Heidi Chronicles - A Tribute To Kitty

Oh, June,

How nice of you.

For now, I've given up and am doing other things around the house. Currently taking out trash and recyclables.

Haven't seen any sign of Kitty or the kittens since I fed them earlier, but that really wasn't enough for all of them. No sign of them around the front door. I'm guessing she felt the need to get the kittens away from here before one got caught again.

Bummer. It has become a no-win situation. If I try to trap her, which isn't working anyhow, I risk driving her away, and that in turn increases her chances of getting caught in the enemy traps. If I don't try to trap her, she will stick around her most of the time to eat and such, but I won't be able to get her to the vet, and eventually she will probably end up in one of their traps just because she has learned to go around the neighborhood to see what she can find. She will probably keep doing that no matter what I feed her, esp as long as she has kittens and is not spayed.

I haven't restocked the trap on the back patio. I finally realized with nightfall I'll just end up feeding a lot of tuna to opossums and raccoons in the backyard trap. For the rest of the night I will just use the one at the front door. Planning to put some tuna in that one before bed.

Still no sign of Kitty or the little ones since they got caught in the trap late this afternoon. I did see the black tom sneaking around my front door. He ate some dry cat food that I had left out for Kitty but stayed clear of the trap and sardines.

As alluded to earlier, the opossum ate the last scrap of tuna and I didn't put anything else in the trap because I didn't want to be catching opossums and raccoons all night. As I was preparing for bed a few minutes ago, I stopped by the back door just to be sure nothing had wandered into the [empty] trap. Low and behold, what did I see in the trap? A big, furry, and very pretty raccoon. It was pretty dark on the patio, and I didn't recognize the raccoon even though I looked it up and down for a clue.

Poor thing was crouching in the cage with its back to the door (the same way it went in). It had its head down on its paws in that resigned posture dogs sometimes adopt. It didn't fight or spit or otherwise show any sign of aggression, nor did it struggle to get away. It just crouched there looking resigned and somewhat pathetic.

I spoke sweatly to the raccoon as I approached the cage, saying "it's ok. I'm going to open the door right now." Even after I opened the door the poor thing refused to leave. I think he/she actually didn't realize the door [behind him/her] was now open and he/she was now free to go. The raccoon was very focused on me to see what I would do and very resigned to its plight of being trapped in there.

I sat down on the chair nearby, still talking to it, thinking maybe the raccoon was reluctant to come out with me so close to the cage. The chair was far enough away to give him more space to get away, but still the raccoon remained there head on his hands. I really think the poor dear had just given up.

I stepped inside to get him a cookie. I doubted the poor thing was interested in cookies, but I was desperate to find a way to get him out of the cage w/o having to resort to anything that might scare him more. I wasn't quite sure what I would do with the cookie, but I figured I would try tossing it just beyond the open door. Maybe if he looked around to see what the sound was, he would realize the door was open. It was all I had...

As I stepped out of the door and walked toward him with the cookie, the raccoon backed away from me in the cage and for the 1st time realized their was no back on the cage. He was free. He back the rest of the way out and took off for the forest. I was sorry to have freighted him that way.

He was so beautiful, so big and 'fat' and fluffy. He had a particularly beautiful face with a wide area of off-white around the eyes. Even as I had stood there watching him in the cage, I had thought how he almost looked like a small dog. I had even done a double take a time or two thinking, "is this a raccoon or is it really a dog, perhaps a large breed puppy?" I had to remind myself that such a dog could never have gotten into the backyard due to the privacy fence.

Hmm. Could I have just answered my own question. Could it have been Husky? I hadn't thought of it until now, but Husky was an especially beautiful raccoon. He had exceptionally wide and bright 'white' areas around his eyes and mouth area. The stark contrast made him most handsome. His coloring had earned him his name because he so reminded me of a Husky dog. I had even come away from the raccoon in the cage thinking it might be a male, this because it seemed quite large, so much so that it filled the cage and also because the eyes seemed far apart, something I've noted in the males. I had sat on that bit of info thinking myself wrong because it was clearly not HRH, nor was it Trouble. But it might well have been Husky.

Whoever the raccoon was, he/she would have remembered me feeding them. I don't know if that played any part in his apparent calm or if he really was just resigned to his plight.

