mrs haddow

I fear I will turn into Mrs Haddow.

A couple of years ago, Haddow House was a flourishing little eatery just opposite the Trauma Centre in Harare's Avondale suburb. Besides the cafe, there was a scrapbooking outlet (yes - in Zimbabwe), a curios place, a tiny secondhand store and a cage full of petting rabbits (you could buy carrot tops).

Haddow House has closed down now but the legend of Mrs Haddow (c. 1920s) lives on. She had 80-something cats (according to Dusty Miller of The Standard newspaper)

We have five now. This time last year we had two. We did the responsible thing and had the male neutered. We decided to wait for a couple of months before getting the female done because she was "so little and fragile". Now, three kittens later, it's almost impossible to get her fixed. The local government vet managed to kill seven cats in a row who'd gone for spaying. The private vet who replaced T. (now firmly in the diaspora, like the family doctor) managed to do away with Susie, the dog from down the road (also in for spaying).

For now, our female is still suckling her kits. But a Heat Problem will loom soon. What can we get? Contraceptives? An acquaintance recommends using human ones, but for dogs only. A large cat cage? Where do I get that kind of a thing from in Zimbabwe?

A bucket, says my mother-in-law who is made of sterner stuff.