How we came to have our grandson Curbey

CURBEY - The Kitten With A Will To Survive

Coming into the world is hard enough, but staying here can be just as hard - if not moreso - for many unwanted animals.

Over the years I've heard many horror stories of unwanted kittens and puppies. In our home right now is a survivor of one of them.

Curbey is our daughter's black and white male cat who almost didn't have a life at all except for the quick intervention of her then boyfriend and his family.

Over thirteen years ago Curbey was one of a litter of unwanted kittens tossed into a garbage bag, dropped off in the children's playground of a Toronto neighbourhood park and left to die. The rest of the litter did.

My daughter's boyfriend just happened to be taking a shortcut through the park when he heard plaintive cries coming from the bag. Opening it, he was horrified to see what was inside. The only signs of life were coming from a tiny black and white bundle of fur. Carefully, he picked it up and took it home.

Over the next several weeks, everyone in the family took turns feeding with an eyedropper the little kitten with the incredible will to survive until it was big enough to eat regular food.
That Hallowe'en night the little kitten became a gift for our daughter who, though reluctant to accept the responsiblity of having to raise him at first, fell quickly in love with him as we did.

And while you might question whether Curbey even remembers his terrifying early experience, for those who love him the answer is obvious. The one detectible mental scar is his lifelong fear of plastic bags. He quickly runs away whenever grocery bags, etc. are shaken open near him.

Curbey's unusual name, by the way, came from a misadventure they had while our daughter's boyfriend drove her and the kitten home. He missed the curve on a slippery onramp, the car rode up over a curb and was temporarily sidelined with a damaged wheel. Our daughter thought the name was fitting.

Since then I have heard of two full grown German Shepherd dogs being dropped off at the side of a busy country road near our village and left to fend for themselves, their owner driving away quickly in his car as they tried to keep up. A friend of mine saw it happen, but was unable to do anything at the time. He came back later with a larger vehicle to try to catch them, but by then there was no sign of them.

I only hope they were as lucky as our Curbey.