Christmas Notebook

Someone said, “Dogs have masters, cats have staff.” Seems to be the case around here.

We started with Happy when DD was three years old. She is DD#3’s kitty, but she thinks she is DH’s cat. She loves him. When DH and I sit down to chat, Happy comes from anywhere in the house and sits between us. She is the jealous “other woman.”

Happy and DH share some nap time.

Happy used to be an indoor cat. She is timid and the outdoors frightened her. But she enjoys it now. She is not a friendly cat and will growl at strangers. The vet says we should put “Un” in front of her name. 😀 It’s funny, considering her personality, how much she loves DH.

We do have a cat who is totally indoors. Buttercup belongs to DD#3. Two years ago, on Good Friday, friends called to ask if DD#3 could come to the city park to play. Her older sister took her over and a few minutes later I get a pleading phone call…”Can I have a kitty??” The friends had six kittens they were taking to the animal shelter. I called DH thinking he would say no. He said yes! Oh, my. So DD brought home a cute little cat and promptly named her Buttercup. She packed Buttercup around for the entire Easter vacation. They SO bonded. We’re glad we agreed when DD asked if she could have the kitty. Buttercup is the best cat…sweet tempered, loving, adores DD, gentle at all times. She’s a great cat.

Buttercup slept with DD from the beginning and still does. She likes to put everyone to bed. She first goes to bed with DD and stays with her until she’s asleep. When we prepare to go to bed, she races to our room, jumps on the bed, and waits for us. After we’re in bed, she stays with us for about five minutes, then heads back to DD’s bedroom where she spends the night.

As you can imagine, the new cat did not sit well with Happy. This is when Happy began to enjoy the outdoors. Now she is an outdoor cat with indoor privileges.

Buttercup seems to enjoy being on her back. DD carries her around like a baby. She used to nap on her back a lot.

Now she’s a grown up kitty, but she still likes to snuggle with DD.

We had an outdoor cat named Holly. She was DD#2’s cat. Three years ago, she disappeared in March. That summer the yard was overrun with rabbits. We didn’t realize how well she had controlled the bunny population until she was gone. In a yard with as many flowers and plants as we have, that’s an important contribution. So, two years ago, we decided DD#2 should get another outdoor cat. She set off for a friend’s house where kittens were waiting to be adopted and came home with Zilli. When DH and I saw her for the first time, we said (in unison) “she’s too cute to put outside!” Zilli was only seven weeks old and tiny. Probably too little to be away from her mother. DD nursed her along for about a week and then she was fine.

She is still small, but she’s feisty. There is no contest about who the alpha cat is around here. If the male cats get in her way, she just slugs them and moves on. I should say, though, that Zilli is a friendly happy cat. She’s not mean. Just the boss. 🙂

Zilli is now an outdoor cat with indoor privileges. But she was an indoor cat while so small, so we decided we needed another outdoor cat and sent DD back to the friend’s house for another kitten. She brought home Zilli’s litter mate Zak. Zak bonded with me.

Zak is another outdoor cat with indoor privileges. He spends most mornings asleep on the living room sofa, but spends most of the rest of the day/night outside. He is a friendly happy kitty.

DD#2 captured this picture of Zak and Zilli in August of 2006. They still hang together, though Zilli is the boss.

Suddenly we were up to four cats. How did that happen?? Then we were adopted by Pippin. He showed up on the back porch one day in September of 2006, and it’s still his favorite place to be. He was weak and malnourished, limped, looked like he’d been in more than one cat fight, and his fur was falling out. Sad looking beast. Now he’s healthy and happy. Still limps at times. DH thinks he may have arthritis. He is DD#1’s cat. Totally an outdoor cat, though he is allowed in the basement during the winter when the weather is bad.

In May of 2007, we were again adopted by a stray cat. DD named him Oreo and claims him as her own. He was small enough when he came that it was obvious he was in his first year. Now he’s a large healthy outdoor cat. Very friendly. When he first came, we had to feed him on the east porch because Pippin wouldn’t allow him on the back porch where the other cats are fed. Now that he’s grown, he’s one of the gang and has no problem with Pippin.

I never dreamed we’d have six cats at one time, but somehow it has turned out that way. All the kitties are neutered and see the vet regularly for shots and checkups. They all wear collars and all but Pippin and Oreo have ID chips. We wouldn’t want to be without any of them. 🙂

~~Rhonda