After multiple attempts and days of frustration at not being able to trap Twist, I was all out of ideas. Or, so I thought. I sat back and just analyzed her as much as I could. Although she has been here for years, and I did rescue her initially, she would not hang around except to eat and sleep. In all the years that I have had her, I have never seen her poop or pee. It seemed to me, that in her way, she was asking me for help by openly trying to pee in front of me, and I was letting her down.

Following this chain of thought, I know that she haunts my neighbor (two doors down) grain barn. They have a small grainery in their back pasture as they keep exotic birds. I learned from the wife, that they loved having her back there. She is the best hunter I have ever seen in all the years of rescue. Her trophies that she would bring home for me were the heads of the critters only. I have seen her hunt and she is skilled. The majority of cats when they encounter mice, will play with them before eating them. Not her- she would jump and immediately kill and eat all but the head.

That’s when it hit me. That’s how I can get her in the trap.. I went to feed store and got a feeder mouse. When I told them what I wanted it for, I asked them if they had a small container or cage that I could put in the back of the trap to keep the mouse contained. They put the mouse in a plastic container with holes in it. That’s not what I was hoping for, but it would have to do.

When I got home, I put the container in the back of the trap. I ran a strip of duct tape and taped it down so she couldn’t drag it off. I set the trap and waited. Watching from the window, I saw her come in for her afternoon snack under the gate. She went over to the trap and was interested (probably the smell) but she wouldn’t go in. “Now what?” I wondered,

I prowled around the house and found a small box. I poked holes in it. This box was a bit bigger than the container, I put straw, food and a bit of gravel in the box (so Twist could hear movement). Once again, I set the trap and returned to the house. I had denied Twist her accustomed afternoon snack, so pretty soon here she comes again. She made a beeline for the trap and went inside! I was holding my breath. But she did not trigger the trap and turned around and left. I was really bummed, but I was not going to give up. Whistling for Kota, we both jumped in the truck and headed for Bi-Mart. If they did not have a suitable box in receiving, I was going to buy something in a box that I needed.

My plan was to cut two big windows in the side of the box. I was going to cut some pet proof screen big enough to cover the windows and duct tape them in place. That way, Twist can see the mouse and smell the mouse better. I was told at Receiving they did not have what I needed. So I started to prowl the store and when I went by the gun section, there were clerks putting products on the shelf. And there in the cart was the perfect size box. They gladly gave it to me. They wanted to pet Kota, so I broke my rule that when he is working gear, he is to be left alone. I think he enjoyed the love he got as much as I enjoyed getting the right box.

I designed my box and put it in the trap. Going back into the house, I waited an hour and went back outside. Mr. Bentley was crying, he was in the trap. I had to put him back in his enclosure and block all the doors that allow him access to outside. Back I go to the trap, reset it. This time I put it on the top step where I typically feed Twist. I waited an hour, went outside and there she was yowling, turning in circles and totally miserable, But she was in the trap.

I dislike the word “feral.” This word has the ability to make most folks shiver in their shoes. I am sure that people who stumble on a “feral” cat on their property are thinking” “Oh my God, it must have rabies, or it might bite me. It’s dirty, will I get sick?” All sorts of negative words are wrapped around one word “Feral.”

In my long time of rescue, I have only encountered three true feral cats. Unfortunately because of disease, or the verocity of aggression all those three cats were put to sleep. When people call me and tell me, they have a “feral” cat on their property. I tell them that if they can see the cat, and it comes out in the daylight, it’s more than likely a “stray with feral tendencies.” That is how I think and talk about “ferals.”

Years ago, and the story can be found online still (I think). If I can find it, I will look and see if I can link it here. But I got a call from someone who lived on the border of Oregon and Washington. The woman was hysterical. They had gone on vacation and come home to find a “feral” cat in their barn. I was told she went online, typed in feral cat and found my blog. It was 10:00 p.m. when she called. Mike and I arrived at her ranch at midnight.

I had a flashlight, my gloves, a top loading carrier and food when I stepped inside the “scary place” where the “wild animal” was lurking! It was black as pitch. I sat down on the ground and turned on the flashlight. I swept it back and forth on a cat level. I got a glimpse of eyes glowing in the dark. Something registered within me. These eyes were not right. The flash of eyes, they were not green, or yellow. Thankfully they were not red (that would be wildlife) The flash was blue! The “feral” cat turned out to be a very neglected show Persian! I was able to walk over and pick the poor thing, who was as skinny as a rail and matted to beat heck! I popped him into my carrier and went outside and told the lady her cat problem was solved.

https://www.catscenterstage.com/stray-starlight.shtml

So going back to Twist now in capture mode. I did not want her to stay in the trap. She was terrified. Although anytime I would try to pet her and she would try to bite me. I would not say she was feral.So I decided to put her into my Introduction cage when has three levels and is big enough that my 6′ frame fits in it nicely. I left her in the trap while I pepared the cage for a lengthy stay. I know when I do take her to the vet. When I get home, I am not just going to let her go. I was going to work with her and socialize her first. Not tame her (big difference) but allow her to see me as caregiver instead of predator. So she wouldn’t be so scared of me.

