Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Billu cattie

She is a mix of white and red patches. Has bright greenish eyes and a tail which is attractively bushy. That's Billu, a stray cat who became our new housing member a few months ago.

I know it's 10 in the morning when Billu meows and waits on the sunset of our neighbour's flat. Obviously, for his daily dose of bread and fish prepared by my mother. My mom, an animal lover like me, feeds her every day despite her business at that hour. She takes all the pain to fry fish in a small frying pan and mixes it well with at least two slices of bread. Initially, her staple diet was bread and leftover fish bones. But now, Billu savours special sea fish especially bought for him. Thanks to papa who, too, takes care of Billu without a word of protest.

Post breakfast, Billu takes a nap and watches the sun, looks at the sky, the birds and the flies, curiously. She gets irritated when crows bother her. She shoos them away by making a typical sound that we all are accustomed by now.

A few weeks ago, Billu became pregnant and now she is the proud mother of three. We realised only when she was missing for a few days. One fine morning, she finally appeared on the same place but looked a bit thin and was screaming at the top of her voice. And my mom knew she must delivered her babies. Moms know it well, i guess. So care doubled for Billu with food being supplied whenever she wanted. We didn't know where exactly the kittens were till they started making a noise. The babies were found in the locked second floor room of our flat. Billu had a tough time getting inside the flat because the owner had sealed the window when he came home last. We decided to get the kittens out of the room and nurse them in our caretaker's room. So was done immediately.

I guess, Billu was not happy with the idea and began looking for her lost ones. And she growled day in and out. Stopped eating. Worried us a lot. Last night, Billu cried the whole night. And I couldn't sleep too. So I decided to help her the next day. Billu came to me when I called her by her name and showed me the way to our caretaker's room. I was busy and avoided her because I was on my way to office. The day after, she was crying again. It seemed she had something to say. And I found her sitting on the sunset. The moment she saw me, she jumped from the sunset to our corridor window and inside our flat. She showed me the way again and we followed her to our caretaker's room.

Out of her three babies, I got one she was seen playing the most. Billu waited for a few seconds. And meowed. And the kitten too answered. The mother caught her on the neck and jumped on the boundary wall and to the sunset and then inside the locked room through a open window. Billu is brave indeed. But mothers are all the same. And they know who can help her out.

For the last few days, Billu has changed. She neither sits on the sunset nor cries for her baby. She and her son walks into our flat whenever they like. She is our family.