All in a days scratch

This week has been miserable because all it has done is rained so being me I decided to explore the house because its funny how new things pop up that you don’t notice and you’ll never guess what I found. A kind of luxury tree had created itself right in our garage! What’s the chance of that? When they saw us on it they moved it to the front room and so now me and Scooby (obviously taking the following from my brilliant idea) have a tree to play on - inside! When we play fight its brilliant because we can hide behind it and then I can jump out from behind! Apparently I got it for my birthday – well why didn’t they tell me before?

Max's story: part 2

This is the 2nd part of Max's Story which I think, on a website about her son's, needs to be told. Next week the boys will be back with their moans, groans, thoughts and diary.
...continued
Shortly afterwards, Max got pregnant but that did not seem to faze her for a moment. She took her pregnancy in her stride. It’s funny; I guessed she was having 6 kittens, probably through the knowledge that Max never did things by halves. Her condition never stopped her for a moment she still hunted frequently, if not more often, and brought us back her catches. She searched for somewhere to have her kittens, you could tell as she poked her nose in all the crevices that she was searching for the perfect place. She came up with a small locker located in quite a busy part of the house but that was Max inside out – a trusting soul perhaps too much so. On Good Friday (Max had a thing for Friday’s especially when it came to bearing kittens) Morgan was born a month early alongside his 5 siblings who sadly did not make it. Some people said Max was a bad mother, this an unfounded claim as all the babies were very weak at birth and thus the odds of their survival in any conditions would have been low. In fact Max should be a celebrated mum for even though her bond with the surviving kitten, Morgan, was not strong she later developed a very strong, if not sometimes amusing, bond with her only son and though used to leave him for periods of time he was left in good faith that he was protected. Her premature labour was put down by the vet to a virus.
Time passed and Morgan grew and it became apparent soon enough that so would Max’s tummy. The rights or wrongs of Max being again pregnant slipped into the background as once again she bloomed beautifully and began searching for her nest. We helped her decide the best place for her to give birth and Morgan left. The 16th July 2004 arrived and so did six healthy kittens. That morning Max jumped on my bed ‘telling’ me they were on the way. She nursed and nurtured them through their kittenhood, the proud mother she was. Her own health though was at times poor and after 5 of her kittens had left to make their own way in the world she was quickly spayed. Scooby stayed behind to keep his mum company. I truly believed in my heart, at this point, that it was like a new beginning for her. She quickly gained weight (she had been unhealthily thin before) and looked stunning. She became lively and we became closer. Towards the end was the time we really got to know what Max was like instead of what she was like as a mother. She was so funny and affectionate, her bright eyes glowed and she lived for herself, for the moment. To say she was a ‘normal’ cat, I feel is selling her short. She wasn’t. She had her own personality, her own mind and she was beautiful. People often comment how all cats look the same. This could not be further from the truth. Scooby, for example, has all the same markings as Max but you can look at his face and know he is not. Max somehow looked older than Scooby, even when they were the same size; there was something that you couldn’t put your finger on that distinguished them.
Slipping into May, Max took her place every night in the room I shared with Kim. Sometimes she would summon me in the early hours of the morning to let her go out. It became a nightly routine except that night when she wanted to leave just before I went to bed. Dutifully I let her and how I wish that she had stayed. For that finishes her story and I return to where I started; two years one week ago, sitting next to my darling’s shell in a bright porch on a sunny day in May. Except she was not my darling anymore, she was my angel up in heaven with Minnie and her babies.
I never wanted this to be a sad entry; there is enough sadness in this world as it is. I wanted to celebrate her full, special, albeit short, life and to make sure she is remembered in the way she deserves. Some beings leave this life in such a way that no matter how long they are gone, they are never forgotten. I want to make sure Max is one of those because, as did her babies and Minnie, they left paw prints on mine, and many other people’s heart.

Like before, if anyone who knew Max has memories of her, I would love to hear them. Please leave them below in the "comment" bit. Otherwise feel free if you just want to say something also to use the "comment" bit :-)

Max's Day: Part 1

A celebration of the life of our Max

Two years ago today Max had her car accident. I am not going to bleat on about the unfairness of it all even though she was only a month off her 2nd birthday, nor even tell you of the words I spoke when I sat next to her empty shell at noon on that sunny day which seems to long ago now. I will tell you though of the bouncy kitten that had made her home with us less than two years before. Also of her kitten hood friend Minnie who used to frolic with her that summer. They came before they had their injections so they could not go out for the first few weeks though there was plenty of people to care and play with them. They were treated like the tiny kittens they were, and allowed themselves to be picked up like human babies and cradled in blankets. They enjoyed running around and even managed to get themselves inside the sofas. After their injections they were allowed in the big world. Running up and down the trees and playing on the grass, they were making the most out of their innocence – a sight that many humans find alluring. It is indeed strange how in the depths of despondency ones so small can touch your heart and somehow makes everything appear not so futile, but Max and Minnie were that to me – just like Morgan and Scooby now – and many people at the house. As they got bigger their independence grew and so did their taste for adventure. I recall a particular time I was staring out a window and saw Max discover a hole in the bottom of a fence, straight away after discovering it she ran back. I imagined Max running excitedly to her playmate; “Look what I have found Minnie, a hole! Come and see with me!” Less than a minute later the two appeared again to uncover the mysterious that lay beyond. Right up to Minnie’s death that February, they were best of friends. Indeed Max had to be placated that evening as she appeared anxious of her companion’s absence though, as animals seem to be renowned for, adapted quickly to this change. Not saying that Minnie was forgotten however his death seemed to somehow mark the end of her kitten-hood and her descent into what nature had instore for her and beyond.

To continue next week... in the meantime if anyone who knew Max has any memories of her, or Minnie, please leave a 'comment' - we would love to hear them!!

Prowler on the Block

I've put Scooby on lookout whilst I patrol the grounds. The unthinkable has happened - a new cat has appeared and is coming onto my territory. I've been so busy fretting I haven't had time to post this week. I am sick with worry. The culprit is orange and mangey looking, not a patch on my fresh looks. He keeps looking over our way and he's edging in. I have spat at him and hissed at him and it doesn't seem to be putting him of. I could smell his scent yesterday. I didn't put Scooby on patrol because he's too soft, it takes a man to sort this out and no mere 2-year-old can possibly do it. I think I have it under control. We'll have to keep our paws crossed that he doesn't come back.