The Four-Way Test: A Cat Tale

by Lee Nunn

Sarah and I were burglarized last year. Our 14-year-old Corgi named Rugby slept right through it. The police officer said we need a gun. "We weren't even home," I said. The security company representative told us that if we aren't going to use our alarm system, there's no need for an upgrade. Some salesman. He instead suggested we get a "real" dog.

Sometime later, on Valentine's Day, we had to put Rugby down. Sarah and I cried all day.

We then adopted a boxer-pit mix. Bosco is 65 pounds of pure muscle. Sarah and I were walking Bosco one evening when we heard a cat meowing in a bush. Bosco tore after it, ripping the leash from Sarah's hand and chasing the cat across E. Morningside Drive. I caught up to Bosco and pulled him off the cat.

After taking Bosco home, my nephew Chris and I went back to check on the cat. Hiding in the bushes, the cat was hyperventilating, apparently paralyzed and not likely to survive. We put the cat in a box and took it to "Pets are People, Too." At the door, part of me said, "Just leave the box, knock on the door, and run." The other part of me remembered the Four-Way Test. I went inside and told the whole story.

The vet, pessimistic that the cat would live, found the cat had an implanted chip for locating the owner. I feared what massive vet bill would follow. By phone, the vet told me the cat was improving, and the bill was $535. Okay, so far.

I called the next day asking again about "the cat my dog got." "You mean the one the car got," the lady on the phone said. "No," I insisted, "the one my dog got."

"No," she said, "we're talking about the same cat." The cat, in fact, had no serious injuries. It had been hit by a car, stunned, and had road burn. It had been wandering around confused for eight days.

The owner credited Bosco with saving their cat's life. He left a thoughtful message on our machine that their 11-year-old daughter had never given up hope, praying every night that the cat would come back. It was very touching.

I just hope they never meet Bosco.

The thing to remember (and it's easier in hindsight) is that if you're not sure about how to handle a situation, the Four-Way Test is the way to go.