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Kitty godmother
This afternoon, a friend called and said that the feline rescue association had just called to let her know they were, momentarily, receiving two litters of 10 week old kittens. She was now at the top of the waiting list, so should plan on arriving ASAP to choose her kitten. She was so excited—and wondered if I’d like to go along.
Kittens? Count me in! I love kittens. To look at. Not in the market for a kitten.
On the way over, we discussed her expectations, which, I thought, were a little high. This was her first cat of any age and she really doesn’t know quite what to expect. But she has been taken in by all the photos of cozy little kitties that she’s seen over the years. I told her that cats are pretty independent and, though it will eventually love her, it will probably never be cuddly on her terms. It will be cuddly on its terms, even when those terms come at the most inconvenient and inopportune times. That’s a cat for ya. I don’t think she heard a word of it.
Anyway. We arrived at the feline rescue place and inside were four of the prettiest little kittens. One was white with gray spots (female) and the other three (males) ranged from light gray to dark charcoal gray. She fell in love with the little medium gray fellow. Cute, cute, cute. And full of energy. And curiosity. And not in the least interested in being held. Mostly he wanted to play with his litter mates.
The Feline Rescue woman placed him in a cardboard carry box and off we went to pick up the rest of the necessary supplies—food, litter, litter pan, scratching post, and at least one interesting toy.
When we arrived at her house, her college-age son and his girlfriend were there along with her husband and other adult son. The little kitten took one look at the assemblage and dived under the sofa. And there he stayed until everyone grew bored waiting for him to come out. Everyone drifted away except for the new kitty mama. I went home, too.
A couple of hours later, my phone rang.
“He’s still under the sofa,” she said. “I’m reaching the point where I think this was a huge mistake.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Because he doesn’t like me.”
“He doesn’t know you. It has nothing to do with like or dislike.”
“I wanted a cuddly kitten.”
He will be cuddly when he gets to know you. Give him some time.”
“Well, it’s just not what I expected.”
“Okay...let’s look at this from the kitty’s perspective. This was the worst day of his entire life. He was taken away from his mother and his brothers and sister. And on top of all that, he was stuck with a sharp needle by a strange woman who then lopped off his bits. Now he’s in your home where nothing looks familiar and nothing smells familiar. He’s lonely and scared and he probably hurts a little bit. And there are a lot of tall strangers trying to grab him. Give him a chance to chill for a couple of days. He’ll grow curious eventually and come out, when he’s convinced that it’s safe. He really has had a horrific day. Give him a break.”
That seemed to help. We’ll see what tomorrow brings.
The lad asked me, “Are you prepared to adopt a kitten?”
“Well, if it comes to that, I suppose I would. He is awfully cute and I am his godmother.”
“Uh-huh,” he said.
Yeah well. I have hopes this will all work out in the next couple of days. It’s a new experience for both of them. They’ll figure it out. I hope.
I’ve never much liked cats. There are just no good recipes for them.
JUST SAYIN!
That’s good news for cats. See, no one is going to be stealing my cat because it looks tasty. Of course, knowing what dogs eat, I wouldn’t go there, either. ;)
Heh. So your friend has never had a cat in any way, shape, or form, eh?
What are you going to name soon-to-be-your new kitten? And how will you explain it to Abby?
Yes, that is correct. My friend has never had a cat in any way, shape, or form. And it’s not going particularly well, either. A cat is not a dog, a cat is not a dog, a cat is not a dog....
I think Abbie would adjust. As long as the kitten is smaller and she can boss it around. However, I doubt if it will come to that. Her adult son has fallen head over heels with the kitten and has spent the last day and a half getting to know him, gently coaxing him out, and letting him set the pace. The little kitty likes his new friend and crawls all over him and sleeps on him. The new kitty mama doesn’t understand why the little kitty won’t do this with her. The little kitty doesn’t know her, that’s why. Sooo...I think this was not a match made in heaven. The adult son will most likely adopt the kitty within the next week. I could almost count on it.
Good on the son!
The nature of interspecies relationships is, perhaps, even more inscrutable than intraspecies ones. As I believe I’ve mentioned in the past, the first cat I ever really knew at all was Simon; I’d had very little contact with, or interest in, cats until he came along. We were absolutely inseparable ... I was his human from the instant we met until the day he died.
I still get along well with cats (and dogs ... Latke is happier to see me walk in the door than her own family), but there has never been anything like what Simon and I shared.
Your Simon and my Muddy. There was a direct link between her brain and mine. Like your Simon, it transcended a normal cat-human relationship. Abbie is the sweetest natured cat and I absolutely love her to pieces and she clearly is devoted to me, but that link that Muddy and I had isn’t there. Stinky was like that, too, though. And he adopted me, same as Muddy. Maybe that’s what makes the difference.
I think my friend’s kitten has chosen his human already. It’s not one of those things you can easily explain, eh?
sounds like your friend was too needy for the kitten who needed someone to nurture him instead.
i had a sheltie puppy once who loved my roommate more until my roommate moved a year or so later. then she loved me the most! it is all relative. my roommate played with her like a kid would and only uttered soft, loving words. i played with her, too, but i disciplined her a bit with firm words like “NO” when she was chewing on furniture, etc. ohhh, how i miss that precious girl. she lived to be 18!