|
 |
|
| Name: |
Marmie
|
Age: |
Fourteen years old
|
| Gender: |
Female
|
Kind: |
Domestic Shorthair
|
| Home: |
Escondido, California, USA
|
We
have had Marmie, or Mama Kitty as we usually call her, for thirteen
years. She prefers to live "in the neighborhood" and comes home each night
for dinner and pets. On cold or rainy nights we will bring her in until
the next day. Marmie dislikes our other cats immensely so she has her own
room to stay in. We usually open the closet and she tucks herself away on
a fluffy blanket for the night. In the morning we let her out before our
other cats go out so we don't have any altercations. Once in a while she
chooses to sleep in until we get home from work.
Mama Kitty came to us when she was less than a year old. She was a stray
and our neighbor was feeding her, but couldn't keep her because she had
other cats. One evening Mama ran into our house as if she lived there and
promptly jumped on our bed and laid down. We didn't want any harm to come
to such a young kitty so we decided we would let her stay. After a month
or so we discovered she was pregnant.
Marmie's kittens were born on April 15th, 1999. I had just gotten home
from the vet with our dog Sophie who had just had surgery. Mama Kitty
seemed agitated and kept talking to me. I was sitting down by Sophie and
Mama jumped into my lap, cried a couple of times, and out plopped a kitten
right on my lap. I was quite surprised, and she seemed to be as well. I
hurried to get a cat bed and she ran behind me, following me into the
garage. I placed the bed on my lap, and put the kitten in with her, and
there we stayed until all five of her baby girls were born.
Mama Kitty was an incredible mother, even though she was so young. When
the babies were about six weeks old she began to take them on field trips
in our yard. She showed them flower beds where they could lay and stay
cool under the plants; she brought them grasshoppers and taught them how
to catch them when they would jump away. The most interesting thing I
watched her do was teach her babies how to climb a tree. She called them
all over to the tree, climbed up it, and then came down. She did this a
couple of times, and then encouraged the girls to do the same. They would
try to go up, and she would climb along with them, showing them how to use
their claws to go up the tree and the best way to go down. I loved watching her!
Eventually Mama Kitty started staying out longer and preferred to visit
other neighbor's yards as well as ours. It made me sad but she does visit
every night to eat dinner and spend time with me. Our neighbor has a comfy
bed in their back yard where she likes to stay sometimes.
Marmie is not your typical cat. She has a unique life style being a
well-known neighborhood cat which we would prefer she didn't have, but for
now we'll let her enjoy it. She is a very special kitty to many people.
Marmie now sleeps in in her own special bedroom every night - which is a
relief to us. She has her own selected spot on the top of a glass case
where a soft fluffy blanket awaits her. In the morning we open the kitty
window where she slips away before the other cats are let out. It is a win
win situation for all of us!
See more images of Marmie!
|
|
|
|
|
