It’s very nice to meet you

I’m a cat called Winston the cat. You may have guessed it’s not me that’s an Emotional Intelligence coach. That’s my mum who does that job.

Thus you can see I am just using her website to write my blog.

As you can see I am a ginger cat. I assume I am allowed to call myself ginger nowadays? But am I supposed to call myself orange? I also assume I can call myself a cat.

Who knows any more, I don’t.

Are many thoughts going on in your head? 

Thoughts like why is your name Winston?

These thoughts could be 

“What a weird name.”

or

“Oh! Winston Churchill were you named after him?”

even

“ Oh! the cigarettes. You were named after them. ”

However, there are always many thoughts from humans. That’s what makes you human.

All things considered, I was named after  Sir Winston Churchill.

My grandmother chose that name. Because she loved Winston Churchill. 

When my mummy was struggling to name me. I heard my grandma say

“ Why don’t you name him Winston Churchill, I loved Winston Churchill.“

Nevertheless, I was named Winston, without Churchill.

Sir Winston Churchill

 

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal, it is the courage to continue that counts. If you’re going through hell, keep going. Everyone has his day, and some days last longer than others.”

– Winston Churchill

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I love my name as I am Winston the cat

As a result of this cool name. I love it because I feel really strong. Who wouldn’t with a name like Winston Churchill?

However, that is not true. I’m not a strong cat at all. But I do try to be. So, I keep telling myself I am strong like Winston Churchill. But I am Winston the cat.

Furthermore, I am a very anxious cat and I always have been. I’d suppose you can say that was due to my upbringing.

Mummy rescued me and I am so pleased she did.

One day a group of children had me hanging upside down by my tail. They were bashing my head against a brick wall.

Mummy saw this ran over and just grabbed me. Next, she explained to the children to not hurt animals. But I am not sure if they listened to her.

Overall I just pretend to be big and brave. As I don’t want the other cats to look at me like I am weak.

When I mean the other cats I mean my sister Harry and my sister Issey. Let me introduce you to them.

My older sister Harry

Harry is named after Harry Potter

Firstly this is my older sister’s cat called Harry. Now you are thinking. But Harry is a boy’s name. Well, it usually is, but why can it not also be a girl’s name?

My mummy named her Harry.  When she was very small she had a white zig-zag stripe running down the top of her head. Mummy was struggling to find a name for this cat, like always.

So, a friend of my mummy’s said

“Call her Harry the cat, after Harry Potter.“

From that day on she was named Harry after Harry Potter. But we just call her Harry.

But sometimes I hear mummy say

“ Come on Harry, Harry Potter.“

So, Harry was found under a food Tuk Tuk. She had fallen from a very high tree where her cat mummy gave birth.

Harry had luckily managed to hide. As there were many dogs around. 

Put some water mixed with baby powder

Harry’s cat mummy was never around. Hence my mummy bought some baby powder to make milk for her.

This milk went down a treat which was lucky for her and mummy. Baby powder was all mummy could get in Cambodia.

You can not get cat milk. So mummy would leave the baby’s milk out in a bowl for her.

Not surprisingly after two days, mummy realized that her cat mummy was not coming back. Hence my mummy took her home.

Harry is my older sister and she is twelve years old. I was brought up with Harry when I was also rescued.

Therefore Harry became my cat mum. She has always been so kind and loving to me. She even cleans my ears out for me.

This is what she says to me

“Come on be strong and remember to say I am Winston the cat. Tell yourself this often. So it reminds you how strong you are. ”

This is my younger sister Issey

Issey is named after Isabella Rossellini

Secondly, this is my younger sister’s cat called Issey. Her name is short for Isabella. She was also rescued and she came from Koh Kong, Cambodia.

Issey was found in a garbage bin with her sister. They were both covered in ticks and fleas and were starving. You could see their bones sticking out and they looked so unclean.

The kittens even smelt bad when they first came into our house.

You may be thinking

How did mummy get these two

My mummy’s two friends, who also love animals brought them back to their guest house which was a three-hour drive away from Koh Kong.

Because they were doing a night crossing from the border of Cambodia and Thailand. Because they needed to renew their Cambodian visas.

