I Guess I Need to Change My Cat’s Name…

Animals. Pets. We don’t always give them enough credit. They’re smarter than we might realize. Provided they have the right name…

A woman, Amy Jung, was recently saved by a cat she adopted. The woman is diabetic. Although she originally visited the shelter with no intention of adopting a pet, she adopted Pudding, a large, long-haired orange tabby, who seemed to have a special connection to her. A few hours later Amy had a diabetic seizure.

What did Pudding do? Sprang to the rescue, of course. The cat got up on her chest, then commenced to swatting her face and biting her nose. That roused Amy enough that she could call out for help. However, Pudding didn’t stop there; when help didn’t arrive immediately, he ran to Amy’s son, Ethan, and jumped up on his bed. That got the youngster energized, and the rest is history.

Apparently the life-saving efforts of Pudding were just in the nick of time. Amy’s doctor said she was on the verge of a diabetic coma, which could have proved fatal.

Getting a cat from the SPCA isn’t a standard practice for lifesaving. In this case, though, it worked wonderfully. I maintain it’s the food name that gave the feline his superpowers. That means I should change my cat’s name, I suppose. Archie, that’s not very food-related (though he is quite the comic at times).

I wonder, does Lard-Butt count as a food name? As much as Archie likes his groceries, it’s appropriate, at least…

(Side note: Six years ago I taught some classes at a manufacturing site in Guangzhou. One evening my translator and local guide, Irene Wang, took me out to dinner at a nice restaurant that served plenty of zesty food; an unusual find in the home of mild, Cantonese cuisine. As we were served, I asked Irene to teach me the Chinese names of every dish. What a fine way to learn a language! At the end of the meal, to calm the heat in our mouths, we ordered pudding: I had a nice tapioca, she chose her favorite vanilla. When I asked her to teach me the Chinese name of our dessert, she grinned impishly and said, “Pu Ding.” So I guess the rescue cat is Chinese?)

Note: Today is Texas Independence Day; but you knew that already, right?

Enjoy the (Not-So-Dumb Animals) Heat!