In the weeks since I relocated from London to Melbourne, I suspect my reputation among those who know me underwent a quiet but decisive shift: from seasoned, sardonic war correspondent to something closer to a deranged cat obsessive.
My 14-year-old Birman, Aero, has acquired a global following. I have woken up to messages from London, Kabul, Washington, Islamabad, Paris – people asking, not unreasonably, whether she is still alive. She very nearly wasn’t.
Aero arrived in Melbourne after a month in transit blind, dehydrated, unable to walk and carrying an untreated infection
Aero arrived in Melbourne after a month in transit blind, dehydrated, unable to walk and carrying an untreated infection. She had lost 20 per cent of her body weight. For the first three days after I brought her home from quarantine, I was certain she would die.
The company responsible for transporting her, PetAirUK, is part of IVC Evidensia, a private equity-built veterinary empire worth billions of pounds, now reportedly eyeing a London IPO.
