Monday, September 24, 2012

Istanbul, the city of cats.

On the first night that we spent walking in the small streets of the old Istanbul, Sultanahmet, we were greeted by numerous cuddly locals that would come to our feet and begged to be petted. We realized the next day, as we walked through other neighborhoods in the city, that cats were waiting for us in every corner, even inside the monuments. There was one in Haghia Sophia who started doing that bread-kneading movement on my lap as soon as I kneeled to caress it. Another one in the large patio of the Blue Mosque was the main star, getting all the attention while basking in the sun.
 At some point, when I was so out of breath because I couldn't take the overwhelming heat any longer, we decided to rest a bit inside the Sirkeci train station. There, waiting for us, and actually laying on a seat was another feline, carefully grooming himself. As soon as he was finished, and noticing that I was not moving, he slowly pressed against me, as a test, I assume, after which it came to lay on my lap and slept there for a while, purring like a train while I petted him. I didn't want to leave.
There was even a cat in one of the many Turkish ceramic and souvenir shops, comfortably laying in a hand-painted plate, and I am certain, increasing the sales of the shop, just by being cute. We passed said shop several times and he was always there, laying here or there. It struck me how much the Turkish actually love these cats. You can see little bowls of water and food left for them in the street and, something rare in stray cats, they looked unusually healthy (shiny hair, bright eyes) and were hyper sociable, as in, they seeked human contact and would follow you around.
 I can not stress enough the importance of sterilizing pets, and for anyone who is in doubt, a visit to the local animal shelter should do the trick. However these cats just seemed loved by the society as a whole. It was a sight that made me happy.

9 comments:

  1. Nicosia tambien está llena de gatos y es famosa por eso. Los gatos callejeros son alimentados por medio mundo, pero nadie se los lleva a la casa ni los reclama como propios para no tener que hacerse cargo si alguien se queja (true story, ya me lo han comentado varios nicosianos). Asi que ahi andan todos los gatos muy contentos y con la panza llena sin tener "responsabilidades";)

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    1. Lo bueno es que la gente los cuida... me parece que en Grecia es similar, al menos recuerdo que allí también vi muchos gatos (y alguna que otra cabra) caminando por las calles.

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    2. Si...pero al mismo tiempo no tienen problemas en abandonar perros, gatos ni ninguna otra mascota cuando se cansan de ellos. Durante una epoca compraban pointers durante la epoca de caza, y terminada la temporada los llevaban a la sierra y los abandonaban porque "habian cumplido su propósito" :(

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    3. Sí, el abandono animal es un problema muy grave, porque la gente cree que los animales pueden sobrevivir por ellos mismos, que lo "salvaje" lo tienen a flor de piel como si fuera un switch. Y claro, no es así en el caso de animales domésticos que además han sido socializados y no saben cazar. En el caso de los perros es aun peor porque son animales de manada (en el caso de las mascotas la familia es su manada) y no son capaces de sobrevivir solos, como lo puede llegar a hacer un gato.
      Creo que se requiere mucha educación...

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    4. Si, y sensibilización. Los perros en casa siempre fueron mis "hermanos" y mi mamá decía que nuestro fox terrier era su hijo preferido jijiji

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  2. Awww! This post made me happy! I love cats, and it's amazing to see how these stray cats are treated as pets in Istanbul.

    Now, only to convince my husband that we should get a cat... :)

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    1. :)
      You should "babysit" a cat of a friend for a few days... if you have any friends with cats and see if he would start loving them, a friend whose boyfriend did not really like cats was convinced after a few days. Sometimes cats are just misunderstood, people think they are mean, based on prejudice or a bad experience with a cat that was not socialized....

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  3. Just popping over from another blog I read that you commented on, and couldn't resist leaving a message here! I love cats and this post warmed my heart. The guy in the ceramic bowl and the one on your lap really made me smile. That must have been a fantastic trip - I'd love to go to Turkey!

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    1. Thanks for coming over ! Yes, that cat from the souvenir shop was stealing everyone's hearts. It really was a nice trip... if you get the chance you should definitely go!

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