Dobby - she's a bundle of everything - quirky, loveable, FIV+, full of energy, and has the ability to be in all the places at the same time!
Dobby entered our lives after Gene and I agreed - NO MORE CATS. If that wasn't a clue to how quickly she would have us wrapped around her tiny paws, I don't know what would be a better clue.
She was the runt of a litter, kicked to the street by Mama and siblings. All were born on a farm down the road from us. Almost 3 years ago Gene and I headed out for dinner, but only made it two minutes from our house before seeing the tiniest kitten sitting on the double yellow line on the road. Scared to death, clueless and all alone. When we drove past she didn't move at all, Gene jumped out of the car and scooped her up. We got her set up on our sunporch with all the standard cat supplies - litter box, food, water, beds, toys and prepared ourselves for what would come next. Dinner out wasn't next up.
A vet visit to clear up the multiple infections she had including, sunburned ears to the point the white hair burned off and the edges of her ears curled. We ran the FIV test which came back positive, but we felt she would like most kittens, test out of it and all would be great. Fast forward to the next test. She didn't get a negative test. It came back positive again. Like a true crazy person, who already has enough cats. My reply to the vet - "That's amazing! I'm so glad!! At which point she laughs and says, I figured you would feel that way.
My follow up question to the vet: So, what does this mean for us as a household with other cats? The simple answer: continue on as you have been. Make sure we see Dobby every year annually, and if she gets any symptoms of being sick, bring her in right away. The chance of her transferring FIV to any of the other cats is so low it's not something we should be super concerned about.
Dobby immediately attached herself to Gene, she gets upset if he leaves the house for any amount of time. She will wait downstairs by the door for him to come back (even if he goes away for the weekend!) She favors men over women, gravitating to Jim and Jimmie. She waits outside the bathroom for Jimmie, chooses to cuddle up with Jim when he visits and only sleeps in bed if Gene is the only one in bed.
Just because she favors the men, doesn't mean I get left alone. She's following in my every step when I'm cleaning, to make sure I'm not over filling the litter, sweeping up food that she could be eating, and just generally making sure everything is up to her Cat Standards of life. We joke that there are multiple "Dobby's" because she seems to be everywhere at once.
Dobby got her name early on because she reminded me of the Dobby from Harry Potter. Sadly she may get a complex, because Dobby in Harry Potter was a male - and she is not. She fills our house with fun and mischievous actions now. Full of energy and always ready to play.
Till our Tails cross again,
Mel
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