweigh the few good ones. Ginger and Cross were inside eating when I found Robyne’s body. I hid the body from Ginger. She had already lost a baby some time ago, and I didn’t want her to know Robyne was gone too. I hope Ginger thinks Robyne simply ran away because I stopped feeding her. For the last two nights, Ginger has behaved differently. She didn’t sleep in my house after dinner. I guess she was looking for Robyne. This morning, I found Ginger roaming around the nearby complex where Robyne and Cross used to hang out. I buried Robyne in the backyard. I hope she finds peace with God.
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