This morning, I went in to visit her. She has a beautiful trill in her meow so I was grateful to hear it. She is not my only smaller framed black cat. I caught the right one. She came out of the carrier and came toward me. I was fully prepared for an attack with my gloves, heavy coat and boots.. She wasn’t even going to attack me. I did not touch her or try to. I just wanted her to decompress. I fed her and she immediately went to eat! That is the best sign of all. I can’t get her in until Thursday- so I am going to work slowly with her so she won’t be in such terror when they examine her.

When I took him to the vet, we discovered that the blackness in his ear came from a very bad inner ear infection. The infection was so deep that even after cleaning all the pus out of the ear, the vet could not see what had caused the infection in the first place. While he was being examined, the vet said (I had to stay in the car during the exam). He was animated. I asked how old he was, the vet put him at about 15 or more. He had lost both canines, and although he did not have stomatitis, he had “old man eyes.” The smell that I thought was gangrene the vet said was just all the pus pouring out of his ear. They did a thorough clean of his ear, gave him a Covenia shot and told me to take him home and “give him a week of a chance to rebound.”

I took him home, and again set him up in my bathroom. I stayed with him all night and as I did that, it was clear to me that this boy was on his last legs. He did finally pee and poop, but he did so without getting up. He laid in it, so I gently lifted him up and gave him a gentle bath. The water immediately turned red. As I put him in another carrier near the heater, I pulled his bedding out and saw all the blood there. It was not caused by parasites. There was too much blood. Morning could not come fast enough for me to call the clinic.

I took him in and they euthanized him right away. He was ready to go they said. He went quickly, with dignity and no more suffering will come his way.

He is in a better place now and the only way that I could get rid of the nasty smell of his infection was to leave a bucket of hot water and bleach in my shower overnight. This was after a deep-cleaning of the bathrooom.

Please don’t worry about the vet debt Maureen, it will be okay. I don’t want you to do without. I will always have a vet debt. That is just a given. I am about to have it increase again as I noticed this morning, my black feral girl is unable to pee. Twist is a as skittish as they come. If I try to pet her, she will strike out and bite and scratch me. She means business. She is trap savvy, so I need to come up with a plan to capture her. If she literally cannot pee, she could be dead in three days. She is an avid hunter. I am always dismayed at the amount of trophies she can collect in one day. As I can’t get close to her, I have only successfully been able to deworm her once in the many years she has lived here. I have to figure this out, her life is in great danger.

I only know this because this morning, she was squatting in the deep grass peeing (or so I thought). I was getting ready to feed my other cats, but something stopped me and I stood on the doorstep watching her. She remained in the crouch for the longest time. Concerned, I stepped towards her and she whirled around crying biting frantically at her rear end. The cry was heartbreaking. She is in great pain. Please pray that I find the means to capture her and get her in for treatment. She is on limited time.

Mike used to tell his friends, that I was the only woman he knew that could go to the grocery store for milk and come back with a cat! Last night, his prophecy again came true. It has been so unbearably cold here recently. I ran out of cream for my coffee so I went to Safeway to get some. As I type this sentence, I feel quite shameful for saying this, as our friends and neighbors in Texas are suffering so mightily from not having power during one of the worst snowstorms for Texas in History. I have friends there, and I am keeping in touch with them over texting. One friend has had her pipes burst two days ago, they have sporadic power, never long enough to accomplish anything. But they are also preppers, so they have food and safe water and will come out okay in the end. They are powerless to help any neighbor because they live so rurally. But here, in Oregon, in frigid weather, my worst problem is no cream for my coffee! Forgive me Lord.

So I run to Safeway and as I pull into the parking lot. Kota (who has his head out the window in 32 degree weather! He starts getting anxious and whining. At first, I thought he might have to go pee, but he was acting different. In front of the Safeway store, there is a chain of ghost stores that have long gone out of business. He was pacing the truck and whining and he nudged my arm hard enough for me to veer off to the side of the parking lot!

I stopped my truck in the middle of those chains of stores and got out to talk to him. If he had to go potty, there was a field right behind the stores where he could do so. But he’s never been that adamant when he has to pee. As I hopped out of the truck, to let him out, I glanced over to the end of the ghost stores and that is when I saw the cat! At first, I thought it was dead. It was lying at the end of what used to be the barber shop. In the view of the headlights and how it was lying so still. I thought it had been hit by a car.