Interesting that the raccoon went in the cage even without any food in there, nothing except the smell left by the tuna that had been in there earlier. Raccoons are just so darned curious about everything. That may be a downfall for them. I sure hope none of the raccoons find there way into those traps set by animal control. I don't trust those folks to let the raccoons go.

One last thing before I call it a night. Today I dragged that feather bed out to the curb where I folded it and left it on the grass. It was clear that the cats had been using it, BTW, because when I picked it up from the porch I found that it had a small but noticeable quantity of sand and loose dirt and debris clearly visible on the white fabric, obviously tracked there by lots of little feet, feet that had been in the flowerbeds, no doubt.

I hated to get rid of the feather bed since they were using it, but it was clearly visible from the street despite my best attempts to push it into the corner as much as possible. There was no way that could stay. I even thought it looked sloppy. I had no doubt the HOA would complain if it wasn't moved soon. I thought of putting it in the already overfilled garage but figured it would be better to buy them a real cat bed. Aside from the obvious problems of dealing with a king size cat bed, there were other problems. Down is warm, but it isn't washable, and thus isn't very practical for cats, esp not outdoor cats. It would get wet with the next good rain. After that it would mildew and be yucky. Best to send it on its way now.

Well, a little while ago when I took the last of the recyclables out, I was shocked to find that the feather bed is gone. Now assuming the cats didn't take it with them, it would seem as though someone picked it up. Ugh! Can you imagine. Who in there right mind would pick up bedding off the street, esp down which isn't washable? Ok, just googled and people are saying you can wash it but the big problem is getting the water out, esp since a king is a bit large for most washers.

Anyhow, I'm thinking my next door neighbors grabbed it. Everything I put out at the curb ends up in their garage, not that I care. Heck, that's the best recycling there is, right? If I thought they wanted it, I would have offered it to them. I think they are selling the stuff at yard sales, which brings me to the main reason I brought this up in the 1st place. If any of you enjoy a good yard sale, and who doesn't, just consider this when making purchases. I slept on the feather bed. When Widget was a puppy, he peed on the bottom corner. That's when I took it off the bed. Now it has been in the yard for a few days. The cats have been sleeping on it - and don't forget that it's filled with down and small feathers. All kinds of germs might be happy living in there. And now they are probably going to sell it to some unsuspecting people. Ick!

YAY!!! Before going to bed I put a small bowl of tuna (white albacore) in the trap at the front door. Kitty had shown a definite preference for the tuna earlier. The sardines hadn't attracted anything to the front door, but that tuna had brought one of every kind of critter to the back door, so I figured my last hope for fixing this problem was to put tuna in the front door trap and hope Kitty somehow went in there for it.

About 20min later as I was wrapping up my posts to you, Widget started barking again. He had been an excellent indicator of things in traps, so I headed to the backdoor expecting to find yet another silly raccoon or opossum in that empty trap, in there chasing fumes. Nope, nothing. Just in case, I figured I'd check the front door. As soon as I got near the front door, I heard Kitty calling to me. I cracked the door. "Kitty?", I said with excitement, expecting to find her at the door hungry. I was happy that she had come back to me once more and thrilled to realize she wasn't in a trap yet...

but she WAS! She was in MY trap. She had fallen for that white albacore tuna. When I 1st realized there was a cat in the trap, I really thought it was that black male. It was dark out there and with the trap on the ground and her hiding against the back wall of the cage, I couldn't get a decent look at her. She was just a dark image - like the black tom. I finally had to tip the cage sideways a bit to get a good look at her. I was never so happy to see Kitty. I talked to her, told her it would be ok, tried to calm her. I went inside, picked up a small, clean bath rug and placed it over the trap to give her some privacy. I left the one end open for air flow. It is 47F now with an expected low of 40F. I figure the bath rug will help to keep her warm.

RUTH, please let me know if there is something else I should do, or if I should take the rug off the cage for fear of suffocating her - remember, I left the one end, the end where the food goes, uncovered. You told me to use a towel, I think, but I thought the rug would give her more privacy and block the wind better. PLMK if that is wrong.

Now I don't know what I should do. I'd love to put some water in there for her but don't want to risk letting her escape - again. There is no litter or even wet paper in there with her - nor much space for anything like that. She is on concrete though, so I can clean it up with relative ease. I guess if she has to go bad enough she will just go, right? Will she be ok until morning.

