Oscar |
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Spring 1995 - August 1999 |
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 Oscar came from the WRPCC. He was still a kitten, but a few months old. He had been rehomed once but the couple were unable to cope with him. I though that was ridiculous until he came home, when I discovered that he would quietly sit behind my feet just in the right place for me to trip over him. He also had an enormous amount of energy, but was able to work it off as I had been fostering a cat with six kittens in my attic, and when she almost collapsed and had to go to the vets and then a new home I let him in with the kittens, and they played really hard with each other. |
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| When I got Oscar I was looking for a cat which should show well, as a pet. Oscar did quite well on the bench. He never won an Open class, but did win an Overall Whiskas which I think is harder, and he won a lot of good, large classes of rescued cats. |
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| Since the Overall Whiskas qualified him for the Supreme we duly made the trip to Birmingham and stayed overnight in the local Trusthouse Forte. Checking in was an event - most of the people staying that night seemed to have a cat or cats! That night Oscar had a shock - we bathed him. He had white socks which always had to be washed before a show, and he had also been under a car and smelt of grease so Carol and I got quietly prepared, and then locked ourselves in the bathroom with him and did the deed. There was a rubber bath mat, and siting him on that helped. Also, like many cats when they are first bathed he sat there with an expression that said 'This cannot be happening!' - think of John MacEnroe's voice for that one. |
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| Once bathed he looked lovely, and the next day I got him vetted in and took him to the pen which had been decorated the previous day. It was pale sage green and he looked lovely in it - it complemented his eyes and showed of the lovely warm hues in his coat. He was fourth in his class, and I still have the little statuette all Whiskas finalists receive. As luck would have it the cat modelled was a tabby and white! |
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| Oscar was not the brightest of cats, but he coped well when Billy and Janice arrived. He didn't take long to start playing with them under the door, and also (despite being neutered at the correct age) also seemed interested in mounting them! They were not impressed with this and always wriggled free, but I doubt sex was the motive - more like he was making sure they knew who was boss. |
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| When I got Billy and Janice, Sparky had already been put to sleep and Sooty was already getting thin. In August 1999 Oscar vanished, and despite him being chipped and having a collar with a tag, and my leafleting about 500 houses and getting some pretty good sitings he never came home again. I hope he simply voted with his feet to leave a house with two boisterous kittens and a very ill cat. It was only a week or two later that Sooty was put to sleep, and I had a rather empty house with three cats - George, Janice and Billy. |
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