Cat Yard Cats

Some of the cats stay mainly in the cat yard, much of the summer.

Then when the rains come, inside they march, creating, for a time, some cat spatting over who sleeps where.

Sisters Tweetie and Button used to be in the house most of the time.  However, Button got bullied by Honey and moved to sleeping in the garage cage room, with her sister. Nights they play wildly in the cat yard, wearing themselves out. Tweetie is far more social and flits about near me, craving attention.  Every evening, I spend time in the cat yard, reading, taking a wand toy and treats, and play with the yard crew, who love it.

Tweetie, whose right ear tip was a massacre at the Wilsonville clinic where she was fixed.  I took them back after they were fixed, to the trailer park where an old woman fed them.  However, not a month later, she died suddenly.  The family called me, wanting me to take all the cats she fed.  They promised donations and help finding them homes.  They didn't help on either front.   I took all the kittens and several adults, over a dozen cats, and found homes for everyone but the two sisters, in the end.  The most bizarre part of the story was when someone told me my name was in the paper, with her obituary, which stated people could donate through the funeral home, to help the cats.  Neither the funeral home nor the family knew my address however, nor had they contacted me about the alleged donation fund.  I was told two donations had come in, and asked how I would get those, and was stonewalled then told by a different employee there were no donations.   It was some sort of a scam is all I could figure out and now I have it in my final document that I don't want to be taken to that funeral home when I die.  

Forest too spends much of his time in the cat yard.  He has many friends.  Teddy and Willy Wonka are his best friends, but he has many and is well liked.

Forest gets some love from Teddy, behind him.  The boys are best friends.

Forest is a beautiful boy.

Willy Wonka dozes.  The cat yard grass is dead, like the grass out front.  The cost of water, the drought, I let it go this year. I do water the trees and the sunflowers but that's it. I keep the sunflowers because they make me happy and they make the bees happy which gives me a satisfaction.  When the rains come, and it is supposed to rain next Sunday, I'll plant new seed and hope some of it grows before the days shorten and the cold comes.

Sam is in and out, ever the gadfly and he has some sort of attraction surrounding him.  All the other cats want to be near him.  And yet often he is just plain mean to his fan base.

Juno adores him, but puts up with his bouts of evil better than the others.  Jade follows him around, wanting love.  She has lately paired off with Calamity, who is ecstatic to have a close friend.  When Sam went after the lovely natured Jade, Teddy quickly stepped in to comfort her slicing Sam with shameful looks for his behavior.

Sam goes after Jade, who just loves him.  She is forced to defend herself.  Teddy stepped in, to defend her, then gave Jade head butts and grooming.  Teddy likes peace.  Sam likes to stir things up.

Mums is Sam's constant companion.  Forest and Teddy love him but know enough to watch for his mood swings.

Sam

Arrow, the youngest of the Lebanon colony cats, is not that wild anymore. None of them are.  Di Vinci, the long hair gray male, I believe is working up nerve to be petted.  Huckleberry and Mona Lisa, the muted torti girls, are nearly tame now, as is Vino.

People think cats are solitary.  They are not.   I hate to see kittens adopted out alone as only cats.  Hate it!  Cats are extremely social with one another and family oriented.   Sure, it can be a challenge to keep the peace here.  But by and large, peace is the norm.

I don't tolerate bullying.  They get a time out and a stern lecture.   They want to please me, so they shape up.   You don't let behaviors go that you don't want to become accepted.  It's work, but worth it.

I also find more discontent if they don't get enough attention or play or if they are having hairball issues.  Who isn't cranky when constipated?

The oldsters, Vision and Miss Daisy, are like puppies, and follow me around every waking moment, which also is a challenge sometimes, because the other cats also want attention.   But it's all part of the job description---cat clan kingpin, that's me.  Ha.