November 2017 is when the Feral Fam came into our lives. Mama Cat and her three kittens played under the fir tree on the gravel road behind us. Through a series that began with me taking food up to them and then realizing they would come down here to eat, getting them a tent of napping to keep them warm on cold days, and putting rugs up there to help keep their little paws warm, those little buggers made their way into my heart. How I was so concerned for them on those cold snowy days when they didn't come around and keeping them fed and providing some warmth for them when they did. I have taken a million pictures and videos of their antics and probably my favorite is the playing in the snow videos. What pure joy they experienced. What wonder I had as they played so hard in that snow.
The tent of napping and playing moved to the deck and then the tube and cube came next as Cali introduced her kittens to me one morning. It took me by surprise. She brought them to the deck, made sure I saw them and then she whisked them away. Several days later she moved in with those kittens, there were three of them. One was black and white, one was orange and one was a mix of black and white with a few calico markings. The little black and white one was snatched by a hawk, the little orange kitty fell ill and could not recover, but Cali still has Riley. Cali is a smart cat. She hid those three kittens under a storage tub when she felt danger was near. When we moved some old wire fence to the deck she used it to keep her kittens safe as she put them under it while she ate. Seen but not easy to get to. Her suspicions were aroused when I took an interest in the orange kitty, to catch him and get him to the vet. She never let him out of her sight and one time when I reached down just to pet his head, it's the only time she has ever done the deep growl that cats use when they mean business.
Meanwhile Camo had four kittens of which I only saw once, at dusk under the living room window. There were three solid black kittens and one mixed....I never saw them again. Mama Cat would come around in the mornings and some evenings, but it has been weeks since I have seen her. She looked like she was with litter but if she was nearby, she would still come to eat. MJ has shown up but not often. He looked so old to be under a year old. He would rest on the front porch rockers many an evening. He had fur missing on legs and his tail and the last time I saw him, his right eye looked like it had been scratched. MJ didn't move with his quickness he once possessed but a few times he seemed to be hanging with Cali more as a protector than a suitor. Cali has always eaten in my presence while the others usually stayed back. Many a morning and evening I stood outside only for Cali to enjoy a meal since her siblings and mother pushed her around. She was the runt of the litter.
Last night I thought Cali had been killed by the three dogs next door. I was in the living room and Buddy out on the porch. I heard this horrible scream of a cat. I ran out to the porch to check on Buddy thinking maybe Cali and Riley were on the open part of the front porch. No, Buddy was sound asleep but the dogs next door were in a frenzy. They bark a lot but this was a blood curdling sound. When I looked over that way I thought I saw them just barking at the fence, they do that a lot but what I saw next will never leave me. The three of them had the cat in their mouths and they ripped that cat apart. I burst into tears because the back legs of that poor cat are the same markings of Cali. Coming inside frantic knowing I could not watch those dogs anymore, I frantically called Roy and through the tears and sobs he began to understand what I was saying. Knowing that this is the kind of thing that throws me into afib, I settled down. Poor Brenda, she called to see if I was home from Charlotte and she got more than she bargained for... in the midst of the settling and I told her what I thought had happened. It was near the time to go upstairs and I went over to the living room window to close the curtains because there wasn't any reason to have them open because there wouldn't be play time under that window. A flash of white caught my eye and there was Riley. She was looking around and then got into the attack position of a cat and there from under the deck came Cali. There was great rejoicing in the midst of this place.
That still meant a cat had met the end of its life by those huge dogs next door. I don't think the cat was Big Sissy Daddy, Cali's boyfriend, but either Camo or MJ. I'm thinking it was MJ but it probably more likely to be Camo since MJ hasn't been around. Either way, out of the Feral Fam of Four, only Cali and her kitten Riley are seen here on a regular basis. It makes me sad to think that these cats made it through a tough and cold winter but summer has been the downfall.
The lessons these cats have provided...my view has changed and so has perspective on so many things. Each morning when I hear the sound of paws hitting the deck I smile, because it is Cali and Riley. Cali is playing like a kitten with her daughter and it is so fun to watch because her siblings didn't play with her much, unless they ganged up to attack her. Mama Cat rebuffed any interest Cali had in being with her. Those lonely moments in cat life made her a strong one and a survivor. She wanders but she also sticks close by.
This afternoon Riley has been playing in the side yard while Cali is sleeping under the deck. Buddy watches them but if she is able, she moves out onto the front porch and sleeps away the afternoon. Before leaving for church I made sure Buddy was well supplied and I fed Cali and Riley. Cali hissed at me but it seems like she does that out of some cat code, cause I have never done any harm to those cats. Then she meowed as she waited for me to get everything ready and laid out for their morning's energy boost.
I think that the Feral Fam is no more and for now it is just Cali and Riley...oh and sometimes Big Sissy Daddy. He came and ate yesterday morning. I have loved those cats through tough and easy times. I noticed the tent of napping has a slit in the top, so soon enough I'll go back over to Walmart and get another tent and put in winter insulation materials...pool noodles when they go on sale.
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