Tim and I love our little zoo: A pug and two cats. We dote on them constantly and they are most likely a bit too spoiled for their own good. In fact, as I write this blog I have one cat on my lap.

Sue and Dad long ago warned us that animals are thought of differently in Kenya. I had gotten my head around the fact that if people cannot afford to feed themselves, how can they feed their cats and dogs? In fact, those with farm animals allow them to graze on garbage or the greens along the roadways. There is no purchased hay, feed buckets, litter boxes, or fancy dog beds.

Sue is one of the few on the hospital grounds to have cats. Beth Tracey, a Volunteer Nurse and amazing person who works at the hospital also has a cat. In addition, Dr. Clare and Sister Barbara who work at the hospital also have cats. It is hard to get cat food and litter. They have to travel long distances to get those items.

Sue’s cat, Nyeusi is a loud cat. He’s slender and has a meow on him I cannot even describe. Tim compares it to our cats when they are fighting. But Nyeusi isn’t fighting when he makes his sound. He’s expressing his need for attention or food or love from Sue. In addition to Nyeusi, Sue also feeds Bro, Sammy, and a tabby who live outside. The only one we were able to touch was Sammy.

If Sue or the others did not have a cat, then they would probably remain feral. Sue is teaching the children not to kick the cats – even if they don’t want to pet the cats. It’s not in Sue’s nature not to have an animal and she has made friends with the various felines within the hospital walls.

Dogs are also pretty rare. We saw only a few kept as pets. The dogs all look very similar- kind of a typical mutt looking dog. I had to work hard at not engaging or getting close to the dogs. If people do have a dog, it’s usually for protection. I don’t want a dog to feel he/she has to protect his owner from me.

On several occassions when we were at the hospital, we would hear dogs barking. If they are onsite at the hospital, they are extremely dangerous and probably have rabies.

Most of the dogs that we did see were wild dogs along the side of the road or in fields. My heart would hurt each time I saw one of these dogs. At the same time, I continue to be aware why people cannot have pets. They simply cannot afford it and those animal mouths to feed are not worth using precious food on them.

Why do I share this? Well, it’s a big difference between us and those we visited. I consciously didn’t share that we had a dog and cats as that might get some head scratches. Whereas Tim and I usually tell people right away that we have our animals as it helps to define what interests us, we did not use that “fun fact” when we met new people.

In addition, since Tim works for an animal hospital – each time we mentioned this information, we felt almost embarrassed. Those we visited had difficulty affording medical care for themselves and their family members. And we came from a place where people will spend thousands of dollars to care for their cat or dog or hamster or snake or whatever other critter they have at home.

Tim was asked constantly his occupation. Increasingly I saw him become uncomfortable. We knew the bizarre way it looks to work at an animal hospital. At a meeting, Tim told the hospital Ophthalmologist, Dr. Inoti, that the animal hospital also has an Ophthalmologist. Dr. Inoti thought this was incredibly amusing. He told Tim that it was unfathomable because most people cannot afford hospitals themselves, let alone for animals. If there are animal hospitals they are for farm animals. In fact, Dad and Sue can tell you a story about how they got a vet to neuter Nyeusion their dining room table . It’s an interesting tale to say the least.

One women at the same meeting thought she had heard wrong. She looked stunned when I told her where Tim worked. She asked if she heard me right. “Yes” I said.

On the other hand, Esther, a woman I immediately liked who works at the hospital told me, “Wow. That is wonderful. It is wonderful that people love their animals so much to take them to a hospital.”

This isn’t a bad thing and I’m not ashamed of who I am or the fact that I would do many things for our pets. But this gives us new perspective. Not everyone can treat their animals like we do in the States. I feel so lucky that I do not have to choose whether to feed myself or my zoo.

Just another lesson learned…