Bibi the cat gets cancer operation thanks to thrifty owner
At Vintage Cash Cow our entire mission in life is to make it easy, fast and free for you to sell your items. Sometimes when you need cash for the more important things in life you can’t afford to wait.
When I found out that one of our customers donated the cash she raised to the PDSA (People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals), I called for a natter to find out more.
Esme was delightful to speak to and I’ve been looking forward to sharing her story with you since the second I put the phone down.
Esme used to be a tour guide in Greece, while there she got involved in a local animal charity. She helped to neuter stray cats and find them new homes. Esme had always been a lover of cats and while in Greece she adopted a fair few herself.
Bibi, a tortoiseshell cat, was initially adopted by an English lady on a resort in Kefalonia. Her coffee shop business dwindled and it looked like she was going to have to move away. Things were decided for Bibi’s owner when she had to rush back to the UK to help her mother who’d taken a nasty fall. Bibi was holding things up, back then quarantine was 6 months and her owner just didn’t have the time to wait.
“At the time I had 10 cats, and I thought - well what’s one more?” — Esme
When Esme adopted Bibi she was 7 years old and she settled in beautifully with her 10 new friends. Earthquakes in the region made it difficult for Esme to stay in Greece, that coupled with some family responsibilities back in the UK made Esme decide to leave the tour guiding lifestyle behind.
When Esme came back she bought the cats and everything else with her, even if she wasn’t sure she needed it. A few times she tried to sell some of her old items, just because she felt they weren’t being used anymore. Her rings no longer fitted so she decided to try and sell them locally along with some other gold jewellery but there were a few pieces they wouldn’t accept.
Esme got the feeling that she’d been holding onto some of her parent’s trinkets for too long. She didn’t want to donate or give them away. For Esme it was important that her parents things were seen, loved and enjoyed.
“What a shame to have these things tucked away in a drawer when they are no good to me anymore, You don’t want to just send them to a jumble sale, they’re a bit too good for that, but you don’t really know how to get them out there they aren’t really worth auctioning. It was a wonderful thing to just chuck them in a box.
When I saw the advert for Vintage Cash Cow on the internet I thought there had to be a catch but then I spoke to a lovely man on the phone, told him what I was thinking of sending and he was actually excited.” — Esme
Esme gathered things together that she was happy to part with, among them a vintage handbag, cigarette case and lighter that she’d bought for her mum as a present in 1965 when Esme first started working.
The day after her parcel arrived Esme was given a quote for her items that she was very happy with.
At the time Bibi was having to get an operation for skin cancer. (Esme says she’s always been a sun baby). The operation should have cost around £400 but because Bibi and Esme qualified to use the PDSA they were able to just make a donation.
Bibi is now home and recovering from her operation by sitting in her favorite window:
The money Esme made from her box was donated to the PDSA the operation was successful and Bibi has gone back to sun worshiping — well when the sun is out.
For Esme using Vintage Cash Cow was about more than just the money:
“I would urge anyone to do it because it was just sitting in a drawer and it’s not bringing you anything. The memories are already made.
It makes it easier to let the items go when you know they’ll be used and loved. It’s horrible when you do a house clearance and all the stuff inside is just thrown away. You keep these things for years and then find you don’t need them.” — Esme
Bibi is 16 now and a bit cranky but her human age is 80 so you can understand that. Esme currently has 7 cats living with her. I asked Esme if she would take on any more cats. She said with vet bills in the UK being so high she’d have to think long and hard before taking any more on but she’d have 100 cats if she could.
If you’ve got a story like Esme and Bibi’s let us know in the comments
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