I don't know if the SPCA does spaying today, but I figure I will take her there 1st thing in the morning just in case. I'll call 1st, but if they don't answer, I'm just going. I don't want to have to keep her in that cage any longer than necessary, so I'm hoping I can get someone to take her today.

I'm SO happy to have caught her finally. I feel awful for her out there scared like that. I started to bring her inside, but I have hardwood floors in most of the house and there is no bottom on the cage. I could put her in the garage or even in the kitchen on the stone - I used to think it was ceramic but recently learned it is stone, shows what I know.

As soon as I get her to the vet, I will reset the traps in hopes of catching the kittens - again. If I get them, I'll take them to the SPCA for adoption. The heck with Gladys. Who put her in charge of everything anyhow?

Really disappointing news on your local animal control. There still are places where animal control is under the police department, and the SPCA/humane society a separate and unrelated operation. Sounds like that's the case in Charleston, and it's rarely good news. In those cases, animal control is often an actual branch of the police dept., though of course the ACOs don't have anything like the powers or weapons of regular police officers. This draws a lot of cop "wannabes" who act with the tough macho attitude they aspire to in the police. What really concerns me is the fact that they won't guarantee to release the cats on the same street where they were trapped. An animal who has just had surgery and is dumped outside their familiar territory is at huge risk from established cats, wildlife, dogs, etc., etc.; if that's what they do, they are doing the cats anything but a kindness by altering them. If they aren't willing to help or work with you (and this is purely ridiculous), you need to find a way to work around them. You have an excellent, logically compelling and heartwarming story; you just need to make it work for you.

Step one: call back, and probably call all the other animal control agencies for whom you found listings. Present your story again; tell them you have photos of the cat, and will be happy to give them copies to help identify the cat if she's trapped. If you still get stonewalled, politely ask to speak with their duty supervisor and go through the story again. Tell them you can't understand why they're not willing to work with you; why would they not want the cat to have a permanent loving home, instead of living on the street where her actions could demonstrate additional complaints they would have to act on. Emphasize that you are trying to trap her yourself; you are merely concerned about what will happen if they catch her first. If you still get nowhere, give up on animal control and move on to

Step two: contact someone in city government. Don't know how Charleston's government works, but you might try a city council member if you have them, or even the mayor's office. Go through the story again; say that you can't understand why animal control is not willing to work with you in any way, either by delaying their own trapping or by letting you adopt the cat after they have trapped her. You are not trying to make trouble, you are simply trying to give a safe and loving home to a cat who's come to trust you and you to care for her. If they simply shovel bull at you and decline to help, say sweetly that you're very disappointed that no one cares about a cat to whom you're trying to give a good home; perhaps you could find someone in the press who would take on your cause and try to help you help the cat. Most government bureaucrats will find a way to avoid bad publicity whenever possible. And don't hesitate to go to the press if you need to do so; it is a fabulous warm fuzzy story of the citizen against an uncaring government, and either the written press or the TV news would probably love to take off on it.

Alternative possibilities: is there any chance that "Gladys" would tell you which agency she called, or would be willing to ask them to delay their trapping while you try to catch the cat yourself? Given her control issues, this seems unlikely unless you can find a way to present it that makes it seem like her idea or keeps the control in her court.

Second alternative: if Kitty is still willing to walk into the house voluntarily, you can make that work. Close the door, obviously, then use tuna or the Fancy Feast medley she loves to lure her into the bathroom. Keep the crate and big towel in the bathroom while you're trying this approach; perhaps stash it in the bathtub/shower when you're not actively using same. I'm assuming the crate door is on a side, from your description, not on the top. If this is the case. keep the crate standing on end with the door on top and the door open; this will keep the door from drifting closed. When Kitty has had a couple minutes to enjoy her treat and relax about being closed in the room, open the big towel, place it over Kitty, and quickly scoop her up wrapped in towel; make it as tight around her as can be done quickly. Move smartly to open door of crate, place bundle with side that opens over opening in crate, and loosen your grip on the towel just enough to let her drop into the crate. DO NOT REMOVE THE TOWEL; it forms a visual barrier that is essential. Quickly bring crate door over on top of opening covered by towel. Now, holding door closed without latching it, slide the towel out and quickly latch the crate. Lower the crate into its normal position and cover it with towel to help calm her down.

