They call me Duchess.

But my life for more than 10 years on the streets felt nothing like royalty.

I was once a cute kitten too, maybe I even had a home, who remembers today… now I am an just an old girl that thinks of her life so far with sorrow.

I have lost count of freezing winters and scorching summers I had to face alone out there and often struggled to find shelter and food for myself and my kittens.

I don’t know how many kittens I had year after year. No one cared enough to spay me and I was producing litter after litter of offspring. Then I cried rivers of tears seeing them die one after another of merciless disease or under the wheels of the fast cars and no one was there to help us.

Sometimes people may have taken home one of my kittens or even two. But no one ever wanted to take me, I wasn’t small or cute enough anymore.

My mouth was hurting a lot in the past years, I was barely able to eat or to hunt for me and my babies. I don’t know what it was, I just know I was in a lot of pain and always sad.

Until one day, when someone saw me laying tired on the concrete sidewalk with my last series of tiny kittens. 6 of them. They were all having bad eye infections and I thought I was going to lose them too like the many others.

But the nice human said “Come on babies, you’re safe now!”

And all 7 of us were taken to a nice warm place and given such yummy food. They even had cozy beds for us that I never knew existed.

My years on the street are painful to remember and maybe that’s why I have such a frowned face.

But the people taking care of us now say that I’m so cute and it’s part of my charm.

They have taken me to the surgeon vet and because I had a bad mouth infection almost all my teeth had to be removed, I had to endure weeks of injections but I was so brave and I’m pretty proud of myself. I now only have my four fangs left and my mouth healed so well.

The vet told me that I had become infected with calicivirus in the past and this is why my mouth was hurting so bad.

But my condition is now under control, I am pain free,

And now that my babies are all grown up and safe I started to learn to play and enjoy life myself! Yes, who knew that playing could be so much fun, I am 10+ years old but they do tell me that age is just a number.

I am a bit reserved with humans at first, but after we become friends I am quick to purr and bake biscuits.

I am not so keen on other cats, some of them I like though. Depends if we have that common vibe.

The people that rescued me told me to be patient because someone special will see me eventually and take me home too.

They said there are such people out there that would like to show me what a loving family is and that would like to make it up to me for my years of suffering

I really hope they are not tricking me.

Thank you for hearing me out, I’ll go back for a little play now.