World Cat Day 2009

Let us all celebrate ~ World Cat Day.

Celebrate kitties in your own special way.

Those here and near, and those now above,

all the kitties so dear, all the kitties we love.

Saturday, August 8, 2009

During the last year, we've had so many cats & kittens come and go through the household, and some stay to become forever friends with us. So, this World Cat Day, we are celebrating connections: with our friends in the CB who have read, shared, and commented on the trials and tribulations of Little Bit & her kittens and the joys of every new visitor to the Trailer Kitties' food bowl; with our fosters and former fosters; and between those of us who are the resident cats.

Boo-Boo Kitty's family have all gotten homes this year except for herself (dumped in Troutdale), Little Bit (still adoptable), Squishy (still adoptable), and Little Guy (still adoptable). Smokey is doing great with her new family after moving to their new apartment a few weeks ago. Boo & Michelle are having a blast with their teenage sister and brother, and their new mom loves "the girls". Kai is traveling everywhere with his new mommy and sleeping in her purse so she won't forget to bring him along. Cloud is still getting used to his new home, but loves his new mommy so much that he climbs up into the bed to snuggle with her every night. Starla, Little Bit's cousin, is having a hard time adjusting to her new forever home with us, but she is now playing with her kitten-cousins. Everyone is either fixed or going to be fixed, so this family's story now has a happy ending. All the adoptees found homes through ads placed on Craigslist plus links to their Catster pages, and we hope that the three who need homes will find them that way too.

Our lady of the house, Lydia, left us last October, just before her 9th birthday. Our "permanent foster", Sara Princess Kitty, followed in January. Mommy wrote the hub article "Cats who have Owned Me" in honor of all of us in the household, plus the two angels.

Trailer Kitty Tux came back home in June, possums and raccoons came by and had their pictures taken, and life in the back yard continued. The ferals come and go, drop by when they need supplemental food and human semi-contact. The neighborhood cats come around and bring their friends. Moms of all species bring their babies to the porch bowl and teach them manners and how to get along well with the rest of the crowd. Mommy wrote "The Joys and Perils of a Feral Cat Caretaker" in honor of them all.

Then there are those of us who are the current inside residents: Rori, Skylar, Carbon, Tabby, and Starla. Mommy and Daddy take good care of us and we are their babies. We also care for them. Skylar snuggles with Daddy just like his sister Lydia used to. Rori is now big kitty of the household and watches out for everyone. Carbon still gets into everything, but has become a snuggle kitty, sitting with Mommy every day for at least a half hour and sometimes even sitting with Daddy. Tabby has an important job as a therapy cat for a nursing home, and models in her spare time. Starla was mentioned above, and spends most of her time underneath the dresser. She comes out to go potty and play with Little Guy & Squishy, but she has her food and water bowls under the dresser plus a ball to play with. It's a self-imposed "fortress of solitude" where she can defend herself from all comers (namely Tabby). She also sometimes comes out to snuggle with Daddy when he gets home from work.

It does our hearts and souls good to know that when we write something, it is read, and when you write something, we can read it and share in a little bit of your life as well.

Thank you all for being our friends!