[always2late]

Warning...ranting to commence now:

Ok...so my son's father is remarried and has a daughter (my son's half-sister). She is 8 years old. A few months ago, she got a kitten from a family member...and the kitten is just adorable! (a little halloween kitten...all black with orange eyes). So anyway, my ex's wife started to develop allergies and asked me if I would watch the kitten until they bought their new house (the idea being that with a large house, her allergies might not act up so much). Of course, I said yes. The first few days the kitten was here, she was skittish as hell. Would not let anyone pick her up for more than a minute, and squirmed to get down the whole time. She spent most of the day running and hiding, which is normal...new place...other animals and all, so I didn't think much of it. After about two days...she completely settled down and became a velcro cat...loves being held, purrs constantly, etc... Yesterday, my son's dad called and asked if he could bring his daughter over to visit her cat. When she got here, the kitten reverted to her old habits...and I saw why. The kid treats her like a toy not a living thing!! And her father does NOT correct her! I am not one to interfere with the way someone handles their own child...but I couldn't help myself this time! The way she tries to pick the poor kitten up and the way she holds her is horrible...and when the kitten tries to get away from her...she chases it until she has it trapped and then grabs it again.

So, now...I don't want to give the kitten back to them..whenever it is they get their house. I can't deal with the fact that she is basically abusing this kitten and no one seems to care...or at least doesn't care enough to correct her or explain to her that a kitten is not a stuffed animal. I know it's going to cause a problem when I tell them that I want to keep the cat...but I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I gave the kitten back and it got hurt!

Sigh...ok...venting over...carry on.