I grabbed a towel and ran over. The cat did not even move at my approach. When I got closer, it raised it’s head ever so slightly. It gave one meow and then the head went thunk on the pavement!
I only had one carrier in the truck and it was Kota’s old dog kennel. I wrapped this orange cat into the towel (Oh my God he stank) He smelled like a smell I was familiar with (unfortunately) he smelled like Mike’s leg smelled before they amputated it. He smelled like gangrene! I put my hand under his leg to find his heartbeat. It was faint but it was going! Forgetting all about the cream, I hustled him home.

He is now in the same kennel that I put him in last night. He is alive (but barely) he has been suffering by the looks of him, for a very long time. He has no muscle and no fat on any part of his body. His tail is black, whether that is the source of the gangrene, or his ear that is also black might be the culprit. It is hard to say. I tried to give him some cat food, but he went almost catatonic after eating it. By that I mean, he was frantically pawing at his mouth- and he would hunch over in crouch in the back of the kennel in the strangest position and just freeze. Almost like he was seizing? Has he not eaten in such an enormous length of time that this happens?

Using a ballpoint pen, I gently pried his mouth open and I could see that there was a wound on the side of his face and it had actually penetrated all the way into his mouth. My heart wept. I had some babyfood, so I offered this to him. He ate 3 jars before he started pulling at his mouth again. I don’t think that my vet has enough magic in his bag to save this boy’s life! I am calling him Pan in respect to Peter Pan because he is definitely one of the Lost Boys.

He has spent the night in my bathroom, and now my bathroom also smells like gangrene. With his ear and his tail, I am sure one of those is the culprit behind the smell. He has not pooped or peed. I am thinking he might have an invasive cancer like squamous cell carcinoma, based on how hammered his ear looks.

As it turns out, the other day, I made a vet appointment for this morning at 9:20 for Bentley, whose stomatitis has gotten out of control. I was handling it for awhile with slippery elm tree bark (powdered) and sprinkling the concoction on his wet food. But it is seasonal, this disease and in the wintertime, it takes on a life of its own. So it is time for another steroid shot. In two hours, the clinic will open and I will make a call and see if I can either bring both cats in, or make an appointment for Bentley later on. Pan is the urgent one in need of help right now.

I just went into the bathroom to see him and offer him more baby food. I had to put the plate right up against him (I believe he is also blind). But right now, although he ate up all the food, he does not have it in him, to move from his place of comfort, so I  can examine him further. I guess it really doesn’t matter. I believe his life of pain and torment will be ending shortly after 9:20 this morning. Notice the black ear?

Once again, my Wonder Dog comes through and alerts me to a critter in great peril. God, I love this dog so much!

Everybody, stay safe please? I almost feel like asking for a roll call of people still out there- what with Covid, this wild weather and the strangeness that is occurring now throughout the United States! Me, I am still unvaccinated (Oregon has made a mess of vaccine roll outs) I am staying in my own corner of the world and even though I don’t really want to actively rescue anymore, God clearly sees that I must.

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I wish I had one of Magoo, but I was told that she sleeps in late (under the bed) and only comes out after the owner gets out of bed. These photos were taken from the mom before she had to go to work.  Here is Ash and Fearless Freddy-

Better Late Then Never- here is Magoo. You can tell by his eyes that he isn’t all that relaxed at the moment, but I have hopes that soon that will change. Freddy may also be coming back. He has started to do what he did here for awhile- pee on fresh laundry and my bed. The family will take into considerations some of the tips I have offered first- to take him to the vet and get something that will calm him down. Spread dried lime and orange peels on the bed (cats hate citrus) I find it amusing that one of the lead litter companies is now introducing a lemon-based clumping litter! Good luck with that. Someone did NOT do the research.

Anyway, here is Magoo

I can still see a bit of distrust in Ash and I expected that. But I know that I could not have placed these kittens in a better home. Just to hear that the first two nights in their new home, when Ash and Magoo refused to come out of their carriers, The new owner actually slept on the floor with his head in front of the carrier talking to them softly and reassuring them that they are safe- you don’t find that type of understanding and commitment in just anyone. Hoping I can see a photo of Magoo soon.

Apparently, the resident cat isn’t very impressed with the kittens playing with her ears and tail and so she has found a way to get back at them. Unless she is fed first, she will jump on the platform the kittens are eating on and push their bowls of food on the floor! LOL You have to love the ingenuity of an Alpha Maine Coon cat! Now she gets fed first.

