For the last four months, I’ve had the pleasure of sharing my life with two kittens, Freckles and Oreo (aka Snuggles and The Sheriff). They filled a void I didn’t know I had, and I look forward to many years of love and laughter with them.
But really, I hadn’t planned on getting a cat. With my snake, gecko, tortoise, and blue-tongue skink, I considered my pet ownership card full. Besides, my neighborhood has an abundance of outdoor cats. Some are friendly and let you pet them, especially when you carry treats in your pocket.
When I walk early in the morning, nearly every house has a cat sitting in the driveway or yard. I don’t know if it’s the owner’s cat, or if the cat adopted the home. And yes, I have an outdoor cat that adopted my home.
A large, older grey cat showed up on our porch a few days after we moved in. My daughter and I called him Porch Cat at first. Now, it’s just Buddy. Whenever we went outside, there he was, sitting on the far corner of the porch. It took some coaxing and treats, but eventually he let us pet him. We have full-fledged adopted him with food and water dishes and a comfy bed to rest in. His ear’s snipped, so I know he’s been fixed. My neighbor told me that’s how the vets mark stray/feral cats.
One day, while walking around the neighborhood, I noticed a friendly, small calico cat looked pregnant. I call her Stubby, since she has a stub tail. As the days went on, it became more obvious that, yes, Stubby had a bun (or several) in the oven.
While I pet Stubby during one of my morning walks, the gentleman from her adopted house came out to talk. He confirmed Stubby wasn’t his cat, but she hangs around his house. They feed her and made a safe place for her in their shed. He also confirmed her tail wasn’t from an accident, but a genetic trait.
Apparently, this was her second litter. The neighbor had adopted one of her kittens from the first litter. That one also has the stub tail. He had wanted to get Stubby fixed after the first litter, but with COVID and the lockdown, he couldn’t get her to the vet. He said after this litter, he would make sure she was fixed.
Then, of course, the big question. Would you like a kitten? Hmm, I checked my pet owner’s card and sadly declined.
Meeting Stubby on my walks was a regular occurrence, so when she didn’t show up for a few days, I asked how she was doing. My neighbor confirmed she had six kittens. The happy family was resting in the shed. Would I like to see them? No, maybe later.
About a month later, I saw Stubby. She looked good and happily accepted my treats. The neighbor was working in the yard, so I inquired about the kittens. He informed me she’d moved them out of the shed. They suspected she had them under the house, but he’d been unable to locate them.
Admittedly, I felt sad about not being able to see Stubby’s kittens.
Then the day came when the neighbor called out to me from his porch. They had found Stubby’s kittens and had them in a plastic container. Would I like to see them?
My guard went down, and I walked onto the porch. While looking down, I stared into two sets of the most adorable eyes I’d ever seen. Do I want one? My resolve was fading. How old are they? Six weeks. Are they eating solid food? Yes. At that point, I penciled in two cats at the bottom of my pet ownership card.
When I got them home, I made a vet appointment to have a full checkup. For a couple months, we dealt with mange and ringworm (not fun at all). Today, the boys are healthy and energetic. I want to give a shout out to my vet and all other kind-hearted vets. Because we rescued them, he charged half price for their care.
I didn’t ask what happened to the other four kittens, and the neighbor didn’t offer an explanation. Yes, my kittens have the odd tail genetic trait. Freckles’ tail is slightly longer than Stubby’s with a kink in the middle. Oreo’s tail is extra-long. It makes for great entertainment for them both to chase it in circles.
When I work at my desk, typically I have one draped around my neck and one in my lap. I’ve ensured my other pets’ enclosures are kitten/cat proofed so they can admire one another from a safe distance.
Pets give us unconditional love. I’ve read about several studies regarding the health benefits of pets. In the News in Health “The Power of Pets” article, it talks about studies of different animals that may help with human health. A study found when children with autism spectrum disorder played with guinea pigs for as little as ten minutes in a supervised environment, their anxiety levels dropped.
They have linked animals to stress reduction and pain management for the terminally ill.
Pets give us unconditional love. They brighten our day and give us a reason to laugh. I love every one of my pets for bringing joy into my world.
