When news came that the adorable kitten that hung around our office might be picked up by the city for extermination, I kidnapped him.
In February 2008, I borrowed a carrier from a friend, picked him up and popped him in it. The poor thing had no idea what was going on. He was had no idea his new name was Rory.
We immediately headed to my prearranged appointment at the vet to ensure that he was not seriously ill, and to get him started with much-needed vaccinations.
This kidnapping might seem like an extreme measure to gain a pet. But, in truth, there are thousands of other street cats and dogs that need proper care in the UAE. Rather than spend thousands of dirhams purchasing an animal from a pet store, why not shell out a fraction of that and help out the country's veterinary
clinics and shelters?
The veterinarian I took "my" cat to checked him for feline AIDS, which is very common here in street cats. It cannot be transmitted to people, so I would be safe, but it might have meant higher medical bills in the future, and the cat's eventual demise.
I noticed I was holding my breath as the vet announced the results of the test. He was safe. In fact, he was amazingly healthy for an animal that had spent most of his life scrounging in garbage cans for food.
Getting him in tip top health cost over Dh2,000. The consultation was Dh169, the first round of shots was Dh415, and a microchip, necessary to export the cat to some countries, was Dh162.
Over the next year I would pay Dh830 for the rest of his shots and Dh519 to have him neutered.
In addition, I had to buy a litter tray, food and water dishes and a scratching post.
While you could easily get away with paying less than Dh100 for all of this, I spent much more than that. How much more I won't divulge, but suffice to say that I drove all the way to Dubai to get a custom-made, 6-foot-tall scratching post that set me back Dh800.
The cat and I were very happy together, and I had no plans to adopt another one.
About four months later I met with a veterinarian to write a story about Feline Friends, a charity that helps find homes for stray cats, and fell in love with a cat at the clinic.
She had green eyes and a bad attitude. When she was let out of the cage she tore around the office, exhibiting a high level of energy. I was sure this specimen would get along perfectly with my first adoptee.
After filling out the paperwork, I took Jane, my new cat, home for a donation of Dh450.
She was already spayed, and had been tagged through the ear. With one round of shots left to go, her medical bills totalled Dh865 - much less than the costs for the first cat.
Because I already had all the accoutrements I needed, I didn't need to buy anything else.
I expected the new "siblings" to hate each other at first, and they did. After about a week, however, they settled into a weary truce, and a week later they began to play properly.
Although the second cat from Feline Friends was much cheaper, saving the first from certain death was rewarding in other ways.
(For more information about adoption, log onto Feline Friends at felinefriendsuae.com, or call 050 582 2916.)
amcmeans@thenational.ae
WE NO LONGER PREFER MOUNTAINS
Director: Inas Halabi
Starring: Nijmeh Hamdan, Kamal Kayouf, Sheikh Najib Alou
Rating: 4/5
Fire and Fury
By Michael Wolff,
Henry Holt
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Almouneer
Started: 2017
Founders: Dr Noha Khater and Rania Kadry
Based: Egypt
Number of staff: 120
Investment: Bootstrapped, with support from Insead and Egyptian government, seed round of
$3.6 million led by Global Ventures
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes
Director: Francis Lawrence
Stars: Rachel Zegler, Peter Dinklage, Viola Davis, Tom Blyth
Rating: 3/5
Company Profile
Name: Direct Debit System
Started: Sept 2017
Based: UAE with a subsidiary in the UK
Industry: FinTech
Funding: Undisclosed
Investors: Elaine Jones
Number of employees: 8
THE HOLDOVERS
Director: Alexander Payne
Starring: Paul Giamatti, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Dominic Sessa
Rating: 4.5/5
Brolliology: A History of the Umbrella in Life and Literature
By Marion Rankine
Melville House
Movie: Saheb, Biwi aur Gangster 3
Producer: JAR Films
Director: Tigmanshu Dhulia
Cast: Sanjay Dutt, Jimmy Sheirgill, Mahie Gill, Chitrangda Singh, Kabir Bedi
Rating: 3 star
The drill
Recharge as needed, says Mat Dryden: “We try to make it a rule that every two to three months, even if it’s for four days, we get away, get some time together, recharge, refresh.” The couple take an hour a day to check into their businesses and that’s it.
Stick to the schedule, says Mike Addo: “We have an entire wall known as ‘The Lab,’ covered with colour-coded Post-it notes dedicated to our joint weekly planner, content board, marketing strategy, trends, ideas and upcoming meetings.”
Be a team, suggests Addo: “When training together, you have to trust in each other’s abilities. Otherwise working out together very quickly becomes one person training the other.”
Pull your weight, says Thuymi Do: “To do what we do, there definitely can be no lazy member of the team.”
ABU DHABI'S KEY TOURISM GOALS: BY THE NUMBERS
By 2030, Abu Dhabi aims to achieve:
• 39.3 million visitors, nearly 64% up from 2023
• Dh90 billion contribution to GDP, about 84% more than Dh49 billion in 2023
• 178,000 new jobs, bringing the total to about 366,000
• 52,000 hotel rooms, up 53% from 34,000 in 2023
• 7.2 million international visitors, almost 90% higher compared to 2023's 3.8 million
• 3.9 international overnight hotel stays, 22% more from 3.2 nights in 2023
The specs: Lamborghini Aventador SVJ
Price, base: Dh1,731,672
Engine: 6.5-litre V12
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 770hp @ 8,500rpm
Torque: 720Nm @ 6,750rpm
Fuel economy: 19.6L / 100km
Match info
Athletic Bilbao 0
Real Madrid 1 (Ramos 73' pen)
The 12 breakaway clubs
England
Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur
Italy
AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus
Spain
Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Real Madrid
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
TOURNAMENT INFO
Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier
Jul 3- 14, in the Netherlands
The top two teams will qualify to play at the World T20 in the West Indies in November
UAE squad
Humaira Tasneem (captain), Chamani Seneviratne, Subha Srinivasan, Neha Sharma, Kavisha Kumari, Judit Cleetus, Chaya Mughal, Roopa Nagraj, Heena Hotchandani, Namita D’Souza, Ishani Senevirathne, Esha Oza, Nisha Ali, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Klipit
Started: 2022
Founders: Venkat Reddy, Mohammed Al Bulooki, Bilal Merchant, Asif Ahmed, Ovais Merchant
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Digital receipts, finance, blockchain
Funding: $4 million
Investors: Privately/self-funded
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kinetic 7
Started: 2018
Founder: Rick Parish
Based: Abu Dhabi, UAE
Industry: Clean cooking
Funding: $10 million
Investors: Self-funded
Company Profile
Company name: Hoopla
Date started: March 2023
Founder: Jacqueline Perrottet
Based: Dubai
Number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Investment required: $500,000
Messi at the Copa America
2007 – lost 3-0 to Brazil in the final
2011 – lost to Uruguay on penalties in the quarter-finals
2015 – lost to Chile on penalties in the final
2016 – lost to Chile on penalties in the final
The specs: 2018 Audi Q5/SQ5
Price, base: Dh183,900 / Dh249,000
Engine: 2.0L, turbocharged in-line four-cylinder / 3.0L, turbocharged V6
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic / Eight-speed automatic
Power: 252hp @ 5,000rpm / 354hp @ 5,400rpm
Torque: 370Nm @ 1,600rpm / 500Nm @ 1,370rpm
Fuel economy: combined 7.2L / 100km / 8.3L / 100km