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in Tiger’s foreleg. Then she connects the end of the I.V. tube to the needle, allowing the fluid to flow from the bag into Tiger’s vein. “That will rehydrate him and make him feel better,” she says as she adjusts the flow of fluid into the tube.
    While she’s cleaning out the scrapes on Tiger’s hip, I tell her about the conversation with Mrs. Frazier.
    “She can’t get the county to put those cats to sleep, can she?” I ask. “And what about Socrates? He could get captured, too.”
    “Yes, she can,” Dr. Mac answers. “The law in every state allows officials to remove animals that pose a danger to the health of people. Mrs. Frazier is probably most concerned about rabies. It is usually seen in foxes, raccoons, skunks, and bats, but domestic animals can get it, too. With rabies, you can’t be too careful.”
    “What is rabies, exactly?” I ask.
    Dr. Mac tosses a dirty piece of gauze in the trash and takes a clean one. “Rabies is a disease that is passed in saliva, when an infected animal bites another animal or a person. It attacks the nervous system and the brain. When an animal is infected, it becomes very aggressive. It drools and attacks anything that comes close. Rabies can be prevented if a bite victim receives treatment quickly. Without treatment, the victim will die. That’s why Mrs. Frazier and her neighbors are so scared.”
    “But you said you got shots,” I say.
    She moves on to another raw spot on Tiger’s leg that looks really infected. “Animal-care workers get vaccinated because we’re around animals all day, every day. It doesn’t make any sense for the average person to do that. Instead, the law requires all pets like dogs, cats, and ferrets to be vaccinated. That keeps the animals safe, and their owners, too.”
    She peels off the latex gloves. “Done. Let’s get him into a nice cozy cage in the recovery room before this stuff wears off.”

Chapter Five
    T he recovery room is where a couple of different things happen. It’s where we take animals who have just had surgery, so we can keep an eye on them. It also has our hospital “beds.” There are rows of cages built into the far wall, where patients who are still too sick to go home can stay.
    Dr. Mac walks over to the cupboard on the far wall and rummages through the top shelf.
    “What are you looking for?” I ask.
    “This,” she answers, holding up a sign that says DANGEROUS ANIMAL. STAY AWAY! She hangs the sign on Tiger’s cage.
    “That ought to do it,” she says.
    Tiger blinks his green eyes at me and meows softly.
    “He looks so sad,” I say.
    “He’ll be fine,” she assures me. “He’s in for a couple of days of rest and recovery. Now, I have a few chores for you and the others to do before you go to the Lakes’ house for dinner.”
    “Dr. Mac, wait,” I say as she steps to the door. “I have to ask you something.”
    She turns. “What, Sunita?”
    How do I say this? “It’s . . . Socrates and the other cats. I’m worried about them. Mrs. Frazier says they’ll all be taken away, and—you know what that means.”
    She nods once. Dr. Mac hates it when animals are put to sleep for no good reason.
    “Couldn’t you talk to her?” I ask. “Convince her to leave the cats alone? We could set up an adoption program like we did for the puppies.”
    Last month, Maggie tracked down a puppy mill and we rescued all the dogs who were being abused there. Dr. Mac worked with some other vets and the local animal shelter to find homes for all the dogs. I bet we could do the same thing for the cats in Cat Land.
    Dr. Mac pulls up a stool and sits down. She taps her finger on the counter for a minute. Finally, she speaks.
    “Mrs. Frazier has a very good point, Sunita. The size of that colony will just grow and grow unless something is done. A pair of breeding cats can have a litter of five or six kittens three times a year. And by the time those kittens are six to seven months old, they can have kittens of