Short version:
My girlfirend talked me into getting a "feral" barn cat to help with the rats in the area. We named her Calypso (Caly for short).Turned out she wasn't so feral, and over time she became a part of our family.
In fact, since she's always meowing for attention, the GF now refers to her as: Kitty Meow Meow
... and is clearly no longer a "feral barn cat"... but is now a cuddly attention-needing bougie kitty!
... but she still goes back to her "roots" and is actively killing rats, moles, gophers, etc!
Here's our kitty adventure over the last month:
9/26:
I've always had pets. Dogs, snakes, bunnies, and of course chickens... but never cats. Over the years I've found myself having more and more draw to kitties, especially since my daughters love them so very much. We have a neighbor 2 doors down that had the sweetest cat, and every once in a while when she'd see us drive up the street, she'd trot over and get a ton of love from my girls:
Here she (Sandy) is during one of her visits:
Unfortunately she passed away a few years ago. SUPER sad time for all of us
Well, fast forward to 1.5 years ago and my new girlfriend is a big-time cat-lover and has had them her whole life! She currently has one cat that is a rescue, and another cat she believes is feral that she cares for.
... they (mostly) tolerate each other:
In front is Gyro (the feral kitty) and behind him is my GF's cat "Monkey":
Here's Monkey getting some love from the GF:
I enjoy taking pics of him when he's in his natural state (usually sleeping/resting):
Well, the GF loves cats so much that she wants to always have a few that are rescues. About a month ago she found this local rescue around my area:
Feral Cat Foundation - Alameda & Contra Costa Counties, CA
... well, that started things in motion. She said these kitties need a good home and could even help with rodents that are around the property.
Sooooooo... TODAY (in about 1/2 an hour) we're getting two new friends!
Say hello to Caly (Calypso) & Rusty!!!!
I'm sure I'll have a few questions (and stories) to ask / share... especially when I don't want to keep bothering my GF!
I'm looking forward to having some felines around the house!!!
9/27:
1) Family decided to change "Rusty" to "Aries" in a effort to better match Calypso (sticking with a Greek mythology theme)
2) Pics:
Caly:
Aries:
10/16:
A few updates:
- Aries didn't work out The woman from the rescue felt like he wasn't comfortable with Caly, so she took him to another home and he's doing well there.
- Caly is doing GREAT! She's eating treats from our hands and is even letting us pet her a little. Rescue lady said it's surprising (given Caly's history) and really great news!
- Here's Calypso (Caly) at the end of her 3-week stay inside the cage. We'll be releasing her tomorrow and hoping she'll stay around!
10/17:
Today's the day!
We opened the cage door and within about 5 minutes she explored out a little... but then my daughter started getting excited, said something, and spooked the cat a little and she went back into the cage.
I guess the good-news is that when she felt spooked she went back in the cage and didn't just bolt and run away.
The door has been open for the past hour and she's still just lounging in the cage taking a nap.
...and:
SUCCESS!!!
We opened the cage and she just stayed inside all day napping. We went to dinner and the webcam saw her leave the cage.
We got home a few hours later and saw her way back in the empty lot behind the house exploring.
A few moments later my GF saw Caly at the door... and this amazing thing happened!
10/18:
Kitty ended up walking a little into our bedroom a couple of times for some treats.
... but then the treats were gone.
So, there she sat waiting for more.
The GF thinks we created a drug-addict:
10/19:
Well, the last few days with new-kitty (Caly) have been pretty interesting!
When we let her out of the cage on Saturday we didn't know if she was going to come back.
Well, not only did she stay in the open cage all day, but when we got back from dinner, she quickly came to meet us.
The last three nights since then, she's come to our bedroom outside door and called for some treats / attention. Even feeling super comfortable with walking into the bedroom and lying down!
That's all pretty terrific, but last night was my FAVORITE part of the experience of first-time-cat-owner so far:
Around 9:30 last night she came to the back door as usual asking for some treats. We spent a little time with her and she casually walked off.
The GF and I went back to watching TV...
... that is until a half hour later when we heard Cali meeowing like crazy. More than I ever had before (and she's pretty talkative). I was worried there was something wrong with her. She was loud and consistent!
The GF went out to check on her. A few minutes later I hear my GF say, "Oh my goodness... if that's what I think it is, Daddy is going to be sooo proud of you!!! What a good girl!!!"
I went out and confirmed it... she had gone out and killed a big fat rat and brought it back to us!
Not sure how much of her brining it back was because she felt we needed to be fed, to connect, to show her appreciation, or something else... but either way, it's clear she's pretty bonded with us now!
Here she is with her gift!
10/20:
She caught another rat! She didn't bring it right to the door, but I stumbled on her with the rat while checking on the chickens around 10pm
10/21:
With the help of treats I've gotten her to come pretty far into the house! She is still a bit skittish, but quickly comes back for more treats.
Here she is napping at the foot of our bed:
BIG kitty yawn!!
Peeking into my office looking for a treat!
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