Discussion
Sitting round my neighbours' place last week having a cup of tea, they tell me that there's been been a lovely ginger and white cat hanging around their garden and garage for a few days. Obviously cold and hungry and begging food. As they were talking, the catflap made a noise and I walked into the kitchen to have a look. There was said cat, peering through and looking worried. I made an encouraging noise and he ran in towards me, and starting meowing loudly. My neighbour put some wet food in a bowl for it and that vanished in about three mouthfuls.As did the second bowl. And then the third. Same for some dried food, and a big bowl of milk. Never seen a cat so ravenous.
Problem was, they already have two cats (also ginger, oddly enough) and didn't feel that they could take on another random cat so they had to put him back out into the freezing cold. I walked back next door to my place and went into the kitchen to cook my dinner. On the off chance I opened the back door and whistled to see if the cat was anywhere near. He meowed back and within a couple of seconds had appeared on top of the intervening wall. I motioned him inside and resigned myself to losing most of my dinner. Indeed, one particular slice of bacon was appropriated by way of a flying leap that plucked it out of my hands and almost took my fingers with it. It was like hosting a small, vocal, ginger velociraptor. Nevertheless, I couldn't keep him in the house overnight as my wife is highly allergic so out he went, back into the cold. I gave him the last of my bacon but I could hear him crying quite loudly. Felt awful but couldn't really see what else to do.
So the next day I go and see the neighbours again for a cup of tea and there he is, curled up in front of the fire asleep, with a blissful look on his face. Turned out that at some point in the night he had thought 'fk it' and just walked back into their house through the catflap, and then had the cheek to curl up to sleep on their bed with the other cats. Cheeky sod. Oddly, the other two were perfectly happy with it and accepted him without a murmur.
Turns out my neighbours have now fallen in love with the little sod and have decided that three cats is the optimum number and that they are going to take him in. Problematically, however, he's so friendly and well groomed that he's obviously someone's pet, most likely from a family that have just moved into the area (big military housing estate nearby) and has gone out and got himself lost. So the neighbours take him to the vet the next day and sure enough he's been chipped. But there have been no enquiries as to his whereabouts (this was about a week ago, and we think he'd been living outside for about a week before that) so they decide that they're going to look after him regardless and if someone comes to retrieve him then great (particularly if there's some kids out there missing him), but until that point he's going to be part of the family. So he is now living in the lap of luxury, curled up on the sofa or in front of the log fire, playing with the other cats, and being fed some properly lovely nosh. Was round there this afternoon and and it's like he's been there since day 1. Happy as anything and incredibly affectionate. Loves his cuddles.
So there you go. Happy ending for this particular little cat. If his family come back for him, all good. And if they don't, then he's going to be spoiled rotten for the rest of his life by Vic and Jane. Jammy git.
Problem was, they already have two cats (also ginger, oddly enough) and didn't feel that they could take on another random cat so they had to put him back out into the freezing cold. I walked back next door to my place and went into the kitchen to cook my dinner. On the off chance I opened the back door and whistled to see if the cat was anywhere near. He meowed back and within a couple of seconds had appeared on top of the intervening wall. I motioned him inside and resigned myself to losing most of my dinner. Indeed, one particular slice of bacon was appropriated by way of a flying leap that plucked it out of my hands and almost took my fingers with it. It was like hosting a small, vocal, ginger velociraptor. Nevertheless, I couldn't keep him in the house overnight as my wife is highly allergic so out he went, back into the cold. I gave him the last of my bacon but I could hear him crying quite loudly. Felt awful but couldn't really see what else to do.
So the next day I go and see the neighbours again for a cup of tea and there he is, curled up in front of the fire asleep, with a blissful look on his face. Turned out that at some point in the night he had thought 'fk it' and just walked back into their house through the catflap, and then had the cheek to curl up to sleep on their bed with the other cats. Cheeky sod. Oddly, the other two were perfectly happy with it and accepted him without a murmur.
Turns out my neighbours have now fallen in love with the little sod and have decided that three cats is the optimum number and that they are going to take him in. Problematically, however, he's so friendly and well groomed that he's obviously someone's pet, most likely from a family that have just moved into the area (big military housing estate nearby) and has gone out and got himself lost. So the neighbours take him to the vet the next day and sure enough he's been chipped. But there have been no enquiries as to his whereabouts (this was about a week ago, and we think he'd been living outside for about a week before that) so they decide that they're going to look after him regardless and if someone comes to retrieve him then great (particularly if there's some kids out there missing him), but until that point he's going to be part of the family. So he is now living in the lap of luxury, curled up on the sofa or in front of the log fire, playing with the other cats, and being fed some properly lovely nosh. Was round there this afternoon and and it's like he's been there since day 1. Happy as anything and incredibly affectionate. Loves his cuddles.
So there you go. Happy ending for this particular little cat. If his family come back for him, all good. And if they don't, then he's going to be spoiled rotten for the rest of his life by Vic and Jane. Jammy git.
Our two don't like each other, they sleep in separate rooms, have to eat in separate rooms, don't even like meeting at the door very much. They only get together when another cat comes into the garden, then it's all for one and one for all, then they separate when the other cat leaves.
Joey Ramone said:
So there you go. Happy ending for this particular little cat. If his family come back for him, all good. And if they don't, then he's going to be spoiled rotten for the rest of his life by Vic and Jane. Jammy git.
Well, what a lovely episode and as said a wonderful ending. Good on the peeps who took him in. Pete
singlecoil said:
dxg said:
Three weeks now, and no sign of the neighbour's cats. I miss them.
There's more to that story, I daresay?The neighbour's cats are both quite old. I suspect the kitten won.
Introducing Kit-Kat. She decided to to move in with us and our two Golden Retreivers in 2013 after 'owners' did a moonlight flit off to Wales and left her. She is very vocal, placid for days then goes stir crazy, a natural born killer but also a loving lap cat. The upside is that the hair is the same colour as the dogs so the dust balls are uniformed. Downside is that our leather settee is taking some punishment.
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