This sounds a bit like those joke emails about how to bathe your cat.... It probably sounds really difficult, but it isn't; the key is to have everything in place in advance and to move very quickly. Please let me know if I can help in any way, and keep the faith; I have no doubt there's a way to make this work for you and Kitty. It just shouldn't be this difficult, and wouldn't be without the attitude problems from animal control and neighbor.

*************** IMPORTANT **********************

KITTY is in the TRAP!!!

******************************************************

Just wanted to be sure you didn't miss this in all of my ramblings above. Kitty is in the trap. Now I need help with what to do with her. Please see questions near end of above post. All input welcomed and helpful!

RUTH!!! Please see questions near end of above post.

More crossposting. CONGRATULATIONS: that is the best news!! Kitty will be okay in the trap overnight, and leave the rug over it; it will help calm her, and she won't suffocate. Given the weather forecast, she'd be okay as is, unless there's a chance Gladys would see her in early am and do something vindictive like release her. She would also be fine in the garage, and this might be better, actually, since you plan to trap the kittens later. Seeing mom caught will likely make them even more trap-shy.

I'm sure the SPCA will take her tomorrow; they sound like reasonable folks and will certainly understand that you can't turn her loose and she can't stay in the trap indefinitely.

Good work!!

Cheryl, DO NOT try to give her water; there is far too much risk of losing her.

Ruth,

Thank you SO much for all of your help. I'm SO happy, almost giddy, to excited to sleep. I'm like a 5 yr old. I want to go sit on the porch with Kitty. I had almost given up. When I couldn't get her in the trap all day, I was sure I was going to loose her, that she would end up in the animal control traps.

Your explanation, animal control being part of police dept and such, makes a lot of sense. Now I get it. Animal control is part of the police dept. Their trucks say animal control but have the coloring and logo of the Chas City police dept. I called all of those animal control numbers this morning and left msgs to no avail. I got in touch with them by following your instructions to call the police dept and ask for them. That's when the guy called me back, the guy with the attitude that matched your explanation. Also, the SPCA rep told me that they are not associated with animal control. They do the spaying for animal control but are otherwise not related. So, yes, you have our system figured out.

Ruth,

Ok. I won't crack the door at all for any reason. I'm going to sleep a few hours now and try to remind myself that she will be fine. As for the weather here, I went out in short sleeves to put out the trash and thought it was nice out. I have the alarm set to get up early and take her to the SPCA.

Oh, forgot to mention. The animal control 'cop' told me, "look, whether we get her or you do, the result will be the same. We'll bring her back." Of course, that was a few sentences before he admitted that they couldn't guarantee to get all of the animals back where they came from. Anyhow, you can see what kind of animal person he is that he thinks like Gladys that whether she is released as a spayed feral or I own her, it's the same thing.

Giddy, but going to try to sleep now. I won't do anything until morning. Then I'll take her straight to the SPCA.

You have a right to be giddy: job really well done, and what a relief. By tomorrow night the bad stuff will be over, and you'll get to start building a good long-term relationship with your new kitty.

It used to drive me nuts when I went to training conferences also attended by animal control cop wannabes; I could recite their script for any occasion, it was so predictable. It's the difference between a job and a mission, I guess, and might as well be a world apart.

Oh, just remembered. I have one of those hamster type water bottles but dog size. I'm going out to put it on the cage (hooks on from outside) so she will have water.

Nice gesture, but not essential. Get some sleep! Just don't open the trap, even a "crack": high risk, no benefit worth trying it.

Promise. I won't even think of opening any part of the cage in any way period. I don't want to risk screwing this up now. I'm too close to victory.

I just went out to hook the water bottle on the side of the cage. I feel better now. She wasn't as upset as I expected. She called out to me, but not a freaked out call, as soon as I opened the door (house door). When I pulled back the rug to talk to her and to hook up the water bottle, she actually pushed her head up toward my hand as if to rub on me the way they do when they want something. I think she was saying, "Hey, get me out of here, please." But I could tell from the way she was acting that she wasn't in a panicked state. She's not happy, of course, but not terrified either, and she does seem to be reacting to my voice and greatly comforted by it.

Ok, I gave her water. Now I'm going to sleep so I can get up in time to take her to the SPCA.

Thanks again for all the help.

