My Unexpected Holiday With Steve, Sally and Dotty

By Dolly the Shih Tzu

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A week ago, on Friday 12th May 26, I thought I was going for a normal day, not knowing it was about to be turned on its head.

Instead, my Mummy disappeared to a place called “hospital” and I found myself staying with Steve, who has come and taken me out for two walks a day, every single day, for over two years and, who I was to discover, has two cats called Sally and Dotty.

Steve put me in his car and drove me to his place. I didn’t mind that bit it was exciting, I love going places in cars. When we got to where Steve lived, he had to carry me up the stairs to get to his front door(more on those pesky stairs later) That’s when I met the cats. It was okay though nothing bad happened. Apparently, Steve had been very worried about this part. I missed my Mummy though, and wanted to keep Steve under constant observation. Whenever he moved, I followed him. Whenever he left the room, I wanted to know where he was going. This seemed perfectly reasonable to me.

The cats were another matter.

I had seen cats before, but mostly outdoors, where they wander around without a human in attendance. I have never fully understood this behaviour. Suddenly I found myself living with two of them.

Sally immediately began studying me. She inspected my paws, observed me drinking water and appeared to be conducting some sort of scientific research project. Dotty was different. Dotty seemed more interested in food, mischief and delivering lectures from elevated positions.

Over the next few days, things became much easier.

I discovered that Steve’s flat contains several excellent places to sleep, including a special location beneath his desk which I now consider my personal cave. I also discovered that Sally and Dotty are not nearly as strange as I first thought., and whispers quite nice actually.

Sally likes to supervise everything from a chair.

Dotty likes to disappear for long periods before suddenly reappearing as if nothing unusual has happened.

I have also learned that cats have indoor toilets, which remains one of the strangest things I have ever encountered.

The local area is very different from home. There are new fields, new smells, new paths and even some woods nearby. Every day Steve takes me somewhere different and I have enjoyed exploring my temporary neighbourhood.

There is, however, one serious problem.

The afore mentioned communal stairs.

At home, the stairs are sensible. They have walls on both sides and do not contain alarming gaps. Steve’s stairs are clearly defective. I have therefore arranged a transport service whereby Steve carries me up and down them. This seems a much safer arrangement for everyone involved.

The most surprising thing about my holiday has been the cats.

Sally and Dotty have gradually become part of my pack. We share rooms together, spend time together and occasionally inspect each other’s food. Dotty even sampled my dinner. I considered lodging a formal complaint but decided not to escalate the matter.

When Steve goes out, I sometimes let him know that I disapprove. After a few minutes I usually settle down for a nap while Sally supervises and Dotty attends to important cat business elsewhere.

I still miss my Mummy, especially at bedtime when everything is quiet. But I know she will come back for me when she is better, and Steve lets me sleep on his bed with him..

Until then, I have adventures to go on, cats to study, treats to eat and a mysterious species called “feline” to understand.

I am pleased to report that after nearly a week, I have concluded that Sally and Dotty are acceptable, and actually, “whispers, quite nice.”

It turns out that Cats and Shih-Tzus have a lot in common, who knew? The stairs, however, remain defective and under investigation.