He looks up excitedly when visitors call his name, and comes over to purr a cheerful hello to anyone who stops by. Over the past few weeks, Duo has come a long way – despite both his front paws being partially amputated. When Blue Cross volunteer Pushpita Chakravarty first met him, he had been brought in after an accident and his wounds had just been sutured up. Pushpita who relocated to Chennai four years ago, reveals that she began volunteering at the shelter because she missed her pets who were back home, and was unable to adopt pets here on account of her living in a hostel. When she volunteered to help Duo get some exercise to speed up his healing process, she didn’t expect him to transform from timid to triumphant in such a short span of time.
“He’d make a perfect pet”, she says of the large ginger-and-white tom cat who rests on his back legs in his favourite ‘kangaroo’ pose and interprets any conversation from people as an invitation to start playing with them and rolling about on the floor demanding a cuddle. “When I first called him Duo, he responded with this big-eyed look”, she recalls. “He comes when I call him and loves his cat treats. He’s really trusting... despite what he’s been through”.
While Duo has now adapted to his handicap and recovered from the surgery, he will need to be a strictly indoor pet, as his disability makes him vulnerable to the many dangers that cats face in the outside world. Fortunately for cats like Duo, Chennai is seeing more people opening up their homes to amputee cats and giving them a new lease of life. Says Mona Kumar, who adopted a handicapped cat Totem from Chennai two months ago – “There’s nothing ‘different’ about a handicapped cat – he’s just another cat who needs love and spoiling”. Speaking of her experience with Totem, she adds – “I’m very happy to have him. As much as I rescued him, he is rescuing me – by helping me deal with all the ups and downs of life. I hope Duo gets adopted into a wonderful home”.
Duo will be at the Blue Cross adoption drive today at their shelter between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. and is looking forward to meeting his future owners.
Duo is three years old, healthy and up-to-date on his vaccinations. Call 9176869300 for more details.
