Friday, 1 June 2012
I HAVE A NEW FRIEND.
I have a new friend, his name is Louis but yesterday I learned that his real name is Freddie. For weeks now, Peter and I have been wondering: where does he come from? We came across him in a rainy cold day outside at the back of our home. He was looking drenched,cold and hungry. He has beautiful green eyes and his fur is jet-black, so I let him in for a bit of warmth and tried to see what I could give him to eat as I don't own a cat since Diana passed away 4 years ago. I gave him a yogurt which he quickly polished off. What do you do when you have a cat that comes around every day howling to be let in, hungry and cold? you give him warmth and comfort. He is not a wild cat and he wasn't looking as if he was sleeping rough so he obviously had to have an owner somewhere but the way he devours his food was making me wonder if he belonged to an elderly couple who perhaps couldn't afford the cat food every week because of the austerity measures or perhaps he belonged to a family who was away working all day and left the cat out to fend for himself during the day? These were just suppositions of course and apart from food and shelter people tend to forget that cats are sentient beings just like us, in need of affection and company not some furniture or a plant that needs feeding and watering every day. I cannot deny that I'm enjoying having the cat around and perhaps you must be wondering why don't I get my own cat, but since my cat Diana died, the pain of losing her was too great and the sorrow was so much that even after 4 years have passed, I feel I couldn't go through this whole process yet again and I don't have to.- Besides, we travel too much and cats need security. Anyway, going back to my predicament, I wouldn't want to have a tug of war with my neighbours over the cat either. Maybe now that I know who the owners are, I could go round to their place and talk it over with them but right now, I find myself ill with a sore throat and am trying somehow to get well enough, to travel this evening to another town to attend a wedding vow tomorrow, an invitation which has been received and accepted months ago since January. The Queen's Diamond Jubilee is also tomorrow and a street party has been planned in front of our home which would have been the perfect venue to meet my neighbours and talk about Louis/Freddie but that won't be possible either. Life is so complicated sometimes.
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18 comments:
Hi Maria
It’s always the way – the one day, and things have to clash. I hope your throat feels better tomorrow.
I wouldn’t have thought there’ll be a tug-of-war over Louis. The only danger is if the owners think you’ll always feed the cat. Then you might have the job full time.
I know what you mean about losing pets. It’s terribly sad. Cats and dogs only live till 14 or 15. There’s just no way round it, unless you have a giant tortoise, when HE will have the pain of losing YOU. I myself didn’t want another pet, but I now find I’m attached to my sister’s cat, who is middle-aged.
Well, the latest with the cat is that he came around this morning and the owner had put a collar which read: DO NOT FEED ME. I mean that's cruel!! If they won't feed the cat they cannot expect me to be cruel as they are. This is their problem not mine.
Diana was 17 years old when she died and she is still sadly missed. Yes, another animal who will outlive you its a parrot. Useful too, if the burglars get in the house whilst you are away, they often pick up the names of the burglars when they are shouting to get the things out of the house. Many a burglar has been caught on the strength of the parrot giving away their names. Burglars who are usually known to the police.
Hi Maria
Have you told the owners that you are feeding him? I'm wondering why this collar has suddenly appeared.
My next door neighbour who is not the owner of the cat was told by me that perhaps the owners are not feeding him something that he likes to eat or probably are not feeding him at all because when we returned from our weekend away, I found coming home a small empty bird egg shell and part of a baby bird wing eaten by the cat outside the back door. What does that tell you? Its quite plain that this poor cat is fending for himself. What am I suppose to do? when he is cold and hungry howling to get in? My next door neighbour told the owner of the cat that Louis/Freddie is visiting us.
Hi Maria
I think the fact that he has left something outside your back door means, in the cat world,that he has given you a present.
Maybe you could give him his dinner, but write on his collar "he's hungry."
Yes, the wicked thought did cross my mind but what I was going to write was too confrontational your idea is very good. "he's hungry" is not confrontational and I will write that down on his collar when he returns home tonight and let's see what happens next. I have already sent word through my next door neighbour that Louis likes to eat Felix and Sheeva. My next door neighbour has told me that the owners feed him Whiskers. I have given the owners the answer to recover their cat. Although I hear that they also have dogs and that might be another reason why he likes my home better. Let's see what happens next.
