And then there were cats...

After saying goodbye to Togo I felt I could really settle into Tanzania.

One thing that helped with the adaptation process was our cat Pumba. She had been left behind by a departing expat family and was the most depressed/fat cat you have ever seen. We took her home three weeks after moving here after rats penetrated our third floor apartment, not once, not twice, but three times. This was done by scaling the side of the building, chewing a hole through the bathroom screen then running into the house to steal garlic, paper or anything else it could get its grubby little paws on. A person can only chase after a rat with a broom attempting to sweep it into a garbage can so many times before you say 'enough is enough' and breakdown and get a cat.

Pumba was that cat. Now she would never attack a rat, or anything for that matter. Her favourite thing to do is sleep and eat. She loves being by people and is great with children, adults and enjoys lounging around at parties. Her sheer size terrified the nieces of one of our Tanzanian colleagues because they thought the only way a cat could get so big (think 22 lbs) was by eating small children. The rats were also terrified of Pumba and refused to venture into our apartment ever again. 

Pumba shortly after she came home weighing around 22 lbs.

Pumba had the run of the place until the end of March. It was then I heard mewing sounds around the apartment building. D accused me of having kittens on the brain so I brushed it aside night after night. Until one evening a text message from a friend called my attention to a starving kitten in the dumpster. This kitten was only supposed to be fostered for awhile before it found a home, but the little guy won me over. He was so malnourished and needy, soaking up all the attention with his cries for love and company. The first few nights I slept on the floor beside him so he could stay warm and his health began to improve. It took hours of begging and pleading before D finally relented and Dudu joined our family. 

Nameless black cat a couple days after he first arrived. It was Daniel who
chose the name Dudu which is the Kiswahili word for Insect

While both cats may be black they are opposites in all other areas. Where Pumba has a sleek coat and is gorgeous and plump, Dudu has wiry with coarse short hair and skinny. Where she relaxes in the sun he runs circles around the house and freaking out when he sees his own reflection. While Pumba needs to be near people Dudu must be on them or sitting on Pumba as he has no concept of cat space. Dudu loves socializing with all of the neighbourhood cats and talks to them through the window with his meows where as Pumba will growl and scream at the intruders in her space. Where both are similar is their love of food, certain sun spots in the house or chilling on the balcony watching the children below and their fascination with the sound of their own voices especially nearing meal time.

Both cats keep us entertained for hours. Their antics are hilarious and their cuddles worth every penny of the damage to our rugs or shower curtains. The school has now implemented a pet policy which means we can only ever own two animals at a time. This is for the best as three cats may just push me over the edge of being that crazy cat lady. Although the other day I did spot another cat in the dumpster...

Both cats while opposite in many ways they do enjoy one another's
company and will pine for the other when one is away.
Kind of like siblings...