In the spring of 1997, I was bicycling on a major traffic artery in an adjoining community, and noticed a dingy gray Manx cat sitting on the sidewalk, which was up a bushy embankment a few feet above the street. Not being in any particular rush, I pulled over and scrambled up the slope to play with the cat, which seemed quite pleasant and happy to get some unexpected affection. Some children came riding by on the sidewalk and stopped. They mentioned that the cat had been hanging around that area for quite some time, and they didn’t know where it lived. I was quite concerned, as the cat was obviously quite dirty, but had little choice but to say goodbye and finish my cycling route.
I grew more and more concerned as I thought about the situation, so that afternoon my wife and I drove up to where I’d seen the cat and parked the car alongside the road. We didn’t see the kitty, so I called for her. From a spot about 50 yards away she came out of the adjoining bushes which separate the major road from a residential development, and came trotting down the sidewalk to me. I had brought a packet of semi-moist food and a bowl, which I gave her. To my surprise, she spurned the food but was once again pleased to receive affection. Making a decision, we elected to take her home, while worrying that we were stealing somebody’s cat. The obvious neglect, including badly sunburned ears, made that decision easier. She was completely happy sitting on my wife’s lap and looking out the window, which is quite unusual for a cat. We subsequently posted a "Found" ad in the local papers, and had no calls.
Upon getting her home, I got into a bathtub with her, and upon lathering her and rinsing I was stunned to find not a grey cat but a pure white one! The ears were quite damaged, but otherwise she seemed fine. And that’s how I got the cat I named Banana Simian, although she is usually called Banana or Boo Boo.
All veterinary tests came back normal, but the ears were of great concern. The vet was alarmed about possible skin cancer, so I made an appointment with my veterinary oncologist. She too was quite concerned, said that the damage was almost certainly skin cancer, and warned me that the ears would eventually have to be removed – oddly enough, not a big deal according to her – but we were able to stall for time by cryogenically treating the worst of the existing damage.
Alas, within a couple years, the situation had deteriorated to where she had to have the ears removed, but it hasn’t been a big deal in any sense. We’ve had instances where we thought the skin cancer was coming back, but various cortisone-based salves have restored the edges where the ears were cut, meaning things aren’t yet as bad as they could be. We’ve been warned to keep her out of the intense summer sun, which has been difficult as she loves being outside during the day. Fortunately she usually sits on a chair under the eaves, meaning she’s only in indirect sunlight.
Banana is an interesting and unusual creature. We don’t really know how old she is, but guess she might well be into her teens. She is very lame, having difficulty running and jumping up or down from the bed or couches, and sometimes just falling over and rolling when she walks the wrong way. Appropriate medicines have helped a little, but she really has mobility difficulties. She’s fairly aloof toward the others, being neither particularly interested nor normally hostile. Her appetite is prodigious, and when she wants affection she can exhibit the most earnest, pleading look imaginable.
One rather unique characteristic is that she tends to pick a particular place – on or under a piece of furniture, in an open dresser drawer, or even a particular spot in one room – and spend the next three or four weeks sleeping and spending most waking hours in that spot. Then she’ll move to somewhere else, and repeat the routine. I’ve never had a cat like that.
Sometimes I say that Banana isn’t really among my favorites, but she has a nice disposition and pleasant demeanor. Other times I realize that she's just more subtle than most cats, and really is a sweetie. I’m happy to have taken her in and enjoy spending time with her. It would be great to know her history and how she ended up living in those bushes, but that is something I’ll never be able to learn.
POSTSCRIPT
In late August of 2003 Banana developed a respiratory problem, with constant audible and somewhat labored breathing. After several days it didn't seem to be getting any better, so she was taken to the vet. He ascertained that whatever the problem was seemed not to be in her lungs, but rather in the throat and back of the head. Assuming it was some sort of routine infection, she was put on antibiotics. After a week of no improvement, we tried a different antibiotic to clear up a slight case of pneumonia that now showed on X-ray, and daily respiratory therapy.
A week passed with no improvements, and somewhat more difficult breathing. She was taken for major diagnostic testing and they discovered that her windpipe was thickened and the airway quite constricted; furthermore there was some sort of growth in her nasal/sinus area. We were warned that it was most likely cancer, and sure enough the biopsies came back on September 9th showing two different forms of cancer in the two areas, one quite virulent. Treatment was judged to be futile. On September 10th I was told she probably had no more than two weeks to live. That very evening, she went downhill with significant breathing difficulties. I rushed her in for steroid treatments and fluids, which we had successfully done three days before after her CT scan, trachial tube, and biopsies had exacerbated the swelling in her airway.
By morning she still hadn't moved from the spot where I had put her the previous evening after the emergency treatment, and the breathing had reached the point of considerable effort. It was time to make the horrible decision of weighing her quality of life, and I knew it was time. I sadly carried her outside to let her sit in the sun on her favorite chair, and took this picture:
On September 11, 2003, less than a half hour later, she was euthanized.
While I had initially not considered Banana among my favorites, while always having been happy to have taken her in, she really touched me the last couple of years. I had warmed up to her quiet demeanor, and had started to consider her a wonderful kitty. Recent tests had shown she was in spectacular health for her age, aside from the major mobility difficulties, so fate most likely had cheated us out of several happy years together. She was a good creature.