Uh, oh. She does have tuna. She wasn't supposed to eat after 8PM. Don't know if she will eat it anyhow. She hadn't earlier when I was out there. She was too upset to eat. In the morning, I'll see if she ate it or not and I'll tell the SPCA folks what I know (about what she has eaten).

Her talking to you while trapped is excellent; shows her level of trust and that you will easily overcome the trapping experience. No panic about the tuna; just tell the SPCA she may have had a bit to eat of it after midnight. Stuff happens when trapping - not a controlled situation - and they'll be able to watch her and perhaps adjust anesthesia accordingly.

Cheryl.... that is great news. I'll be watching for updates.

Glad to hear Kitty is on her way to being a cat with a home and a loving owner. I think she is a beauty, but I can't really say I've ever seen an ugly cat. It will be interesting to she how she fits in with you family of raccoons and your dog. Hope all goes well for everyone.

Susan

Thanks Terese!

1st round of updates starts here:

By the time I got Kitty trapped and such, it was around 4AM. I figured I needed to get up around 6:30AM to take her to the SPCA. I didn't have an appointment. I didn't even know if they were doing surgery today or even if they were open, but for my Mon apt they had told me to be there by 8:30. I figured I should give myself ample time because traffic is horrible that time of the morning.

When I finally got to bed, I couldn't sleep a wink. Between the excitement of having caught Kitty along with my concern for her out there all frightened and the worry about what I would do with her if they couldn't spay her today and the realization that I only had 2.5 hrs to sleep, I was wide awake. I finally drifted off to sleep around 6:20 or so. By then I had backed the alarm up to 6:45. I did the sleep snooze until 7.

With less than an hour's sleep, I got up, fell into my clothes, and tried to call the SPCA. No answer. I left a message explaining my urgent need to get the cat [in the cage] spayed today and saying that while I waited to hear from them I was on my way there. It's a nasty rainy day today, the kind where you would rather not be driving - even if you had a descent night's sleep.

When I got to the front door Kitty was whaling at the top of her lungs. I tried to calm her as I put a tarp across the back seat of my car and loaded her and her cage on top of it, stinky bowl of tuna and all. And if that isn't one of the benefits of a used car, nothing is. As I backed out of the drive, she lost her footing in the cage and rolled over spilling tuna everywhere. The car wreaked of fish.

We were barely out of the driveway good when I found that traffic was at a standstill due to an accident miles ahead. With only one way out, we were stuck. In the backseat, Kitty was begging for help. I talked to her. It seemed to help. When I talked she would stop whaling for a while. When I stopped she would scream louder. So I talked, and I sang. I sang what I could recall of old hymns from my days in the youth choir. Anything to keep her somewhat under control. I'm not sure if it calmed her or just bored her silly, but it clearly helped.

Mostly I said, "I know, I know. I realize you're upset. I would be upset, too. But I promise I'm just trying to help. I promise I won't let anything bad happen to you (ok, little lie)." Then I promised to feed the kittens while she was away and ...

As I sat in the line of cars inching along, I called the SPCA from time to time. Eventually, I heard the message that indicated they were at a new location. Great, on top of everything else, I didn't know where I was going in the pouring rain. But I did know that the street they mentioned was considerably farther than where they used to be, where I had been planning to go. So, I was stuck in traffic in the driving rain with a screaming cat while trying to make it to an appointment that might not exist but which was essential and now they had moved the building farther away and I wasn't sure just where. Things were going so well.

When I finally got there, I didn't see any cars in the parking lot. Not a good sign at all. I left Kitty in the car as I walked up to the desk ready to grovel if need be. When I walked in the lady asked what she could do for me. I hesitated for a minute before asking, "Can you spay a cat for me?" She asked if it was a feral. I said it was, and she said, "no problem". Whew! The whole night and the whole way there I had worried about what I was going to do with the cat in the cage with no potty if they couldn't spay her today. They were going to do it. It was all over. I was there. What a relief.

I asked for the works, all of the things we discussed previously. The woman kept saying things like "that will be another $5, ok?" and "now that's $40, are you sure" when we finished discussing and I signed the papers, the estimated bill was $150 give or take a few. She said the number as though it were huge and I might want to reconsider some of the extras. If only she had known the estimate I'd gotten from the vet.

