Cat Days in Luseland

Chapter One

Luseland, Saskatchewan is located on Highway 31 south of Denzil. Both towns are worth exploring.

This morning, we drive to our house and pet sitting job in Luseland. The new large farmhouse has been built around the original 100-year-old home. It is surrounded by a twenty-five-hundred-acre organic farm. We pull into the well-manicured property of Pearl and Allen and are met by them, their one dog, and a large cluster of cats. We learn that it’s Allen’s inherited haven and recently Pearl brought her three cats and her enthusiasm for hard work to the marriage.

Barn Cats

“The first thing I want to show you,” Pearl says, “are the cats in the barn. We’ve got twenty-five.”

I look to my right and watch as Frank follows Allen to where the large farm equipment is stored.

I sense a matter-of-fact tone in Pearl’s voice. I can tell that she keeps track of the exact number of felines in her care.

Before we reach the barn door, the scent of cat urine, feces, cat food, dead rodents and birds, birth, rotting wood, soiled carpet and fabric chairs fill my nostrils. Bile forms in the back my throat. I barely step over the threshold and the cat owner is deep into the building. I stand firm and look down at cats – too many to count. All eyes follow their provider as she makes her way to the feeding centre. The moment she opens the large dry cat food bag a stampede of cats encircles her feet. She pours their food into several metal containers and within seconds the eating frenzy begins. A little black kitten wobbles over to the trough and struggles to squeeze between the stronger ones. Pearl scoops a fistful of food into her left hand and brings the small feline to her face and kisses it.

“This little one needs lovin’”, she says. We want her to get used to humans so that she doesn’t stay feral. We feed them all, but I’m partial to this one."

Pearl thrusts the kitten at me.

"Here. Do you want to feed her?” she says.

More Barn Cats

The fragile feline is fur and bones. Its hair is slicked back from constant licking by its mother and perhaps other maternal females in the bunch. I see that its eyes are oozing with clear liquid. At that moment, it sneezes mucus onto my bare arm. I hold back my inclination to toss it to the ground. I continue to offer the little rascal morsels and it nibbles a few.

Pearl removes a rag from her jean pants pocket, wipes the goo from the mutt’s face and stuffs the wet cloth back into her pocket. She takes the kitty from me and presses it into her face.

“I’d like you to come to the barn a couple of times a day and cuddle with ‘Mixy’. She’s so cute”, she says.

I blink. Pearl sets the kitten back among the others.

“Let’s go into the house. My special cats are in there,” the homeowner says.

Once inside the cat-scented home, the training begins. She picks up each feline and reports on its medical condition. One has heart issues, another is depressed, a large black cat, I’m told, is friends with Toby the dog and sleeps all day on his cushy dog pad.

“This one doesn’t like to go outside much”, she says.

 A fourth indoor feline is old and never meows beyond a purr so Frank and I would have to watch for her scratching at the door to be let out or in. Its needs are quite evident based on the missing paint on all three doors.

Pearl walks throughout her three-story house and points out the various pee-pads taped securely to the walls. The fifth cat, apparently, has bladder issues and tends to spray the walls. I nod my head in approval.

Patio Garden at Farm House

We step outside so that she can have her cigarette. We are met on the patio by Frank and Allen. Allen is lighting up.

Later, that evening, Frank and I tuck into our motorhome and fix ourselves dinner. Frank explains his outdoor duties and I share my looking after the cats and dog obligations.

To reiterate, our purpose and duty are to care for the homeowner’s pets and property. Their duty is to provide us with a detailed list of chores and pet habits. We were negligent, in this instance, to ask for a policy and procedure document before we arrived. This particular couple had no such paperwork prepared. We’ve learnt another lesson.

Cat Days in Luseland

Chapter Two

I wake from a comfortable sleep in Big White. Frank is holding his clipboard so that we can record the farm sitting duties. When we do meet with the couple, what we hear is mostly about their illnesses and their long list of medication. Frank's face presents a sense of foreboding. 

Lillies Welcome Us At The Front Door

It’s day two of training at this Luseland house and pet sit arrangement. We knock on the house door and are welcomed in by the owners.

“Oh, Stinky,” Pearl is speaking to one of the house cats.

“This is the one with the bladder issues I told you about yesterday, Susan. I see that he’s now peeing beside the pads.” She’s bent over wiping away the urine.

We step over the kibbles and bits spread across the kitchen floor. Frank steps out the back door with Allen. Pearl asks me to join her in the basement. We approach the stairwell and I’m engulfed in the stench of what I guess to be cat-urine-soiled carpets. I learn later that two of your cats died downstairs.

“If one of our cats dies while we’re away, please use this”, she says and holds up a white plastic bag. “You can fold the cat in half and it fits perfectly into the bag; tie it up secure and put it here.”

Strawberries in a Bag

She reaches for the handle of the freezer and begins to pull it toward her. My mind swirls with ideas of my having to look at a packaged dead cat. She shuffles clear bags filled with berries from one side to another. “This is a good spot. There’s room enough for two”.

I release my breath.

Outside, Allen is teaching Frank how to operate the over-sized riding lawn mower. 

We hear a grinding sound and then a clunk. Pearl charges up the stairs, out the door and stands on the patio. She remarks to Frank that he’s ripped some bark off the tree. He ignores her because his ears are covered with muffs. She turns to me and tells me that Frank wasn’t very careful. I ignore her comment.

Later that day, we hear a tap at our RV door.

“We are sorry to tell you that we are both too sick to go on a vacation. You are welcome to stay as long as you like, but we won’t be needing your pet or house services,” Allen says.

Sadly, there was no offer of a stipend or compensation for our long distance of travel to care for their animals and property. We had turned down several other sittings to experience this one. Namao, AB to Luseland, SK -  387 kilometres. Too bad, so sad. 

We exchange niceties with the couple and advise them that we will be leaving the property today.

We are now left to ourselves and begin planning our three and a half weeks of travel adventure throughout Saskatchewan to visit family, friends and make new acquaintances. 

Ah, life is grand on the road