the boyfriend?

It's very rare that I see Nora. She comes by only under the cover of darkness and only to eat. Unlike Pierre and Oliver, she's still super-feral. Saturday night I thought I might have seen her hanging out in the alley, but after further consideration I think the black cat I was seeing was a bit too big for Nora. Sunday morning, for funzies, I checked out the saved images from the feeder cam and I found, two cats peacefully sharing the feeder!

Sept 27, 2015 3:34am

The only cats I've seen in the feeder together were Oliver, Pierre, and MK. But in this case, Pierre and Oliver were locked away on the back porch, so I know it wasn't them and MK is no longer with us. So then, who are these two black cats?

Sept 27, 2015 3:39am

From what I can tell, the cat in the feeder doesn't have an eartip. Nora, Pierre, and MK all had eartips. I think this guy is the one I tried trapping last year but was never able to get. The kitty on the ledge turned around and look, it's Nora! (notice her eartip)

Sept 27, 2015 3:43am

So, who's Nora's friend? Maybe a boyfriend??? Maybe Oliver has a brother, and this is her uncle? Nora's pretty little face looks just like her brothers! I'm thrilled to see her doing well. I do wish she would learn to trust me and hang around more.

Sept 27, 2015 3:44am

I think it's time I take another go at trapping this guy... Meanwhile, I'm left to ponder why my yard seems to only attract black cats?! Weird.

guess who I saw

It's probably been six months since I've seen Nora, Oliver's only daughter. 

Oliver hasn't told me any bad news about her, so I figured she was doing ok and she was just keeping a low profile. Last week, I was amazed to see her hanging out with Oliver in his enclosed back porch. Up until that moment, I had never seen her in the porch, she's still quite feral and will not share a yard with humans. She saw me looking at her on the porch and took off. Seeing her alive and well brought be great joy!

The last few nights I've happen to see her on the feedercam, having a nighttime snack. She seems to come for a snack around 9-10pm PST. Yea for Nora!! It warms my heart knowing that Oliver's family feels welcome to visit him. Pierre and MK spend most of their afternoons, all evening and early mornings here, I just wish they would all take up permanent residence here, like Oliver!

birds, Nora and pics!

Da Bird toys are quickly becoming one of the favorites here. Nahum goes bonkers over them and the all the others love them too! Nahum even found the extra bird I had stashed away.

It didn't take him long to free da bird from it's plastic prison.

In other exciting news, Nora made an appearance last night!! I haven't seen her in months and was starting to wonder if something may have happened to her. I'm glad to see she's ok!

My photography class is now over. I learned a lot about how to use my camera, so hopefully the pictures in will only continue to improve! Here are a few from my last class:

back into the wild

I don't think I ever revealed the official names for Oliver's family, yikes!! My mind is slipping. So, first off here are the official names for Oliver's family:

MK remains MK

Pierre, Oliver's second son

Oliver's daughter, now Nora, who sadly, I have not seen for many months.

I hope she's been coming around at night and I just haven't seen her.

Oliver

Oliver's now done with his antibiotic treatment. He was an ideal patient, very compliant - he never complained about his captivity in his cage and he always gobbled down his pills. I visited with him several times a day, letting him play around the room and when it was time to return him to his cage he never resisted, which made it so much easier to take care of him. He never cried or whined to get out of the cage, which saved me from the psychological distress. Thankfully, his injuries have healed nicely.  

Having Oliver inside for nearly two weeks gave me a lot of time with him and I feel I got to know him better. He is such a gentle, sweet soul. He makes the cutest little sounds to greet me each day, they just melt my heart. He has a strong purr that just goes and goes. He's very playful, clever and super easy-going. Out of all my cats, I believe Oliver is the most intelligent. He's amazingly perceptive and always seems to know what I want him to do even though he doesn't always do it! I can't comprehend how some idiot human could have ever abandoned such a sweet and soulful cat. 

Toward the end of his captivity he started spraying again - he was telling me it was time.

Choosing whether to release him back into the yard was not an easy choice, but in the end I think I made the right choice for him and for his family even though it causes me distress. 

I noticed that Pierre and MK acted depressed without Oliver around. During Oliver's absence they came to eat but they never lingered as had been typical. They rarely even hung around overnight. Amazing the immediate change when they were all re-introduced. Pierre and especially MK perked right up. Their energy seemed to instantly brighten and relax. MK has been hanging around late into the morning to spend more time with Oliver.

First breakfast after the happy reunion

Oliver will face more possible dangers being an outdoor, and sometimes indoor, cat which will cause me greater anxiety, but he will also be happier having his family to play and snuggle with. MK and Pierre are definitely much happier having their papa around. I love seeing them all so happy.

I recognize my choice to release Oliver may adversely affect the length of his life as outdoor cats often don't live as long as indoor. It's a hard choice between two unpleasant options, but at this time I chose an option that I believe will lead to a better quality of life for both Oliver and his family. I will continue to bring Oliver inside every morning for snuggles and I will continue to tend to all of their needs. Maybe in a few years Pierre and MK will trust me enough to handle them and then they all can come live inside! That would be the best option.

I noticed that I slept better when I knew Oliver was safely locked up in the room next to me.  Last night, Oliver's first night back outside, I fell asleep with prayers for Oliver's safety on my mind. It's time to resume my nightly ritual of praying for Oliver's continued safety and well-being every night.