I just got off the phone with Jessi. She told me that Fearless Freddy has been an absolute tornado in the home. He is interacting with all the people, loves to play (he plays hard) I am sure that Gage is scratched beyond belief if he and Freddy play as he played here with me.

Jessi said that Gage was so concerned with how scared and trembling Magoo and Ash were displaying that he strayed up all night with them! He was laying the on floor next to the carriers, and he was talking and singing to them softly.   YES! It was the right place to put these babies. My heart is lighter. I suggested he take a thin t-shirt and do a work out. Make that t-shirt just soak up his sweat then take it off and lay it in the carrier so they could get used to his sweat. I also told him his sweaty socks would also work. One sock in each carrier.

On another note, I do not know who just sent us 2  18 pound bags of Purina Natural. There was no shipping slip in the box. But THANK YOU so much! We are still in danger of not having enough wet food to get the cats through all of the winter we have left. We are having frigid temperatures all next week. So they will just get extra dry food and water in the heated trough.

I can’t thank anyone on Facebook anymore. I made a decision to exit Facebook. My page will go dark on the 29th of this month. At first withdrawing from social media (and that is what it is for me) like a drug. It was difficult. I felt like something major was lacking in my day. FB does not make it easy for you to leave them. It took me ten tries before I was able to fully access the delete my account page.

After I notified them that I was leaving, I am getting slammed with emails from FB telling me everyone was missing me and asking about me. (Yeah right). I’m just waiting for the day when the page goes dark and the emails stop coming. I am going to start back up with writing my book and doing productive projects around here to get this place in shape. I just claimed my bedroom back and I was so excited to finally be able to sleep in my bed again..

My kittenless bedroom!

Yesterday, I experienced the hardest adoption day of my life. Not because the home wasn’t up to par, far from it. It is a quaint set of cottages facing the Santiam River up in the mountains. The family was wonderful. The actual saying goodbye (especially to Magoo and Ash (Orange boy has already taken over the home). It was the paralyzing terror, that I saw Magoo in before I left. I left my cat carriers there for comfort. Jess will return them when the two kittens have adjusted.

Poor Magoo, he was clear in the back of the cat carrier- his body arched not in anger, but just in complete terror. I picked him up, and loved on him to say goodbye, but he was trembling so badly. It broke my heart. I told him he was in a good place and I had already told the family if the kittens can’t adjust. I would take one or all of them back in a hot second. Ash was also a ball of nerves and who can blame them? They were left (not intentionally) by their mom, then I abandoned them for all those times they were at the vets. I couldn’t go visit because of Covid.. Now, I was leaving them in good hands for the final time. Add to it the PTSD left over from their fire experience. I just pray the two of them adjust over the next week.

But my heart is heavy this morning and the house seems so empty. My eyes are sad. I have never been affected to this extreme during an adoption before.Sending all my strength to my two kittens this morning and hoping that they have at least eaten by now.

Today will be the final day for the burn kitties. They will go to their new home this afternoon. I shall miss their presence very much, but I will not miss the chaos they leave in their wake. It will be nice to claim my bedroom back and sleep once again in my own bed, instead of a mattress on the living room floor.

I think back to when they arrived in September and how after only 24 hours with them, I knew they were in a bad way. How many times I kept taking them back to the vet’s office until I finally got someone to listen to me about what I saw and experienced while they were here. As it was nothing the vets were accustomed to- a rectal and colon infection, it was missed several times. Finally, I asked their care be handed back to my regular vet and once that happened, I had someone on the other end that not only listened to what I had to say, but actually did something about it. Then the healing began.

It is going to be hard to say goodbye to the three of them. We have been through many trials by fire in our short time together. They leave still bearing the scars of their early trauma. Magoo will suckle anything soft- Ash will suckle her brother’s earlobes. Both kitties are very sensitive to their environment and any changes. Fearless Freddy will still attack toes and feet and try to escape outside at every opportunity. I have prepared cliff notes for the new owners to let them know of the differences in all of these kittens. I have asked them to lower their expectations on what they want these kittens to do for them, and just let them decompress and adjust to their new life.

Before I leave them, we will all pray together that God will help guide them and keep the babies safe from harm. Jessie lives up on the mountain far from town in a once thriving but now abandoned set of cabins and a lodge. Her and Jericho live in the main house and her kids fill up the remaining five cabins. But they are in the midst of the woods and I do not want these kittens (especially Fearless) to get outside by accident and go looking for me.

So it is going to be a bit of an emotional time for me and adding to it is the encroaching wedding anniversary for Mike and I. I probably will not be able to keep myself together as we have grown quite close to each other, me and these challenging babies. I know they cannot stay and that the catio is under construction but not quite finished. Molly will be happy they are gone, but it will be a few days before I find my smile again.