Estimated birthdate 3-20-12
Rescued 5-2-12
Black longhair with green eyes
We moved in Katy, TX in 2012, and our cat had passed away the previous year. I had thought about getting another cat, but I guess I was still grieving "AJ" and just couldn't get any interest in looking.
One day we received an email from the president of our neighborhood association with the above picture of a rescued 2-month old black kitten. She included a plea to either claim or adopt her. Those eyes got to me. I kept looking at the email and finally emailed her the next day to to inquire if anyone had claimed the kitten. She immediately responded with a "No! Are you interested?" I forwarded the email to my husband and both my kids and asked them what they thought. All three said "yes, you need a kitty in your life again" So I emailed the president, and she arranged for the rescuers to bring the kitten to me.
When the man and his wife brought her, I found out the story behind Katy's rescue. The man was a runner and frequently jogged along a very busy street south of our house. For two or three days, he kept hearing an odd sound when he jogged past some trees in a median. Finally he investigated and saw a kitten up in one of the trees. He went home and got a ladder and rescued that kitten! How she ever made it across that busy street and up into that tree in the first place is a mystery. He took her home but they were unable to keep her because of the other cats they had in their household, and that is when he contacted the neighborhood association.
She has been a great cat who has handled four house moves and lots of change in her kitty routine. She is the only one of our cats that is allowed outside. When we lived in a house that was surrounded by an 8-foot privacy fence, we let her outside under supervision. We lived on 5 acres from 2016-2020, and she went outside to watch squirrels and rabbits. Now that we live in a subdivision, she stays inside!
Ginger tabby with gold eyes
In 2016 we sold our suburban home and purchased 5 acres with my husband's Mom and sister and her son. We bought a manufactured home to move onto the land but had to wait a couple of months before it was out of the factory. On the day of closing, we went early to the office to have one more look at the model home for measurements. As we started out the back door of the office, the salesman warned that there was a stray kitten lurking around.
sweet little orange, needy kitten when I look at him.
Lynx Point Siamese with blue eyes
The next day I was able to get her to come out from under the house, but only as long as I was several feet away. So she lived under the house for two nights, and it was possible she had been there longer. The last night she was under the house we had a storm. I was so worried about her and the next morning went out to check on her. It was chilly but sunny, so I just sat outside next to the hole for a long time. She finally walked out and came up behind me. After about an hour of stealthy moves, I got close enough to pick her up. She resisted for about two seconds, then she was fine! I took her to the vet the next day and kept her in the guest bathroom for a couple of days. The other two (Katie and Jack) hissed a lot but didn't take long to adjust to her.
Tuxedo with light gold eyes
We began noticing Toby on our former 5-acre property during the early part of 2020. He first showed up at my sister-in-law's house and sat at the edge of her yard, then he began to lurk around our yard. Sometimes I would hear him at night making the "tom cat" call. We certainly weren't looking to add a fourth cat to the household, but at some point we started leaving food and water on our deck for him. He did not look malnourished, but he was thin and obviously hungry. There were many days he did not appear, and we speculated that he had an owner somewhere; but we checked with our neighbors and never found anyone who claimed him.
The first time I saw Gus was late summer 2021. He was lurking in our back yard, skinny, panting, and in very rough condition. I immediately took some food and water outside, but he ran, so I left it near the fence where I last saw him. I kept leaving food and water outside, and it was usually consumed, I hoped by him.
Then Gus and another small black kitty, probably a sibling, started coming into our back yard during November 2021, so I started leaving food on the patio. They would not eat in front of me, preferring to hang out under our shed, but we could see them through the windows, and they would often sun themselves in the yard.
After we rescued two dogs in January 2022, we didn’t see those little cats at all until I happened to see Gus in our front yard in August 2023, looking thin with patchy fur. I started leaving fresh water and high calorie food for him near our front door, and he would warily approach and eat, but he mostly came at night. After a few weeks he began to wait outside in the mornings for his food. I bought him a catnip mouse and made him a soft padded blanket, and he made biscuits and played!
The final persuasion was when I began to put Hartz Bisque in a bowl and push it toward him. He couldn't resist! One day he finally let me pet him, then I was able to get close enough to him to see that he was a boy. I named him Gus after my favorite character in Lonesome Dove - Augustus McCrae. After that he began showing up almost every morning, glad to see me and letting me pet him more each day. We speculated that he might be sleeping under the shed of a neighbor, but there is a farm at the end of our street, so he might have been sleeping in one of the farm buildings.
After a few weeks, he began to act like he wanted to come in the front door, and after checking around our neighborhood for a possible owner, I brought him into the house early morning Oct 8, 2023. I took him to the vet that day, and she said Gus was in great health, and he was cleared to cohabitate with the rest of the kitties! She estimated his age between 2 and 3 years old, probably closer to 2, so based on that, he was probably less than a year old when I first saw him.
First day inside!After a brief stay in the guest bathroom, he resided in my sewing room and finally moved into our guest bedroom. He gradually began to explore the house, and now he is one of the crew and seems very happy to be in the house. He and Rosie do a bit of hissing and batting at each other, but overall his transition was successful.
He is a shiny, black, beautiful boy and an absolute sweetheart - very gentle and shy, and quite vocal. I am so grateful to have him in the house out of the elements. I would love to know his background - if only cats could talk! And I wish I knew what happened to his little sibling. I hope he/she found a home.
12/3/06 - 1/6/21
Adopted 3/10/07
White lab/Dalmatian mix with black spots and dark brown eyes
In 2007, we lived in Edmond, OK. One day we ended up at either Petco or Petsmart where Free to Live, a no-kill animal sanctuary in Guthrie, OK was holding an adoption day. We wanted to get an older dog as a companion for our elderly dog Holly. On our way into the store, we saw a little pen with two puppies and stopped to look at them because they were just so darned cute. They were litter mates, and the female, "Daisy" was friendly but would not stop barking. "Duke" was not barking but just looking adorable, so I had to pet him. When I reached down to pet him he rolled over on his back and showed us the prettiest little spotted pink belly with his tail wagging on the ground. And that was that. We adopted him and renamed him "Buddy". Holly was not exactly thrilled, but she gradually accepted him, and they were friends until she passed away three years later. After several months of complete puppy shenanigans, he was the best dog ever.
Your cats are all beautiful! I’m allergic to cats but I do admire them. I have dogs. I had 4 little doxies but one past away in August of 2020 and one 2 weeks ago. It really is hard when that happens as you know. They were 15 and 14. I enjoy reading about your moves and homes and animals. Have a great week. Hugs,
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading this long post Sandi! I'm sorry about your little doxie. It IS hard when it happens. Thanks for visiting!
DeleteI love that you love pets... I laughed at cat under cover, and cat on a long arm
ReplyDeleteHaha, yes they provide us with a lot of laughs! Toby actually pushed the long arm all the way across - lol!
Delete😱 your cats are priceless! Cat under the bedspread and the long arm quilter cat made my day. Thank you for rescuing these beautiful cats. 🤗 to you and them.
ReplyDelete