I could tell the woman was thrilled that I was getting the feral cat spayed and adopting her. A little while later when I was bringing Kitty in, I heard her telling one of the other women, "This lady is getting everything done for that feral cat." She said it with glee. These were the kind of people I had hoped to find at animal control. Here I had finally found the people who cared about animals.

Although I had kept a bath rug over the cage all night, somehow in the confusion and stress this morning, I forgot and left it at home. When I took Kitty into the building, the nice woman asked if it would be ok if she covered the cage so Kitty wouldn't be so upset about all of the things around her. She came back with a slightly tattered leopard print throw and then spoke gently to Kitty about how she was going to cover her up. Her voice was kind and caring. Somewhere in the discussion with Kitty after the cover went on, she said something about taking a deep breath and doing some yoga. It was cute and made me smile, not sarcastic, not silly, just enough to break the tension. I felt that Kitty would be safe in her charge. She said she would call me as soon as Kitty woke up from surgery and that i could pick her up at 4PM.

So, it's on now.

Edited to fix some typos. Did I mention the part about < 1hr sleep?

This message was edited Feb 2, 2010 10:41 AM

Thanks, Susan!

I don't know about the raccoons, but I'm not too worried about Widget. Kitty handles him well. He jumps in her face when she's at the door and she just stands her ground, looks at him, and rolls her eyes - or the cat equivalent. It looks like she is saying, "D-o-g! You better get outta my face!" I think they will be ok and eventually Widget will learn to accept her if not enjoy the company.

I'm also getting the microchip. She's mine now. I signed papers saying that I would take responsibility for her. Oh, and the lady said the microchip was her gift to me for all I was doing for the feral cat - free.

at least you found some caring folks. I'm sure Ms Kitty will "come around" again ... lots of love and lots of tuna.

Bless your heart Cheryl.

I put some Iams on the front porch and out of the rain for the kittens if they are still around (i.e., not caught already). I still need to trap them and take them to the SPCA, but after the stress they had last night 'loosing' their mom, I figured I would cut them some slack this morning and work on trapping them later.

Oh, I forgot a couple of things in that $150 special. They are also trimming her nails and cleaning her ears. She's getting quite the day at the spa.

I've been catching up on missed sleep. Guess I'd better get up from here now and start getting ready for her return.

**************** ALERT - This Just In - Happening Now ****************

KITTY is OUT OF SURGERY, Awake, and DOING WELL!!

Additional info after the station break
*****************************************************************************

Awesome!!!!!

Cheryl,

I'm so thrilled for you & Kitty! I've been watching this saga, with bated breath! My personal experience has been that my kitties & my raccoons get along great. They literally interact with each other. And the cats don't seem to mind that the raccoons share their outside bowl of food, (of course, the cats have plenty more food inside). One of my cats is a semi-feral, whose always lived at this house; my other cat moved into the house with us 5 years ago. Back to lurking... just had to express my congratulations!

Liz

Originally, I was told to pick her up at 4PM today. That's because they were expecting a feral cat. They said the feral cats start to freak out when they begin to wake up and find themselves indoors where everything looks so strange to them. I had told them that she is sort of semi-feral and that she appears to have been a pet at one time who was probably tossed when she got pregnant, but now after so much time on the streets she is skittish around people. I also explained that she doesn't appear afraid of the house but that she tries to come inside on her own.

Anyhow, they've decided to keep her overnight, not because anything is wrong with her but because they normally keep tame cats overnight after spaying just so that they can keep an eye on them that 1st night. They just send the ferals home ASAP to minimize their stress from being inside.

The lady went back to check and when she returned she said, "They don't find her to be very feral. They say she is a very sweet cat."

She is a sweetie. I can vouch for that. That's how she won me over and converted me from "I don't want a cat" to this. As to her not being very feral, well, she has her moments. I've got a few puncture wounds to vouch for that. Then again, I've no doubt a truly wild animal would have beat me up much worse over that crate scenario. She's definitely not truly feral, not wild; otherwise, she wouldn't have let me do the things I've done like carrying her through the house, and she wouldn't have joined me on the car the other day. I'm wondering though if the meds might be making her even more docile. I know I'm much more agreeable after waking up from surgery.

Anyhow, they think she will be fine staying overnight. I do too since the people there seem to have such good animal skills and since Kitty appears to want to come indoors anyhow and shows definite signs of having lived in a house in the past.

