Nigel update: Still walking with a walker, but the surgeon gave us a bit of a timeline. We’re looking at a year of recovery because this wasn’t just an ordinary hip replacement. And, you know what? I’m OK with that because we can sort of plan for that. I do know there aren’t any cat days of summer, but I had to at least try to be clever! But, it’s time for 10 on the 10th! I really do need to make these easier for myself! I’m probably going to really be stretching to come up with 10!
- When I was a kid, we always had tiger cats. My Aunt Lou lived on a farm and could be counted on to supply a kitten when we had the need. Each of those kittens received the exact same name, Tiny Stripes. I have no idea who came up with that name, but we always had a tiger cat. Our cats lived inside and out. We never had litter boxes because the cats just did their business outside. I really don’t know how many Tiny Stripes cats we had, but I’m pretty sure it was at least three.
- At some point, we got an all black cat. We were between Tiny Stripes iterations. I think he was just a stray. We were very original with his name…he was Blackie! I have a feeling he was an older cat by the time we adopted him because he was a real tom cat! We’d had him neutered, but he went out every night. A couple of times, he’d come back a little battle worn and bleeding. One of his ears eventually became a little tattered.
- When Nigel and I began dating, we were between cats once again. One of the guys he was working with had a mama cat with a litter. We got a calico which we’d never had. I named her…we’d never had a female, either…Tulip. She was the first of the cats we ever had that was downright unfriendly. She’d just as soon scratch you as look at you. I didn’t get her spayed in time, and of course, she became pregnant. I will never forget the day she gave birth. She bit me on my big toe and squirted a little one out! Before long, she’d given birth to three little ones. Luckily, we were able to convince friends to adopt one of her babies. By then, we’d had her spayed, and, in an unusual turn of events, she went out to Aunt Lou’s farm to live. She was just not a house cat. She thrived on the farm for many years.
- After we got married, we had a series of dogs. We had a cocker spaniel that decided he liked our neighbors better. Since they were looking for a dog, and Beau wanted to be with them more than us, he became their dog. One of the women I worked with had a friend with an adult Old English Sheepdog. We said we’d take him for a weekend to see if that would work. It did not. Then, we had an American Eskimo Spitz. We were both working and just didn’t have the time for her. Nigel found a farmer who wanted her. And, that was the end of pets for several years. Yes, I know this is about cats, but I wanted to give you a little background about why we were pet-less for so many years. After the kids were born and a little older, we decided to get a cat…OK…I decided to get a kitten. A friend of mine had had a mama with a litter so we got a grey tiger. I don’t really know who named him, but this wonderful little guy became our Oscar, the absolute best cat ever. Oscar would go outside, but he did have a litter box. When he wanted to come back in the house, he would sit at the door, and meow. But, his meow truly sounded like: “Mo-om!” We were building our house up north at the time. When we moved into that house, he loved it! He had a big old yard to explore as well as a field behind the house. One early morning, Miranda came downstairs and said Oscar was outside her window. She had two dormer windows, and sure enough, Oscar was waiting patiently outside her window. The only way we could figure out he’d gotten up there was that he’d climbed the brick fireplace because we only had one scraggly tree that was nowhere near the house. Unfortunately, Oscar got feline leukemia. This was back when vets were just beginning to talk about vaccinating (I think) cats against this lethal disease. As he got sicker, we tried everything…transfusions and medications. Eventually, we had to face the fact our Oscar was dying, and we were doing him no favors. I will never forget taking him to the vet that last time and holding him as the life left his body. We brought him home to bury. The kids were sobbing so loudly, I was sure the neighbors thought someone had been murdered.
- After a couple of years, my brother got Jordan, my youngest, a cat. He was a little yellow tiger. Jordan named him Louie.
- When we took Louie to the vet for his first worming and shots, the vet informed us Louie was a girl. She became Louise. Unfortunately, she was close to the road one day, and someone swerved and hit her, killing her instantly. The only way we knew that was the custodian at the school saw it happen. Louise was our last cat. We went pet-less for at least a decade and ended up with our first Westie.
- I have a beautiful big old grandcat named Grayson. He is a big grey tiger, and when I say big, I mean huge! He is one of the biggest cats I’ve ever seen. He is one of those “I can take you or leave you” kinda cats. He pretty much loves me, though, because when his family is gone, I’m the one who feeds him. He is a magnificent cat.
- Several years ago, my daughter and her family lived in Suffolk, Virginia. I was babysitting, and my daughter had ordered pizza to be delivered. When the delivery person came, I paid her, tipped her, and took the pizza. A little after that, I was looking for Grayson and couldn’t find him. There was another cat in the neighborhood who looked a lot like Grayson. My daughter and son-in-law called him Mason. That night, I happened to look out the sidelight of the front door, and there was a Mason jumping up and looking in the window. Right then, I realized it wasn’t Mason. It was Grayson! He had slipped out when I was paying the delivery person. I was thrilled to see him because there was no way I wanted to tell my grands he was gone!
- Why do I like cats? They are cuddly, stand-offish, amazing athletes, and I love that kneading they do with their claws. There’s nothing better than a purring cat, wrapped around your legs, your arms, or lying on top of you!
- Another reason I love cats has to be their arrogant personalities. If a cat loves or even just likes you, you’ll know it. If they don’t, you’ll know that, too!
Wrap it up, Marsha!
I admit it! This one was a stretch! I had to work hard for those last few, but I could have written a lot more about Oscar. He was just the best cat. And, the story about Grayson/Mason really doesn’t translate that well. I had no idea cats could jump that high. He wanted in even more than I wanted him in! So, can we talk? Do you consider yourself a cat person or a dog person? Have you had an animal that was just so special you physically ached when they died? Do you have any stories about escaping animals? Please leave a comment or two, and we can talk. I promise to respond as soon as possible.
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Great update and I’m glad things are going well. I love cats! My son loves them a lot and my daughter loves dogs. I will get neither since I don’t want to responsbile for anything and they aren’t so they can have a zoo when they move out and get their own place.
It will come as a big surprise to you, but although I love most animals including dogs, I’m a cat person 😉 Didn’t see that coming, did you?
I will need to see a picture of Grayson eventually. Big cats are fabulous (yeah, okay, all cats are, but I still want to see him).
My post will go live tomorrow – I could have gone on and on and on, by the way, thank you for making it so easy for me this time – and my take on it is completely different, but thank you for sharing all the stories (although they also made me a little sad)!
Although we don’t have pets now, I’m a cat person more than a dog lover. We lived on a farm when I grew up, so always had cats. Once we had a female ginger one (which is rarer as most gingers are toms) she was so streetwise! She would have her litter of kittens in a safe place, but when it was time for them to come ‘home’ to be weaned, she would come and fetch me and take me off to collect them. I’d pick them up and bring them back to the house. Job done. When they were old enough to learn hunting skills, she took them off for a few days of training. Once she had a son which we couldn’t home, he was a daft thing who grew to be twice the size of his mother. But she was always the boss. If food was left and she wasn’t there, he never touched it until she’d come back. And when he took a step out of line he got a swift paw to the ear! When she had future litters and brought them home, their ‘uncle’ was always chief babysitter.
Oh you made me cry, about Oscar. Our Castor original make is Oscar. I adore cats. Never had one that was nasty. They are so adorable.