Starting from Robinson Crusoe-Chapter 57 - 20: Cat_3

Chapter 57: Chapter 20: Cat_3
Slowly tightening his jacket, making sure he had grabbed the bodies of the two kittens through the fabric, Chen Zhou finally lifted the edge of his jacket and took out the two kittens one by one.
On the raft lay a carpenter’s toolbox, originally used by Chen Zhou to carry axes, hammers, and long saws; now it was used to confine the cats.
After making a trip to the campsite to settle the kittens, providing them with clean water and food, Chen Zhou returned to the ship.
He was well aware of which was more important: the drainage well or the cats.
Without delaying too much work, he could conveniently rescue two kittens, but taking the drainage well remained a priority over rescuing cats.
The sound of sawing wood continued until dusk, and the drainage well was finally completely removed.
Towing the heavy foreign well, enduring its stench, Chen Zhou freed one hand to wipe the sweat from his brow, feeling as though he was becoming increasingly adept at such physical labor.
He still remembered those first few days onboard; after just a few minutes of sawing, he’d feel his heart pounding, as though he would collapse from exhaustion.
Now, even after working for most of an hour, he wouldn’t feel overly tired. Just a growing hunger within, as if his stomach were burning through the food inside.
After loading the drainage well onto the raft and estimating there was still a good amount of capacity left, Chen Zhou brought up the dismantled floorboards, and then paddled back under the afterglow of the sunset to the increasingly sprawling campsite.
After unloading the cargo, he used preserved fire to cook porridge-like bread paste - a new staple for Chen Zhou that had replaced rice in his life.
Chen Zhou observed the condition of the kittens.
They were huddled in the corner of the wooden box; the bread in the box showed signs of having been nibbled on, while the cool boiled water in the small bowl hadn’t decreased much.
Although the grey cat had an eye disease, it didn’t affect its eating, and its belly was round with fullness.
In contrast, the black and white kitten seemed healthy but showed a lack of appetite, drowsily lying beside the little grey cat. Its curled body revealed a sharply visible spine, lacking the energy and spirit compared to the little grey cat.
Without medication, Chen Zhou could only try to provide as sanitary an environment and adequate food as possible.
Whether they could survive was all up to how resilient the kittens were.
Fetching some clean cool boiled water, he grabbed the little grey cat to wash its eyes.
Feeling the intense resistance and vibrant survival instinct in the small cat within his grasp, Chen Zhou thought this little fellow probably wouldn’t have much trouble surviving.
As for the little tabby cat, when Chen Zhou stroked its body, he clearly felt its limbs were already somewhat limp.
Grabbing it by the scruff to lift it, Chen Zhou found traces of water at its tail, accompanied by the smell of excrement.
"Diarrhea?"
Chen Zhou furrowed his brow.
He did have some experience in raising cats.
At his grandma’s house when he was young, the big cat gave birth, and if the little kittens got sick, diarrhea had the highest fatality rate.
Severe gastritis would develop into a serious parvovirus.
With weak constitutions, after vomiting and diarrhea a few times, kittens would quickly dehydrate, and with poor appetite, they couldn’t last long.
Chen Zhou remembered once having a favorite little calico cat that exhibited symptoms of diarrhea and didn’t survive for even a day and a night.
This little tabby cat still seemed to have some possibility of survival, but in any case, there was no medication here.
Chen Zhou remembered an old folk remedy mentioned by elders.
In the village, cat diarrhea was called ’flipping intestines,’ and according to folk remedies, feeding the cat tadpoles and live loaches could cure it.
Chen Zhou always distrusted these so-called folk remedies for treating ailments.
But right now there was no alternative but to use a dead horse as a live horse for treatment.
Separating the little tabby in another wooden box to prevent the virus from spreading to the grey cat.
Chen Zhou lit an oil lamp, planning to go to the riverbank to see if he could catch tadpoles or loaches.