Some Facts About Darwin

Firstly, as I mentioned in a previous post Darwin trilled instead of meowing. So it sounded like he was always asking me a question. I found this to be very endearing.

Second, he is a very intelligent cat and almost dog like in the way he attached himself to me and followed me from room to room. Not to say that Shadow didn't love me or follow me, but Darwin was different. That's kind of why I named him that moniker.

Third, I found out quite by accident that Darwin is a fetch cat. Apparently the carrier I brought him home in had a small catnip toy in it. He found it and was having a ball playing with it. He brought it into my bedroom and onto my bed and left it for me while I was writing. I took one look at the ratty thing and tossed it out of the open door. To my surprise he flew off the bed, chased it down and brought it back for me to toss again. This continued for nearly 45 minutes untill he became bored. Meanwhile, Shadow just lay there and watched as if to say, "Don't expect ME to do that."

Again, I went to the Internet and found a page which told me that there are 10 breeds of cats who have dog like charactoristics. One of the ones mentioned is a Chartreux which is a breed of BLUE cats that happen to look like Darwin. So there was a distinct possibility I have a purebreed cat!

Check out the following link, and pay special attention to number 5.

http://www.marthastewart.com/356633/cat-breeds-dog-people/@center/852601/cat-breeds#351390

On the bad side. Darwin is a year younger than Shadow but was ferrel/wilder longer than him. So he does not have the social graces most hand raised cats have. Number one on the list, either he didn't know how to or just plain refused to use the litter box. This meant coming home from work and finding a poo pile in the middle of my living room.

This was dispite the fact I had a large communal litter box in the bathroom which Shadow was happily using.

This problem continued for weeks and I did a plethora of things to break him out that nasty habit. On the advise of a friend I put down contact paper sticky side up. Reportedly cats don't the sticky feel on their paws. So I covered the entire living room floor, to the extent that I couldn't use the roomfor weeks. The result was a giant fail. One day, I watched Darwin skip across the contact paper and poop on the very edge of the paper. Apparently the stickiness didn't bother him. I told you he was named appropriately ......

I ripped up all the contact paper and put down news paper. I figured if hes going to poop on the floor, at least wanted him to do it on paper that I could pick up easily and dispose of his waste. No dice, that didn't work either.

Next I went to K-Mart and bought those puppy wee-wee pads. I thought that perhaps this would work in conjunction with another litter box I'd set up in the living room. He didn't use any of them.

Desparate, I again consulted the Internet about the problem. One suggestion was to change the litter to sand or potting soil. Apparently ferral cats prefer to use either or both of those elements to relieve themselves. So I went to the local hardware store and bought a 50 pound bag of sand. Shadow hated it but used it. With Darwin it was a no go.

The next product recommended by the Internet was "Cat Attract Litter". So again I went off on a quest and hauled home a 30 pound bag of of what I consider the most expensive litter I've ever bought in my life. According to the Internet specs it was invented by  Doctor Elsey and was guaranteed to work. Supposedly special ingredients in it attracted your kitten or cat to the litter box........

What another big FAIL!  I still have three thirds of the bag sitting in my hallway! I'm not denigrating the product but, perhaps Cat Attract is only affective with only certain cats. It did not help attract Darwin.

I was seriously wondering if I should invest in a pooper scooper.  Do they still make those things?

TO BE CONTINUED

Dawn Skyy

A Not so Welcome Home

Give them time to get used to each other." Robert advised as I left Social Tees with my newest acquisition. I hadn't a clue what he meant until I arrived home.

As soon as I put the carrier down my formerly sweet tempered and loving Shadow turned into a monster! Growling and hissing up a storm at the new Kitty before I even opened the carrier! It reminded me how Moses went after Biscuit back in the day. Like Robert said, they would have to get used to one another. In the meantime, I had a very frightened gray Kitty hiding out in my bedroom.

Shadow was not content in leaving the new Kitty alone. He hunted and hounded him and when he got him,  he would ( please excuse the term) hump him. I was both shocked and flabbergasted! I thought that both cats were male! Robert assured me so,  plus I looked. So why was Shadow.......

