Homeless Animals ... a sign of the poor economy.

I'm sure you have seen it in cartoons. At least I did when I was a kid. Some cartoon character drives his faithful dog out and dumps him in the country. More often than not, in the cartoon, by the time he gets home the dog has beat him there.

Unfortunately, in these economic times, it happens too frequently these days and it is heartbreaking instead of funny. These past few months, Pat & I are seeing more and more animals, cats and dogs, roaming around the area of our home and the park. People with no way to care for their animals and no place to take them are dumping them in the country and they are turning wild.

Right now we have any number of wild cats around the property. Every time I see one hanging out in front of the bird feeders, I'm running it off. All I have to do is step outside and the cat is off like a shot. They are totally feral.

I know what Pat wants to do, but it breaks my heart and brings tears to my eyes. I love animals so much that it hurts me to even consider killing one. However, there isn't any animal control out here and these animals are not pet material. If I could tame some and find them homes, I would do so, but I don't think it is possible with these cats. They are just too wild. If I trapped them and hauled them deeper into the park, I'm sure the park rangers would destroy them. There just isn't any good solution that I can see.

I know that if left to their own devices, we will soon see the cats become diseased and full of fleas and ticks. I'm sure the coyotes and other preditors will get some of them, but there will still be too many and it will soon effect the wildlife in the area ... birds, squirrels, mice ... and the balance of nature will be thrown off.

I've always loved cats. While Pat proclaims to hate them, he was wonderful when my sweet Loverboy who at the ripe old age of 22 had to be put to sleep a year ago ... before I moved here. Pat had a cross made for Loverboy's grave and Loverboy now rests by the fence where I see his grave every day.

Loverboy was unique ... almost like a dog. He would follow me around and was one of the most affectionate cats that I ever owned. He was always by my side wherever I was and always quick to pat me on the shoulder or my knee (whatever he could reach) when I was ignoring him. I'd pick him up and give him a belly rub (something most cats won't tolerate) and he would "kiss" my nose in thanks.

Over the past year, Pat has also learned to tolerate Loverboy's cousin, Brat, if not care a little for the spoiled feline. Brat doesn't show his 21 years of age at all. He still tears around the house like a crazy cat and I find his toys in all sorts of places. One of Brat's favorite pastimes seems to be tormenting Spike who doesn't like cats either, lol. At least Brat is making sure that Spike is getting exercise when she has to get up and chase Brat out of the living room (HER area of the house).

Amidst my turmoil over the wild cat situation, one thing has emerged to cheer me. About 10 days ago, I spotted a black cat near Loverboy's grave. The next day when I was throwing scraps into the compost pile, it came right up to me. He looked a bit beaten up, probably from fighting other cats, so I didn't try to pet him at the time, thinking he was just another wild cat. However, the next day he came right up to me and let me pet him.

Over the past week Tux (as in tuxedo) is a frequent visitor and has claimed the front porch as his own. Saturday when I went for my walk, Tux followed me as far as the first waterfall in the clearing and sat down on the big rock as if to say, I'm not going any farther. He is at the door in the morning and evening looking for a handout. I've been feeding Tux scraps from our dinner (he is eating some of the pork steak that wasn't good enough to go into our meal in the picture ... can't you just imagine what Spike's thinking in the picture ... "If I could only get to that cat", ha ha ha). In return for the food he's giving me a lot of love and affection.

Despite his somewhat beat up exterior, Tux has also turned out to be one of the most loveable cats that I've seen. He is so much like my Loverboy in that he enjoys belly rubs and has licked my nose. When I pick him up, he purrs for all he's worth and rubs his head under my chin. I admit it, I've fallen in love with him, but then it would be hard not to fall in love with such a sweet cat.

However, Pat is not in the least enamored of Tux, which means that I'll have to see if I can find someone to adopt Tux. At least I'll be able to save one cat out of the many. I've already asked one person if they would give Tux a home. In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy him and his sweet loveable nature. If I do find him a home, I'm going to miss him.