5
I saw what Milo meant about the wild cats. They brought in two today, one in the morning and one later on. They were thin and they spat and howled and their eyes burned. The second one had bits missing off his ears and tail. He looked awful and he hissed at me. I turned away and washed myself hurriedly and everyone pretended that nothing had happened. One of the other cats talked to the first wild one, but he didn't get any sense of out him. Wild Cat One said he was going to get out if he had to bite his way out through the bars.
I didn't like his chances. I'd already tried to bend the bars, but the others told me I was wasting my time and they were right. Late at night Wild Cat Two started screaming. And I couldn't help myself. I just sat in my cage and cried and cried because I was so scared. Everybody told me to shut up but I couldn't help it. Then Wild Cat Two shut me up by telling me that if I didn't stop he'd eat me. I knew he couldn't get to me, but he was only two cages away and I was really scared now. So eventually I calmed down. I just lay there and felt miserable. The only good thing is that my scar doesn't hurt any more. Maybe tomorrow will be better.
6
It was, but only because the two wild cats were taken away by the humans to wherever cats go who don't get picked. The rest of us didn't feel any better about life, and only one cat got picked today. I'm starting to get really worried. The others are scared too. I can smell it. We all smell of fear and the worry that no one will pick us and we'll be taken away and sent to wherever the wild cats go. I just sat where I was and cried as softly as I could manage. I hate my cage, and the other cats aren't any help.
7
Today I got picked! A woman came and she had a big box. She looks a bit different from the other humans, but she stroked my fur and smiled at me. And I patted her paws as gently as I could and tried to look cute and she smiled again and she said something to the humans in the white coats. They put me in a big box and tied the lid down, but that was OK because they put a small furry thing in with me. It smelt of cat and it was a kind thought. Then I could feel the humans carrying me outside and they put me inside something that smelt really strange. I later found out about boxes with wheels, and it must have been one of them.
Anyway, I was all very excited because I'd been picked at last and this was going to be my new life. For now I am so relieved to be out of that horrible place that this has to be better. I remember when my friend had got his old man to pick him, we all felt sad and happy at the same time. We were happy for him, and glad to know that humans still wanted cats, so there was hope for us all. But we were also sad because someone got picked and it wasn't us. So when the woman carried me out I tried not to look at the other cages. Some faces sad, some playful, some sleeping and some just frozen. And they were the worst. I couldn't look at them, the poor little cats. I feel a bit guilty that I'm safe and they're not.
The woman took me to her odd smelling place. I don't think she makes the same food as the humans I used to have. I have a basket and I live in the room with the machine that makes funny noises. I've got a small woolly rug in my box, and a dirt tray and a bowl of munchies and a bowl of water.
I haven't seen any other humans yet but I can hear them. I think they've got a baby human. I can hear it crying sometimes. Apparently baby humans are really dumb and slow to learn stuff. I tried the food they left for me. The wet stuff was pretty dreadful and not what I was used to, but the munchies were good. I like munchies. Twice when I was pretending to be asleep some humans switched the light on and had a look. I stretched out and curled my nose into my paws. I hope I looked cute for them.
8
Today was very confusing and not very good. They put me next to the baby human and it just stared at me, making stupid noises. Then its mouth curled in a funny way and it reached out and grabbed hold of my tail hard. It was agonisingly painful and I couldn't help myself - I hit the baby. Not hard, but I must have scratched it, because blood dripped from its paw and it started to scream.
The female human ran in and slapped me. REALLY HARD.
I was so surprised I just stared at her for a moment. No human had ever done that to me before. She started yelling at me and I looked away, embarrassed.
There's no point yelling at me! I can't understand a word you're saying, I wanted to tell her. Then she picked me up and put me in my room and shut the door.
Later on she put me in with the baby human again and it wasn't so good, because the baby chased me all round the room. I hid behind the woman but the baby grabbed my tail again and pulled it hard and I must have hit the baby again. Then the woman slapped me hard and I hid in the corner of the room. Then she picked me up, grabbing hold of my fur at the back of my neck, and she put me back in my room.
I wondered when she'd let me out again but she didn't. I had food and my box and my dirt tray and I thought I'd just wait it out until she wasn't mad at me any more. It was a boring night, except that one of the other humans (a smaller one) came and picked me up and hugged me. She was holding me tighter than I wanted but it wasn't too bad. Then I got short of breath so I struggled a bit, and the small human let me go and sat down suddenly. Then she started crying, and I pressed my nose against her face. She was really upset and I didn't know why.
9
Remember when I said about the worst day of my life? Today was worse than that. I am so miserable I don't know what to say. I just lie in my cage staring at the wall. Why am I back in my cage?
My new humans just stuffed me in my box, put me in their box with wheels and took me straight back where I'd come from. As soon as I saw where I was I just howled. They put me in a new cage by the wall and shut the wire door, and I stopped crying. Instead I just lay where I was, too sad to say anything. Now I know why the other cats I saw when I first came here could just sit there and not say a word; you could tell they'd given up. And so have I.
10
11
I'm sorry I scratched the baby human! But I really thought she might have given me more of a chance. I lay around in my cage again and cried to myself in the smallest voice I could manage. I'm so unhappy I could scream, but I don't want to hurt anybody's feelings. There are plenty of new cats coming in and they've had to put more cages in here. They're scared and sad and everything I was before. And now I'm one of the cats who just stares at the wall. Sigh.
12
Still staring at the wall.
13
Stared at the wall all day. They brought some new cats in, but I don't care.
14
Not as bad as yesterday. The cat in the next cage is very kind. I don't remember him from before so he must be new, but he leaned forward and touched noses with me through the bars. I nudged his nose gently and he pushed a little harder and purred at me. I was so surprised I actually began to purr back at him. I hadn't purred for pleasure since my humans brought me here the first time. I don't think purring for the baby human counts. We just lay there, nose to nose with the bars between us and breathed