So good news. She doing fine, and the people with experience in these matters don't consider her very feral. (despite what Gladys says) This makes me all the more happy about my decision to give her a home and about all the heck I went through trying to keep the blankety blank blank blanking city from marking her as a permanent feral. Poor thing. It's like one of those mistaken identity stories. And all this time with all the kitty hugs and such she was just trying her best to say, "Please, help me. I'm not a feral cat. I'm not. I'm not. I want to come into your warm and cozy house and hang out with you."

Hi Liz!

Great to meet you. Welcome to the Heidi threads, or temporarily the Kitty threads while on raccoon winter vacation. Thanks for your input. That's good to know. KyWoods cats and raccoons eat from the same dish, too. I'm hopeful that they will be able to coexist. As time goes on I suspect that Kitty will be spending some time inside. She seems to have her mind made up on that.

When I got to the SPCA this morning, I stopped the car and looked at Kitty in the back seat. I was surprised to see that she was lying on her side in the cage. Her respiration as seen from the movement of her side, however, seemed rapid and thus belied her stress.

At the moment I'm wearing (around the house) a pair of old t-shirt knit pj's. They are soft with a pull over tank top and drawstring bottoms and have no buttons or anything harsh. I'm wearing them to get my scent on them, so that I can put them in with Kitty's bedding while she is in recovery at home. That way while I'm away at work and such, she will have something with my scent to comfort her. It was a suggestion made by someone else. I would never have thought of it, this despite the numbers of times that I have come home to find some fine outfit or article of my clothing wadded up at the front door for Widget's bed. He will pull my clothing down off the bed or a chair or anywhere he can reach it and then take it to the front door because that's where he sleeps while I'm gone. Thus I have to be very careful where I leave my clothes. More than a few times now I have come home to find something important, a silk blouse or dry clean only wool jacket, having been converted to bedding in my absence, and I always have to scratch my head wondering how he got that in the 1st place, but if he can get hold of even one corner, it's his.

So, anyhow, I'm working on adding the scent molecules to the future bedding now. : )

Success! Its a wonderful feeling,huh Cheryl.......and on a broken hours sleep! You did great and will have a wonderful friend to account for all the things and feelings you went through.

Sounds like you won't have to worry about your kittens getting trapped by the county"IT'S RAINING" and they probably won't go out and get wet just to help some feral cats.

Cheryl -- when i first met Jim... he had a Black Cocker... we all know how temperamental they can be...

After I had Jimbo, 2 months early ... we did worry, slightly how Duke would handle a baby in the house... since Jimmy was to spend 5 weeks in the hosp [due to his prematurity] we had time to get Duke used to the scent. We were told to bring home the PJ's that Jimmy slept in so the dog could get used to the scent.

After it was all over... Dukey loved Jimmy -- when ever he'd cry [which was a lot] Dukey would lay by his crib... they were nap together on the blanket on the floor... very cute.

So... yes, the scent thing will work just great.

and Buddy does the same -- he steals my clothing all the time, and sometimes chews holes ... and we wont even get into the shoe issue....

LOL, Judy,

You are probably SO right. And when it's not raining, it will be cold, and then when it's not cold anymore it will be hot, and ... Yeah, now that you mention it, that might take a while with their attitudes. LOL.

In fact, when I was calling there, no one ever seemed to know anything about a trap and release in my neighborhood.

Awwhhh, Terese,

What a sweet story. And a great idea. As I read, I could just see the dog curled up on the rug by the crib. Awwwwhhhhh.

Oh, thank goodness Maltese don't care for shoes. Finding ones favorite pumps chewed can't be easy. Malties aren't big on chewing anyhow, and they don't care for 'hard' things. Mine never liked plastic or rubber toys, only plush. Likewise, they like clothing but not shoes. The only time I've ever seen them with shoes it has always been to sleep on top of a pair of sneakers. That doesn't even sound comfy, does it? But I've seen both of them do it. They will have their body on top of one shoe and always, always use the other for a pillow, their head chin down right in the middle of [the stinky part of] the sneaker. I guess if that doesn't remind you of your friend, nothing will.

Wonderful news!

