This past summer I was sitting looking out the window on a Sunday afternoon when I saw something go under a neighbor's bush. I live on a busy street and if it was a kitty, I was afraid it would be hit. If it was a raccoon and out during the day, I knew it would be sick. So I went over to look. It was a very friendly black cat. I went home and got food and water for it. I checked later and it was still there. My husband and I left for a while and when we returned my neighbor was in our driveway and said a cat had come there. It was the black kitty. She had fed it and gave it water also. I checked on it several times during the evening. It just stayed on our back steps. I checked during the middle of the night and when I opened the door, it did not move. As I got closer I clapped my hands. It did not move. When I got in front of it, it meowed. The kitty was deaf. The next morning it was under a bush. I fed it and took it to our vet to see if it was microchipped. It was not. I did not know what to do because we were leaving on vacation the next day and it would not survive on our street. I begged the vet to keep it but they already had too many strays. They said to call the pound and they would pick it up. I really teared up and they were adamant that things had changed there. They kept the cats at least three days [they said], and put it's picture on the website, etc. So, I called them and they came and got the kitty. I told the man that it was very friendly and had obviously belonged to someone. After [they] left, I called several neighbors to see if they knew anything. I had already driven around the neighborhood looking for signs. Nothing. The next day while I was traveling my one neighbor called and had found the owner. I was thrilled. She was on her way to get the kitty Very shortly the neighbor called me back....they had already [euthanized] the cat. We were all devastated. They claimed it was sick. I knew it was not because I had [taken] it to the vet. They said it was old...so what? They [put it down] the very evening that it got there. They did not even hold it for several hours. The owner was very upset...not with me...but with the pound. We have actually [since] become friends, but it was unconscionable what happened. The kitty was declawed and they had to know that it belonged to someone. It had gotten out accidently and she had been looking for it. So I am very down on our local pound.
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Source: *As told by "Dottie" (of Charlotte, NC) to Alley Cat Allies (www.alleycat.org).

Thanks to Anya (Soapykitties) for sponsoring Bart's memorial.