Well, now that I’ve got that malware cleared up and life has
settled down for the winter I’ll take you back to my story about little
Demetrius, aka Demon………..
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| Demon supervising |
So I learned all about cat shows. First I needed to make
something to decorate Demon’s cage. Since I’d never been to a cat show before I
didn’t really know what that entailed except that the show flyer gave me the
dimensions of the cage. I decided to use poster board and set out to design
some “demonic” illustrations.
Now you have to understand that the Iowa State Fair is held
in August, nearly the hottest part of the summer – and the most humid. The cat
show was upstairs in one of the older buildings. No air conditioning, no fans.
The benching cages (the cages where the cats spend most of their time) were in
one room and the judging occurred in another room. This might have worked just
find except for the fact that this new attraction drew in what seemed like
every body in the whole fairgrounds!
We sat beside our cages crammed as close to the tables as we
could so the crowds of spectators could walk by and see our cats. I was so
nervous and the cats were hot. The afternoon receptionist sat next to me with
her own cat and we waited – and waited.
I can’t remember how many cats were entered but it was a
lot. They only had to see two judges each day but it took forever. Even worse
we couldn’t get in to watch the judging because of the crowd. When our numbers
were called we squeezed through with our cats, placed them in the judging cages
and then left.
Later, if we were lucky, we’d hear our cat’s number again
and hope we’d won a prize. When I heard Demon’s number again someone told me it
was for a tie-breaker so when they told me to go back in to retrieve him I
figured the other cat had won. Imagine my surprise when, as I picked up my
little Demetrius, the judge handed me a trophy! Screamin’ Demon had become the
first cat to take first place at the very first Iowa State Fair Cat Show!
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| See how bad I was with that camera? |
We went on to attend many other shows over the years but his
winnings were never as wonderful as that first time. And of course I was hooked
and became a nearly lifelong cat show competitor.
When I started college my visits to the clinic slowed down.
I began working at a different clinic and began showing my own cats so I didn’t
see Demon as much. But when I did stop in my boy would immediately jump right
back up on my shoulders and my heart would melt.
Eventually Demon’s kidneys began to fail. Doctor gave him
the finest treatments but he finally saw that quality of life had dwindled.
Visits to the clinic are no longer as cheerful as they used to be. But I am
thankful for all that Demon gave me. He is one of the reasons I know how to
appreciate the cats I now have in my life. He also taught me that the heart
does not forget. Demetrius lives in my heart for as long as it beats.