Yayyy!!! I'm so happy for you and Kitty!! ^_^

Oh, I am so thrilled to hear this news!! I said a prayer last night before signing off, and I'll bet I wasn't the only one who did, lol.
I'm looking forward to progress reports when she comes home, sweet home! Congrats!

Thanks, June!

Thanks, Marylyn!

Thanks, KyWoods!

I miss Kitty already!

Part of me wishes the kittens would show up. Honestly, I miss those little rascals, too. In ways I cannot fully explain to you unless you have ever witnessed the spectacle not just of a mother cat with kittens but of a mother cat with kittens in the wild where she is running things and humans haven't taken over her litter. As with Heidi and Co, there was immense education available to anyone with the time to watch and something just plain magical about seeing this little family working and communicating together to stay alive. The kittens were well beyond the age at which we would have given them away to new homes, yet Mom was still almost obsessed with their welfare, still directing them, still spending her days planning how to get food for them and keep them safe. They were an adorable little group, and I wish that Kitty could have kept her kittens forever or at least until she was ready to cut them loose.

Part of me would prefer a night without the drama of trying to figure out what to do with them if they do show up. Although since I have to pick up Kitty in the morning before work, tonight would seem like a good time to catch kittens to take with me to the SPCA.

Something ate a very small amount of food from the bowl I set out on the porch this morning for them. I can tell because they always leave an obvious, tell-tale depression or empty spot in the center of the food. It could have been the black tom, but I think it probably was one of the kittens. The porch, esp that dry corner, is a difficult place for them to go in daytime w/out feeling exposed, but it was my only option considering the rain. (Oh, and no groundhogs saw any shadows here today. Of that I am sure. But, honestly, I would prefer 6wks more winter as I need the time to work in the garden before the spring explosion.)

This brings me to another issue that can't be avoided. When it comes to trapping, I will hate to trap one kitten leaving the other all alone in this big, scary world with neither mom nor sibling to help her. The kittens are quite a team. I don't think I ever mentioned that, but they are. They get along great with each other and are always together. They play, too. I'm pretty sure I didn't mention that.

I enjoyed watching them play. They didn't do it often in front of me. Sometimes it was as simple as the two kittens sitting side by side a short distance away from mom and me when suddenly one reaches up and gently bops the others ears - and then does it again if there is no reaction. On night recently the little gray tabby was over in the partially enclosed court-yard area beside the door. I'm not sure the correct name for this architectural feature, but the area is enclosed on 3 sides by the outer walls of the house. An ornamental tree is planted in the center along with a birdbath. The outer walls are lined with shrubs, and the area is covered in pine straw mulch.

The kitten was in the farthest part of the courtyard, protected from both wind and preditor. She was back there running a few strides, jumping in the air, flipping over, running back, repeat. It was a joy to watch and it went on forever. It was as though she had enjoyed too much morning coffee or something and was now crazy kitty. She was also batting something about in the straw at times. It might even have been the little mouse I bought them, the one that gives off a high pitched squeal when moved around. Earlier they had played with it for days moving it 10-20 ft along the walkway daily.

Forgot to mention. Now that surgery is over, they have tallied the final bill at $115. Is that incredible, or what?

We have enjoyed hours of fun watching the kittens here play--they are hilarious, and sooo cute! We worry about them when they don't all show up for meals, too, and it's always a big relief when those missing do show up.
I call the raccoons their 'cousins', lol.

Doing some work around the house. Is housework ever really done?

Just went to the front door to check. Now that it is dark out, the dish at the front door is empty. That is almost certainly the work of the kitten(s). It could be the black Tom, but he comes around at less predictable times but mostly later at night, midnight or so. Kitty had taught the kittens to hide out in the hedges and trees around the front door and then approach the door in search of food just after dark, about now.

Each night Kitty and the kittens had been to showing up about now, 6-7 or so, their timing guided by the knowledge of when I come home from work and when I walk the dog, all times when I can be accessed for food as I walk to and from the house. They would show up again around midnight to catch me when I took Widget for his final walk. This was good for a late night snack or to supplement the evening meal had it been of insufficient quantity or just not to their liking.

So, you see, if the food was there before dark and is gone now, that is almost certainly the work of a kitten or kittens. I went out just now to refill the food. With much to do tonight and myself mentally exhausted from dealing with Kitty, I'm just not in the mood right now to try to trap them. I may put some tuna out at bedtime.