That night while they were walking through the town they found two cats inside a rubbish bin. Like my mummy, they could not leave any animal alone.

Especially in Cambodia because at present there is not much understanding towards looking after animals.

So they knew they would probably be abused or die if left alone.

They were so sick-looking already that they knew they may not survive.

One night mummy and her ex were having drinks with mummy’s friends at their guest house. They said to mummy’s girlfriend here are two cats take them home.

Mummy did not want to take them home. Because mummy already had Harry and me. Especially because mummy could not afford any more cats.

But mummy can never say no to helping animals she was also scared of her ex. So she also could not say no to her.

Plus her ex had them curled up in her arms and was walking to the motorbike.

So, mummy ended up taking them home.  This could have meant mummy could not eat much for the next month. But she never cares.

I am lying on the bed

However that night I am lying on the bed and having my ears cleaned by Harry.

All of a sudden I hear mummy coming home. When I looked I saw in her hands two very small little cats they were kittens.

Meanwhile, while mummy put them on the floor I went up to look at them. They smelt like a really bad cat.

So I went back to lay on the bed with Harry. I am Winston the cat, so I can do what I want.

I was not happy and neither was Harry. But mummy was so good she could see that. So she took them outside and shut the door. So they could not come into the bedroom. 

So, straight away Harry and I went back to cleaning each other. As we are good cats.

Mummy kept them in the kitchen for a while. She helped the kittens get very strong and healthy.

But guess what? Again she could not find any names for them.

So, their names were Kitten One and Kitten Two.

Harry and I would laugh and Harry would say.

“ I bet she can’t find a name, as she took ages to name you. “

 

One of the kittens is gone

Eventually, the kittens got stronger and started to go outside.

But one day one of the kittens did not come home. I heard mummy calling out “Kitten one, kitten one.” She would be wandering the streets for hours.

But she never came home with a kitten.

Mummy even said to me.

“Come on Winston go and look for the kitten, please. “

So, I went off to look for her. As I am Winston the cat. But I could not find her either.

I think mummy felt bad that the kitten had no name.

As I heard her say one day.

“It probably ran away because we had never named it. Can we name this kitten?”

Mummy’s ex-partner shouted at her and said

“Oh ! Come on you’re so useless. Yes, it probably run away because of you. Just name this one Isabella like I said to do.  I’m tired of you not making a decision.”

The reply

“OK.”

 

Her ex-partner loved Isabella Rossellini

As her partner loved Isabella Rossellini she said to mummy.

“ Now you have to hear that name all the time are you jealous?”

Needless to say, we were all very pleased when mummy’s partner left and never came back.

So, you may have noticed that my mummy is not very good at coming up with names. I think that’s because my mummy can never choose what she wants.

That’s because her star sign is Pisces. Which is two fish that swim in opposite directions. Equally so does mummy when she swims.

This is why it can be hard for mummy to ever choose anything.

However, she eventually chooses but it may just take a while. I love that mummy is a couple of fishes.  As I love fish.

I’ll tell you a story about fish one day. This story did not make my daddy very happy. It made Harry and I laugh a lot.

My older sister Zeno

Named after the founder of the stoic school of philosophy

So back to my fear. I have another reason why I don’t want to show fear. I’ve two dog sisters and one dog brother.

This is my older sister Zeno. Now you may be thinking how did she get that name?

She got that name from the Stoics.

Well, mummy rescued Zeno when she was one year old.

Zeno had been badly beaten. She was also tied up outside all day and night with no water and was never given food. 

Zeno would sit in the boiling hot sun for hours every day. The local Khmer children would throw rocks at her.

Equally, they thought it was great fun to kick her.

One day two lovely Russian men saw her

She was beaten and hurt

Despite rescuing her the Russian men had to go back to Russia. They were trying to find her a home and asked mummy.

Mummy said

“I can not have another dog.  But if you can not find her a loving forever home, I will have her. “

She did not want another dog as her last dog was poisoned and stolen. This was again due to her ex-girlfriend.

But my mummy loves all animals so much. The thought of letting Zeno go to a bad home hurt Mummy. So mummy ended up giving Zeno a forever home.