Hi Maria
Yes, they may find that giving him the food he likes will make him more contented. And who knows, maybe the dogs pinch his dinner?
My neighbour came the other day whilst Louis was at home and she warned me that if the cat is away far too long at my house, they might not let him go out at all. Louis was listening to all this conversation and you could tell he was fully aware we were talking about him, especially when my neighbour called him by his other name, he looked ashamed and he left but he is here today like every day. Mind you, he seems to eat less of my food so maybe the owners have switched to Felix or Sheeva one thing is for sure.. He hates Whiskers because Peter bought a box of Whiskers by mistake and I the cat complained he sort of gave me a look and walk away from the plate, I had to give the box to my next door neighbour. Her cat eats Whiskers. Louis is right now having a nap at his favourite arm chair. Peter says that I allow the cat to bully me. I'm so thrilled he is here.
Hi Maria
Yes you will have to strike a balance because you won’t want them to lock him in all day. I don’t know what to suggest, really. He seems happier at your place than in his home. Maybe you could try to have him in according to a regular schedule, so that he knows when he’ll be coming in and when he’ll be going out again.
Thank you Robert. The funny thing is that it is Louis who has set up the schedule. Yesterday I saw him go inside my next door neighbour's house and later that day she told me that the owner of the cat was at her home so how clever of Louis not to come and see me as usual because the owner had come to talk about her cat with my next door neighbour and Louis sauntered in next door when he could hear his owner's voice to see what they were talking about him, he didn't come in the morning he just waited until the afternoon to come and see us. It is like having an illicit love affair!
Oh something really funny happened today. The husband of the owner of the cat, came knocking at ou house unexpectedly because he had promised 3 months ago to repair a little problem with our floor and the cat happened to have just pop out only two minutes before he arrived. I can tell you, cats have a sixth sense. Imagine what would have have happened if the owner had come around and find his cat in our home? Oh dear... and immediately after the owner had left, in came the cat! Phew! worst thing of it all is that the owner told me he will come back tomorrow to polish the floor. The cat had better make his disappearance act again, I'm counting on it.
Ah, that is a canny cat. Mark my words, it will get to the point where the owner comes to see you and Louis will be hiding behind the curtain. Before long, it will be the cats who microchip the humans, rather than the other way round!
You want to know the latest episode in this saga? Louis came in with a LIVE mouse which he let loose in my kitchen. The mouse is as we speak, behind the kitchen cupboards, which is a long and dark narrow stretch. I have now closed the doors leading to the upstairs bedrooms and also closed the door leading to the living room only leaving one exit, hopefully the mouse will escape and abandon the house before we go to sleep tonight.
There you are, he has given you a present. Our cat is the same, we have to be careful when letting him in in case he has something in his mouth. In an ideal world they wouldn’t do that, but it’s their instinct and there’s nothing we can do to stop them.
I don't like this live present Robert
Today, I have to get a mouse-trap just in case the mouse didn't escape.
To top it all, his owner came yesterday to polish the floor and there we were in the middle of the mouse drama.
Yes, you are right. Cats are grateful and thoughful enough to bring in presents, they are independent free spirits going where they want, wherever they want, whereas dogs aren't like that at all, they are content to be with a master barking orders to them like: Sit! Run! Fetch! Stop! I prefer cats who know their own mind. They say that people are divided between dog owners and cat lovers and without fail, strong bossy people invariable are dog owners. Because in reality.. no one can own a cat, they choose you.
Hi Maria
He probably toyed with it for a while, so I doubt if the mouse had long to live.
Just make sure that Louis doesn't get caught in the trap. He's probably too clever for that, though.
Yes, Louis played with it and eventually the mouse must have escaped, as he didn't fall in the mouse trap and there is no nasty dead smell in the kitchen either.
He slept overnight in the arm-chair, he opened one eye when I put a fluffy blanket over him.
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