Patti came to SHUA on Good Friday 2002. Her owners had died and the new family that moved into her former home simply abandoned her. Her only shelter was a big old tree in the gardens beneath a block of flats next to her old home.
Unbeknown to each other, 2 old ladies living in the flats fed Patti every day. They had both asked the warden if they could bring her inside but unfortunately the flats operated a very strict no pets policy. They became Patti's lifeline and only friends in the world.
One day, bulldozers came to flatten the land where Patti's tree was standing. She fled for dear life through the chainlink fence bordering the garden but because her long fur was so matted, it got caught. Patti was very seriously injured as she panicked and struggled to get free. At around the same time, one of the old ladies had to go into hospital. She charged her daughter with checking on 'Fluff' (her name for Patti) but there was no sign of her. After several days of searching, she found her. She was so horrified at the state 'Fluff' was in that she called SHUA for help immediately.
Patti was in such a bad way that our vets insisted she be monitored for 48 hours before they could operate. A lot of Patti's fur had quite literally been ripped out when she struggled to free herself from the fence. Most of the fur that was left was so badly matted that it had to be shaved, leaving Patti with just one small patch of fur on the top of her head. Her claws had grown right around in circles which must have been excruciating to walk on. She had no teeth and her tongue was damaged from scavenging old tin cans in dustbins for so long. It took many months for Patti to recover and for her fur to grow back.
Patti lived happily at SHUA for nearly 6 years and in all that time she never once expressed an interest in going outside. She was adopted by our trustees and became a permanent fixture in their lounge. The only place better for sleeping than the sofa was a lap on the sofa! Patti was such a quiet, unassuming little cat but she would positively come alive at the faintest whiff of chicken. It was her favourite food and, luckily for her, was on the menu several times a week! Patti died in Jacqui's arms at 8.40am on Saturday the 26th of January 2008. She just couldn't make her Easter anniversary. We all miss Patti terribly and our lives definitely feel emptier without her. Rest in Peace Patti.
Back to Angels Main Page.
