3 posts tagged “cats”

Rich & I adopted Shamus (re-named "Seamus", same pronunciation) on Friday, March 13th from Friends of Cats, a no-kill shelter in Lakeside, just outside of San Diego.  We are so happy with him in our lives.  He is just the sweetest, prettiest, most good-natured and even-tempered cat we've ever met. 

He's around 3 years old.  He readily gives up his belly for rubs, accepts kisses on his nose, and even lets me play with his feet!  He settled in and made himself at home almost immediately.  Went all around the house, looking out the windows, purring to himself.  We can't believe this dollface had to wait nearly 8 months at the shelter before someone took him home!  He must have been waiting for us.... 

Saturday and Sunday went smoothly, getting used to routine...  Saturday morning, he saw a group of deer outside - probably the biggest critters he ever saw in his life!  My mother came to visit on Sunday, and he was totally nonplussed with the stranger in the house. 

Rich took him outside for a few minutes, and he was ecstatic.  On Tuesday, he caught his first mouse - in the house!  Killed it by the next day.  We praised and petted and praised him up and down for it.  He was VERY pleased with himself.  Last weekend we let him go outside (with one of us chaperoning him) and explore his new territory.  Anytime he wandered close to the edge of the property, we'd call him back, and he'd trot back.  He's very smart.  Today, he climbed a tree.  We're not going to let him go out at night, ever.  And not during the day unless we're there - at least for the first few weeks.  He's also a good cat to sleep with - curls up quite unobtrusively next to you, not like Kabuki who'd sleep on your face if you let him.

Our cat, Kabuki, disappeared on Sunday morning between 3:00am and 4:45am.  We looked all over the property for hours, didn't find any trace of anything.  We did find bobcat tracks right next to Kabuki's tracks, so perhaps he was being stalked. 

Hung around the house all afternoon, hoping he'd return.  He's never, in almost 10 years, kept us worried for more than two hours.  So we have to assume he's gone.  He had an amazing life, though.  For the past 4-1/2 years, he's lived in the country with complete freedom.  He climbed trees, maintained his territory, caught and ate mice, rats, lizards and birds.  He also had two ready laps and slept on the bed with us, sometimes under the covers.  He got hugs and kisses and kibble every day.  I would much rather have had a free and happy cat for 4-1/2 years, than have one for 20 years imprisoned in the house.
He was still a kitten here.

The camera lens cap was dangling from a cord, and he was just about to whack me!

In the summer, he suffered from the heat -- so we wet a dishtowel and laid it over him.  He was so tie-tie he didn't even protest!

This was our first year in Cuyamaca Woods, when we lived in a trailer while the house was being built.

Under the trailer with a lizard in his mouth.

Here he is drinking delicious scummy microbe-filled water from a dip in a rock, right by our bench.

Here he is behind the house after a snow.

Sitting with TS Eliot (also lost - 3 years ago) while snowbound.  They both just got up on our chairs, with our respective drinks in front.

Both cats live on at Altamira in spirit.