Well, life with Riley continues. Today is the 12th of January and she has been coming and staying in the garage since December 24th. During the warmer temps she spent most of her days outside and even made a slight connection with her family yesterday. But when it was turning cooler and a little before dusk, I called her and down the hill she ran, straight into the garage.
When she first came into the garage, her stools were runny but now eating solidly good food and thanks to Buddy sharing her Fortiflora, gastrointestinaly, Riley has come along way. There, we got that delicate subject out of the way. Even after the debacle on the 26th of trying to get her into a crate, she has trusted me again. She greets me in the mornings with lots of rubbing around my legs and feet. She will touch her nose against my hand and in the past several days, she has let me pet her just a little bit. She knows the two places I will put treats and will wait until said treats are delivered.
It seems that play is the way to this kitty's heart. So, we play a lot with the laser, the fishing pole with the small rubber fish on the end, the ball in the chute thing, stuffed animal, and newest feather/ribbon/animal on a stick thing that she chases all about. She and Cali played hard everyday and so it seems play is her love language, that is if cats have a love language. There is something about soft textures that she doesn't like, so she won't use the bed or a box that I put a blanket in. Today most of the blanket came out of the box so that she feels just the bottom of the box on her paws. So, maybe she will use that more to stay warm in the evenings.
Yesterday, was a sunny day. She went out and played, chased birds and squirrels making this mama happy....about the squirrels not so much the birds. Camo and Strawyer were in the backyard and for the most part the remnants of the Feral Fam got along. Even with Mama Cat thrown in the mix. Riley, Camo and Strawyer even laid on the same big rock together taking little cat naps. There for a moment, I thought it might be hard to get Riley to come back in last evening but as the first paragraph said, she came running in. That is one smart kitty.
She plays with all the toys and is not afraid of them like Cali and MJ last year. Pine needles are bark were their preferred toys.
I am so glad her instinct told her she was safe in that garage. She had come and gone plenty of times, even Cali did that but until the 23rd, no inclination to stay had ever been expressed. With coyote mating season upon us, I like knowing she is in the garage at night.
Every once in a while, Riley walks with the same languid style of Cali and I tear up a bit but what a gift having Riley in the garage has been. She is kind of like a teenager when we are outside, she'll play but reverts to feral mode in front of the other cats by going under the deck when walking close by.
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