Zeno is a German Shepherd. I’ve no idea what one of those is. But I do know she barks a lot and never sits still.

I often hear mummy saying.

“ Wow! German Shepherds are such hard work and when do they grow up. “

She is now nine years old. So it looks like she won’t grow up yet.

Zeno is naughty and sometimes tries to chase me. So I have to stand there and think I am Winston the cat. I am strong. That usually stops her chasing me.

My younger brother Eric

Eric is named after Eric the half a bee from Monty Python

This is my younger brother Eric. He’s 7 years old and was born on Christmas day. Eric was also rescued from living on the street.

Eric was born on an island and had a wonderful puppyhood. He would swim, play and chase everything that moved. Getting constant love from all the guests and he loved the island.

This island was called Koh Rong Sanloem which is in Cambodia.

Rudy owned Paradise bungalows and Paradise villas and was mummy’s friend and boss. So she would often go there for work.

When Eric was two months old he was given to a man that runs the boats to the islands.

As mummy worked for Eric’s human daddy. Mummy was asked to collect Eric from the island and take him to his new owner.

When mummy got back to the mainland she took him to his new owner. His new owner was looking for houses that day, so he said to mummy

“ Can you go with me, so I can look at houses? Then you can hold onto the puppy as he knows you and will feel safe.”

Eric

Mummy loved cuddling Eric, who was then called Blacky.

I would often hear her say

“He was so soft and cuddly, I wish we could of kept him.”

So mummy jumped in the SUV and sat cuddling him. Eric told me that mummy whispered in his ear while driving in the car

“ I wish you was my dog, your so beautiful. “

When mummy got out of the car she gave Blacky a big kiss and said to the owner.

“ Look after him.”

One month later

One month later the owner phoned mummy and said his dog had run away.

For weeks mummy helped the owner look for his dog.  She looked everywhere she could think of but could not find him.

As Cambodia eats dogs mummy was so worried. Cambodians love to eat black dogs. They believe black dogs are more tasty.

We would often hear mummy say.

“ I hope they have not done what they did to King. “

Zeno would get walked every day to the beach by mummy.  Mummy had been doing this for over a year. Then one day mummy turned up with a big surprise. 

I heard mummy open the gate and say.

‘Darling, look what I have got.”

In she came and following behind her was a big black dog.

Mummy said

“This is Blacky, Rudy’s puppy.  He saw me and came running towards me. Then he jumped up in my arms and has followed me the whole way home.“

Daddy just smiled one of those oh dear here she goes again smiles.

Mummy messaged the man that lost him and said she had found Blacky.  That she could bring him back to his owner. But the owner never replied.

Dad would say to mummy.

“ Has he replied to your messages yet? Does he not care about his dog? “

The streets

Blacky had now been living on the streets for over a year by the time mummy saw him.  So the owner that took him off Rudy had two new huskies.

Mummy realized he did not care about Blacky anymore as the Huskies were his new toy.

I heard her say

“He does not care about Blacky otherwise he would reply. So, I assume he is ours.”

That’s the day Eric got a forever home with us.

Eric’s name

My real daddy is nice. He also can be really funny.

He said to mummy when she first came home with him

‘Oh! Dear it looks like we have a new dog and he is beautiful. It looks like we are keeping him, as I know you.“

Mummy and daddy sat talking one night and I heard daddy say.

“ Well it looks like he is definitely ours. So, what about naming him Eric, Eric the half a bee?”

Mummy smiled and said

“ Yes, that’s perfect. But why Eric the half a bee?”

I am sure she was also thinking yeaaayyy at least I don’t have to think of a name.

If you have seen Monty Python there is a sketch. This sketch is about Eric the Half a Bee. Daddy loves Monty Python so that is why the name.

I’m not so scared of Eric. He loves to come and just sniff my nose. Eric does not chase me when I run away like Zeno does. I think he knows I am Winston the cat.

This is my younger sister Molly

She’s named after the Cambodian architect Vann Molyvann

This is my younger sister Molly. She is named after the Cambodian architect Vann Molyvann. 

