17 Cats

 In the end, yesterday, before and during the torrential downpour, of afternoon, caught 16 cats and kittens out in Lacomb.   

I'd forgotten my raincoat.  How could that have happened, when I had it out and ready to load.  But I did forget it.  The property owner lady from Portland brought plastic bags down, so I cut three holes in one, and slipped it over my head.  She brought lunch too and a great attitude.

I finally left her there, alone, to wait for her husband, who would come down with a pickup and pull back the trailer now loaded down with cats. It was near dark and I needed to take a hot shower, and warm up.  I was soaked to the skin.

 The cats would travel in the trailer to Portland to the FCCO to be fixed.  

Before heading home,  I met Debra, who wanted to hand off a feral girl cat in a trap, originally from Scio.  She'd been holding the cat for the Scio woman, whom she was helping, but then the cat got loose, from her cage, inside her house.  But she had caught the cat again and so I met her and she handed off the cat outside the Lacomb store in pouring rain.

An hour later Debra called me, at home, in a panic.  Seems it wasn't the wild girl in that trap, but one of her own cats she'd mistaken for the wild girl and shoved into the trap.  They said they'd be there shortly to get her back.  The wild girl still needs caught and is loose somewhere in their house.

Today I went to the colony again, after dropping off six cats in Salem, to be fixed.   Five were from the Rock Quarry homeless camp near Sweet Home.  I trapped them Wednesday. The sixth came from Knox Butte road---a lovely sweet starving young muted torti had come into a friends house desperate for food.  I do suspect her neighbors, who treat animals horribly, to be the culprits in neglecting this little kitty.  

Whoopee, girl kitten fixed today

WipeOut, girl kitten fixed today

Little Dude, a boy kitten fixed today

Anyhow, I drove back on up to Lacomb then, to set traps, after leaving the six at the Salem clinic this morning.  The Portland man was coming down.  His wife, who'd come yesterday, was working.  I set traps on the old trailer porch, down in the barn, that is littered in dead animals, up at the blackberry trailer, and even tried my luck with my drop trap.   I caught a young Siamese female right as he arrived.  He's brought the trailer back, after dropping the 16 cats caught yesterday at the FCCO.

I stayed awhile there, feeling like I should,  but I was really very very tired and not much good.

See, yesterday, after getting home finally, up there 12 hours, ready for bed, my elderly friend called me.  I hadn't heard from her in a long time.  Nor seen her.  This was like at 10 at night she called.  Well, she was up at the ER at Salem Hospital and really needed a ride home.  

I went and got her. I didn't need to think about it even a second.  I couldn't leave an 80 year old sitting outside the ER in Salem, especially not this 80 year old.  She's helped me a great deal over 25 years I've known her.  She got in my car with effort, bandages all over her legs.  Her legs leak lymph fluid and now one leg is infected. She wanted to stop at a fast food place so we did and got a box we split plus shakes.   We sat there and gossiped and laughed over silly things, like the old days.

Then I drove her home.

I got home at midnight and so I only got a few hours sleep before needing to get up to take the six cats to the clinic and then off to Lacomb again.   That's why I gave it over to the Portland man, when he got there, and I'd already set the traps.  He is very competent and a fast learner and I left it to him, outside of the one Siamese girl.  I came home and was just unable to even think straight.

I went to bed.  A Silverton lady volunteered to bring the six cats down here for me.  I was so happy and grateful.   

Anyhow, the man caught 8 or 9 more, besides the one I caught, so I think they're all caught out there.  They're pleased, I'm happy and the cats won't be reproducing out there anymore.