Sympathetic Imagination

Hi everyone! I’m Delilah. A young man stopped by today, he was very nice. He seemed a bit nervous about meeting me. He acted like I was a tiger instead of a cat! Ha-ha, how silly! I tried making him feel relaxed, so I rubbed my back against his leg to let him know that I’m not violent at all. That seemed to work; he started petting me, I loved it! The nice young fellow said that he wanted to help me get adopted. I sure hope I do!

As you may know, I’m living in Austin Pets Alive! right now. The people here are very nice. They bathe me, feed me, and they give me some toys to play with. I enjoy being here with all these other cats; I’ve made so many good friends here. However I still feel lonely. I miss having a human friend. I miss having an owner to take care of me. I’ve been here for a few weeks now, and I love all these good-hearted, hardworking people. They treat me well, and I can tell they care about me. Obviously they care, if not why would they take me in instead of throwing me out on the streets? Who knows what kind of horrible thing could happen to me out there? Still, this is nothing compared to having a person or a family that takes care of me, and establishing a more personal bond with me. Besides, I feel guilty. These people have to take care of a big quantity of cats. If I got adopted, their burden wouldn’t be so bad, and they could help out another cat just like me.

I have an idea! You should come visit me and play with me! That way, you can see how loving and caring I am. I know everything there is about love and care. I had two cute little babies, and I love them infinitely until this very day (not bad for being a two year old huh?). Visiting me sounds like a wonderful idea. You can come and pet me and we could play around. You could even carry me and cuddle me like a baby. Oh how I love cuddling! You might even decide you want to take me home.

I would be the perfect pet for you. I am a very good listener. If you had a bad day I can just lie there next to you and listen to your woes. I will cuddle with you until you feel better. I would never get tired of being by your side; in fact, sometimes I think it is a problem. The truth is, I love just lying down. I could do it all day and I think that a lot of humans don’t really like that.

They must think I am lazy and don’t like interacting with people, but it is exactly the opposite. I love being with humans, it’s just, I love snuggling and cuddling much more than I like running and playing active games. That doesn’t mean I won’t give it a shot though! Even though I would much prefer being with you when you are watching television, or when you are sleeping, I will go and play with you if that’s what makes you happy.

I am a very tame cat. You can trust me with kids. I absolutely love kids! I know sometimes kids can get a little rough with us cats, but they don’t know any better. I won’t go and scratch them or bite them, that would be awfully mean! I’m not mean, I’m sweet, and you will see that right away. I’m the perfect cat for a family or someone who wants company.

At times I wonder if maybe someday, a family will come and take me home with them. That would be delightful. I’m just waiting for someone like you to come and see me. I will just be here, waiting for you, and hoping that you decide to come see me and maybe even adopt me.

My Experience

Doing this project where we have to help Austin Pets Alive! has been the most interesting project I’ve done so far. I really enjoyed it. I had always told myself that I would one day, but I never quite got the initiative necessary for it until now. My goal was to help out APA in any way I could, I thought this project was a beautiful thing to do. I wasn’t the only one who felt that way. Whoever I told about my project would ask me to further describe it. They expressed their delight with the project and gave a lot of positive reinforcement. I felt like I was going to benefit society, even if it was just about helping get a pet adopted. Despite this, I was nervous. I had my heart set on interacting with a dog, I love dogs. That made the news about having to choose a cat slightly more troubling. Truth be told, I have a fear of cats. It is not quite a phobia, or something that hinders me, but they do make me quite uneasy. Regardless, this was not the time to let something like that get to me, so I tried my best to put my fears aside.

When I got to the APA center, I instinctively looked around at my surroundings. The place was in good condition. It was well taken care of and quite picturesque. The place did have some strange odors, but that was not due to lack of sanitary conditions. There were just so many animals in there that it was impossible for the place not to smell peculiar. As soon as I stepped inside, the guy on the front desk pointed me towards Delilah, wished me good luck, and went back to his every-day routine. I opened the door, took a few deep breaths, and got as close to Delilah as I could. I saw that the description said Delilah was described as tuxedo, and I immediately knew why. Her fur was in a pattern that resembled a tuxedo, it was quite comical actually. I got closer and closer each time, and my fear was still there. I somehow believed that Delilah would get up, jump at me, and scratch me. I know it was not right to think like that, but I couldn’t get it out of my head. Once inside the room, Delilah just sat there staring at me.

All of a sudden, Delilah jumped off of her mat, and came closer to me. I just stood still; I had no idea as to what to do. Delilah then passed by me, and rubbed her back against my leg. That action sent a chill down my spine. It was as if the cat knew I was scared and was trying to tell me I shouldn’t be. I kneeled down to pet Delilah, and from then on it was an easy going process. I realized that Delilah was a cat who needed to be loved. The moment I carried her made her turn into a little baby. She enjoyed being petted, cuddled and carried.

As Delilah ate, I tried to imagine how Delilah felt being in this place.

“To sympathize with another, one must identify with that other.” [1] When I did that, I started getting sad. I realized that it must feel horrible for a cat like Delilah to be in APA. It isn’t that the place is bad: they bathe her, they feed her, and they provide her everyday needs. However she must miss being loved like she was before. Delilah enjoys interacting with humans very much. You can notice that by just spending a few minutes with her. To love something so much and not be able to have it must be heartbreaking. Even so, I tried to remain positive. I am sure that Delilah will find an owner, maybe a whole family that will take care of her and love her very much. If Delilah made someone like me stop being afraid of her and open up to her I am sure that a cat lover out there will be enchanted by this amazing creature. Going to APA was truly an amazing experience. If one wishes to exercise their sympathetic imagination, Austin Pets Alive is a perfect place to go. Learning about Delilah was truly an enriching experience. I believe the knowledge I gained from this even will follow me throughout the rest of my life. I hope I can go back soon.

Word Count without the quote: 1421

Word Count with quote: 143

URL of the blog: https://courses.utexas.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_94072_1%26url%3D

Endnotes

[1] Amit S. Rai, Rule of Sympathy: Sentiment, Race, and Power, 1750-1850(New York:PALGRAVE™,2002),15.

List of Illustrations

· Figure 1 By author

· Figure 2 By author

· Figure 3 By author

· Figure 4 By author

Figure 5(video Screenshot) Video link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOgU0q-zjxc

Appendix A

Delilah

Shy -Laidback- affectionate

If you want fancy, fancy is what you’ll get with Delilah! Delilah’s black and white fur makes it seem as if she were wearing a tuxedo at all times, always staying classy. She is a very shy. However this does not make her unfit for adoption. One look is all it takes to figure out that Delilah is a house cat. She loves lying down and relaxing, even more so next to someone. Delilah loves cuddling; she cannot get enough of it! Here you have a cat just waiting to be loved. Get close to her and she will gently rub herself against your leg or carry her and watch as how her gentle self curls up in your arms. But be careful! You might not want to put her down: her cuteness might overwhelm you. This cat is not ideal for everyone! If you are allergic to cute, gentle, and loving creatures, Delilah is not the cat for you. Delilah, just like most of the cats in Austin Pets Alive, does well with other cats and pets. She is two years and five months old, which means she still has a long life of love-giving to go. Stop by and give Delilah a visit, and then you will be sure that she is the cat that is just right for you.

All APA! foster kittens/cats are litter box trained, tested for FeLV/FIV, spayed/neutered, vaccinated, treated for worms/fleas, microchipped and come with a 30-day health insurance plan.

If you have additional questions about Delilah, please send an email to adopt@austinpetsalive.org.

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