So I went to my favorite source when I have perplexing questions. I found a cat expert site which explained that Shadow was merely expressing his dominence over the new cat. Like the alpha wolf in the wolf pack, Shadow was showing who was boss. Once this issue was settled the two of them started being friends.

I was assured of this fact when they started having mutual grooming sessions. So, I kept hope alive........

Dawn Skyy

A Companion For Shadow

Percisely one week later,  I visited Social Tees to check out a possible companion for Shadow. Robert had just had an adotption event so there were not as many cats and kittens available as there were last week.

The one cat I was interested in was not ready to be adopted yet because he hadn't been spayed. I was about to leave when I noticed a grey (or BLUE as its known in proffessional feline breeding circles) roaming around freely and going about his business. What really got my attention was the fact that he was trilling to himself. I asked Robert about it and he confirmed what I heard. It a sort of whirring sound like he was both humming and purring at the same time. I've heard this is one of the sounds Mommy cats use to communicate with their kittens. Right there I decided that I wanted him.

Being that cats are very sensitive the grey cat chose that very minute to scat and hide. Robert had to tempt him out of said hiding place with a can of food. As soon as the cat popped out, Robert grabbed him and put him into one of those cardboard carriers. But he wasn't having none of that! He busted right out of that cheap box and ran for the hills!

Plan B immediately went into action. Robert had a standard carrier I could borrow. We waited the Kitty out, grabbed him and stuffed him into the more secure carrier. I was then sent home with Roberts blessings.

Dawn Skyy

Shadow Settles In

Shadow and I got along famously and I discovered some interesting facts about him.

Number one, I didn't have to teach him to use the litter box. He tracked it down all by his lonesome and used it like a pro.

He also insisted on snuggling with me when I slept. There was no such thing as shutting him out of my bedroom while I cut my zzzzzzs. He would loudly protest and scratch at my bedroom door if I did.

He was a glutton for attention and loved to be scratched, rubbed and petted. He was docile enough to allow me to clip his claws with a human nail clipper (yes, I know how to do that).

He sucked up his food like a Dust Buster!  I attributed this to the fact that he'd been a stray and was forced to fend for himself. Not knowing when he would get his next meal, he developed the habit of eating quickly and dashing off. This was a habit I hoped Shadow would dispense with once he became more comfortable with the fact he was being fed regularly.

Last but not least, Shadow was another loud mouthed cat! I'd already had a taste of that when I brought him home on the bus. So, I should've know what I was in for, eh?

What I didn't expect was for him to cry at the door when I left for work. Oh no, a reincarnation of Biscuit! The last thing I needed was my neighbors complaining to my complex's mangement, that my cat was disturbing the peace at so-called ungodly hours.

This meant another trip to Social Tees, to get him a companion.... 

::faceplam::

Dawn Skyy

Cat Shopping

After a couple of weeks of dithering I finally was able to vist Social Tees. They had just moved to this new location (which formerly a vintage record shop - vinyl records) and I caught Robert (the owner) as he'd just opened for the afternoon.

There were many cats and kittens present. Some were in cages, others were in a play area in the window and yet others were roaming around free. When I explained what type of cat I was looking for, Robert had me sit down and fill out a Social Tees application. While I was filling out said application, several cats came to check me out. However one cat in particular jumped up on the table and laid himself down on the paper and gazed at me with knowing green eyes.

"Oh, that's Angel." Robert said.

I remember thinking "That's a strange name for a cat who's black as sin." 

He proceeded to tell me how Angel had taken care of and nursed a little kitten back to health like he (Angel) was the kittens mom.

Robert also told me that no one wanted Angel because he was black. Unfortunately, even in this day and age people are still superstitious about black cats. To me Angel was handsome, very friendly, and outgoing. I was sold.

We negotiated the price.  Robert packed Angel up and I took him home in a cardboard carrier. He wailed all the way home on the bus, so folks automatically knew what I had in the box even though the couldn't see him.

Once home, Angel immediately leaped out of the box settled in like he owned the place. I also changed his name. Angel was the temparary name the shelter had given him to identify him on his Animal Control Certificate. His name is now Shadow.

Dawn Skyy