If you would like to learn more about this amazing architect please click here  Vann Molyvann.

Molly is my last doggie sister. She is also rescued. Sadly Molly had a horrible puppyhood. She used to live next door but one to me.

Her mummy Mao used to come into our garden every day.  She would cuddle and play with my mummy and daddy.

My mummy and daddy fell in love with Mao. I would often hear my mummy say.

“ Oh! She is so lovely. I’m going to go and talk to the owners about giving her injections and tablets to keep her healthy. You know I will pay as I am sure they do not have the money.”

So, one day mummy went to speak to the owners. It is hard for mummy, as they do not speak English so she has to speak in Khmer.

After one hour mummy came back and said

“ Yes, I can give her the injections and medicine. The owners of Mao are very happy.”

Mummy phoned the vet to come and give her the vaccines. I saw mummy hold her while he did it.

Mao

Mao stayed at our house every day. She would even sleep outside our front door at night time.

Mummy and Daddy did not want her in the house. As she was not their dog even though she felt like it.

Mao got pregnant and ended up having six little puppies. She had the puppies at her owner’s house and would bring them all to our house every day.

Many of the puppies ended up going to other homes. Mummy also helped to re-home them.

Then there were two puppies were left behind.

The puppies would come into our garden with Mao and play and play. One night I caught the two puppies and Mao sleeping outside our front door. They were all curled up in what looked like a big dog ball.

Mao was always nice to me

I was not scared of Mao as she was a very gentle dog.

One day mummy had gone out and when she returned I heard a daddy say to her.

‘I can not see Mao. She was here earlier and then I heard the kids call her to their house. She has not come back. They have lit a barbecue. Do you think they are going to eat her?“

My mummy knows what some Khmers can be like and rushed straight to the neighbour’s house.

I could see her coming and going, coming and going.

She’d go from house to house. I knew something was wrong, I just sat staring out the window waiting to see what had happened.

Eventually, mummy came back

Mummy came back and she was crying so hard. I heard her say

‘They have killed her in front of her puppies and eaten her.”

Daddy started to cry too.

It was a very sad week. I would lay in mummy’s arms every night in bed trying to make her feel better.

Mummy and Daddy would often cry. I would hear them say

“ I miss her so much. I’m worrying they will do the same to the puppies.”

 

The next week or two

The two puppies slept outside our house every night. They never wanted to go back to their own house. Only once in a while would they go home.

That was only when the children called them. Nevertheless, they would come straight back to our house.

Generally, these puppies always looked very sad. They never played any more.

Needless to say, they ended up getting sick. So mummy brought them inside our house and put them in the spare bathroom.

Mummy spent the next week with the vet

Hence she was working hard to help the puppies survive. Luckily they both survived.

However, the boy puppy was so much stronger than the girl. So, he got better a lot quicker and eventually, he went back home.

When the girl puppy got better she would not leave our garden.

The boy puppy ended up going to live with relatives of the family. Their relatives live just around the corner. So he could still come to our house every day.

Mummy and Daddy were always talking about them. Daddy would say to mummy

” You should talk to the owner about keeping the girl puppy. Especially as she was always at our house.”

I heard mummy say

“ We can not afford to have another animal. Equally, I can not bear for them to eat her.“

Next, mummy said

She needs to offer the family something to have her. But she would not give the owner money. As the owner’s son was an alcoholic. So, if she gave them money he would just want more.

Mummy grows fruit and vegetables. So she decided to give them fresh fruit and vegetables instead.

She also paid for the medicine and hospital care for the grandma. Mummy also pays for the school books and pens for the grandchildren.

Molly has now been with us for over a year. I am not scared of her.  She seems to be more scared of me.

Stop watching me going to the toilet

I don’t watch you, actually, I do

So, I am finished with my blog.

So I have to go now so, have a good day everyone as I am off to go and catch a fish.

Hugs and small paw prints, love Winston.

Takeaway

You can also help pay it forward

If you would like to help animals in Cambodia you can press the donate now button. All the money goes to my mummy helping the street dogs, and cats and teaching the Khmers how to look after us In our lovely little village in Kampot Cambodia.

Have a beautiful day and take care.