Kitty Zen
About 7 years ago, some new neighbors moved in up the highway. Their house is about a quarter of a mile away from ours. They are animal lovers and have rescued many cats and dogs over the years (They had 24 cats at this time, I think). They also had a horse. One day, we saw a little gray cat in our yard. She had a pink collar on but it had gotten tangled on something and was now around her leg and neck. It was a while before we could get close to her but finally we did and we discovered she had a name tag. Her name was Priscilla. We called the numbers and discovered she belonged to the new neighbors. They came and got her and there was a joyous reunion. They really did love this cat and it was easy to see why. She is adorable.
A few days later, there she was again in our yard. We had two cats of our own then so we had cat food in the house and Patsy always fed her and gave her water after we called the owners. They came and got her again. This cycle repeated a few more times and we all just gave in. She wanted to stay with us. It turns out she is quite cantankerous with other cats but also quite meek so she really wasn’t getting enough to eat or enough attention when she was around bigger and stronger cats. The neighbors had lots of cats.
We’ve had her about as as long as those neighbors did now. Today, she is 15 years old. She is still quite feisty. She is also quite charming , quite playful, very spry, and eminently scoop-able. She has gotten a little round since we’ve taken care of her. She likes to eat and now she gets to. She also goes for nice walks with me. She’s part of our family.
Happy Birthday, Priscilla!
Blog of the day here.
Quote from said blog: “Forty ounces of semi-frozen goodness makes the noggin solidify at an alarming rate."
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That is so sweet. :) :) Happy Birthday, Priscilla!!
When I was a kid, one of the neighbor's cats adopted us, too. The neighbor had a little boy who would play rough with the cats, so this cat decided to find a new family and sauntered in through our back door one day. :)
"Eminently scoopable"
Love that, it's the perfect way to describe a cuddly cat...
That's exactly what she did. She adopted us.
And, Fi, she's not really wild about us "scooping" her up. She tolerates it, though. The benefit is exclusively for the holder.
2 of our 4 cats adopted us too. She's beautiful, cyper-pets are coming her way for her birthday..
Many more too :)
Andrea,
Our numbers match. 2 of 4.
Okay, here's more information on our Birthday Girl than you ever wanted to know. And this is the condensed version!!
One of the first foods that I fed Priscilla was canned. I could tell she was starved when she started swallowing the little bit of dry food I gave her whole. I felt so sorry for her, so I gave her canned food. She one can of Fancy Feast, barely taking a breath until it was all gone. I gave her another can and she polished it off with little effort. Finally, her hunger was sated.
I later found out that she had been on her own, in the woods, for almost two weeks. I also found out that she was fed Iam's dry food, strictly, at home. A very healthy regimen to be sure but, like many cats, taste was of greater concern to her.
Anyway, the next morning, Priscilla was still here. No surprise there, right? I fed her again and sat on the back deck and talked to her. It was a chilly morning with temperatures in the low 30's. She kept rubbing against my legs, weaving in and out. I finally scooped her into my lap and closed her partly in my coat. I was surprised when she stayed there, purring, and eventually curled up and slept soundly and trustingly while I pet her. She slept like that for about an hour, and the whole time her stomach gurgled up a storm. That earned her a place in my heart.
Still, it was a good feeling to see her reunited with the people who loved her. But, as Rob mentioned, the reunion was short-lived. And so it began, a vicious cycle with her continously showing up at our house and being returned to the neighbor. Once, my neighbor showed up to get her and closed her in the cab of their vehicle while we finished a conversation. Priscilla managed to step on the control switch for the electric door locks - and the keys were locked in the vehicle. I was tickled by this bit of misadventure, but my neighbor was not. 5 or 10 minutes of work with a coat hanger got it opened again.
I later deduced that it was more than Fancy Feast that was bringing her back to us - - Priscilla didn't want to have to deal with other animals. She was the third cat that my neighbors adopted. She was a kitten then and, actually, she wandered up and adopted them. But, in the 8 years that ensued, they adopted 21 more cats, many were rescued from horrible conditions. All of their pets were loved, all were well-cared for, all were fed good quality cat food and given proper veterinarian care. I think they're amazing people!
When Priscilla was forced to stay inside to prevent her from running away again, my neighbor would have to get up some mornings and bleach her kitchen counters because Priscilla would urinate on them. My neighbor mistook this for a cantankerous nature but, after watching how Priscilla was treated by my 2 indoor cats, I realized that she simply wasn't tough enough to hold her own with other cats. She wasn't able to use the litter box without being hassled. So if she couldn't stand up to my 2 cats, she didn't stand a chance with 23. To this day, she will not potty with another cat nearby. She can and will hold her bladder for 24 hours, waiting for a chance to be alone before she relieves herself.
Okay, so I told you how Priscilla won my heart... but my favorite story is how she got to Rob. By this time, I had lost count of how many times we'd returned the little escape artist to the neighbors. At first, her presence caused big problems for us because her scent on our hands or clothes made our 2 indoor cats go bezerk. Oddly enough, they would end up in a bloody battle with each other - as if they were accusing each other of being the one hiding an interloper. Who knows what really goes through their minds? Eventually, however, they grew accustomed to her scent and that ceased to be a problem. Rob still wasn't happy about her being at our house, though. 2 cats were plenty enough for him.
In spite of Rob's convictions, our neighbor gave up in frustration and I made Priscilla as comfortable as I could on our front porch. My sister donated a Dogloo dog house to the cause and I put it on the front porch with soft bedding inside. I tried to get Priscilla to take refuge in it one windy, rainy day. Priscilla hates loud noises. Thunder REALLY frightens her. So picture this... I place Priscilla in her new house. She starts to settle into the soft bedding, but the wind suddenly changes direction and pounds the dog house with hail. Priscilla shoots out of there like she was shot from a cannon, just as Rob opens the front door to see what's going on and barely recognizes the blur that passes him as it shoots into the house. She keeps going, and now Rob's after her in hot pursuit, knowing the mayhem that will ensue if the 2 inside cats get to her first. He caught up with her, scooped her up and calmed her. I think it was that moment, as he held her in his arms, that she got him by the heart and she's never let go. He took her upstairs, which was major concession on his part, and we kept her up there until the storm passed.
Then we began a gradual introduction to the other 2 cats. We achieved harmony with the 3 of them for one winter. But I now know that Priscilla only tolerated them because she wanted to be warm. When our 4th cat, Timmy, took up residence on our front porch, I couldn't bear to have him out in freezing weather. So I set some warm bedding and added a heat lamp. Priscilla, who was allowed in and out due to the fact that she'd been accustomed to this her whole life, discovered Timmy's warm spot and took it over. She's never wanted to come back inside since. I had to duplicate the bedding and heat lamp for Timmy. And though Timmy's been with us for about 6 years, Priscilla still swats at him when he gets near her. She'll always see her little brother as an interloper.
What a wonderful story!! Yesterday was also one of my babies' birthday. He turned 9 years old. :)
Asherah,
Happy Birthday to yours, too.
Awww. I'm in love with Priscilla, now, too.
Happy belated birthday, Miss Priscilla.
Love,
Auntie Em