SATURDAY'S CATS

I had no choice but to include this species in my cat series as we owned two, both very different and both lost to us far too soon.

The SIAMESE is one of the first distinctly recognised breeds of Oriental cat.  One of several breeds native to Thailand in the 20th century the Siamese cat became one of the most popular breeds in Europe and North America (and they were and are very popular in Australia).    The Meezer nickname refers to their vocal nature.  The Oriental cat was developed in order to expand the range of coat patterns while the Thai preserves a moderate head and body type.

The breed standard of the modern Siamese cats calls for an elongate, tubular and muscular body and a triangular bead, forming a perfect triangle from the tip of the nose to each tip of the ear.  These eyes are almond-shaped and light blue, while the ears are large, wide-based and positioned more towards the side of the head.  The breed has a long neck, a slender tail, and fur that is short, glossy, fine, and adheres to the body with no undercoat.  Its pointed colour scheme and blue eyes distinguish it from the closely related Oriental Shorthair.  The modern Siamese shares the pointed colour pattern with the Thai or traditional Siamese, but they differ in head and body type.  (What an elegant cat is this lilac point Siamese):

Siamese are usually very affectionate and intelligent cats, renowned for their social nature.. Many enjoy being with people and are sometimes described as "extroverts".  Often they bond strongly to a single person.  Some Siamese are extremely vocal, with a loud low-pitched voice that has been compared to the cries of a human baby, and persistent in demanding attention.  These cats are typically active and playful, even as adults, and are often described as more dog-like in behaviour than others cats.  They are often less active at night than most cats, possibly because the lack of a tapetum lucidum gives them poor night sight relative to other cars.

Now I hope you will allow me to indulge myself in showing you our two Siamese cats:

This was Charlie Brown; he was a seal point Siamese.  Phil and I bought him from a breeder when we were first together.  He was a wonderful little chap but were told by a cat expert that he had rickets which is often caused by "queens" having too many litters of kittens in quick succession.  We had to feed him special meals for a while (rich in calcium) and not allow him to jump off chairs, beds etc., which can be quite a challenge when dealing with a kititen/young cat.   He was so friendly and one of his habits was to dive down under the bedclothes and lay at our feet.  We often wondered how he got enough air but he survived OK and obviously enjoyed nestling down there.  He was very obedient and loved going for a drive in the car.  If we went out into the country areas you could let Charlie Brown out for a 'comfort stop', call him and he would hop straight back into the car.

At that time were renting a house in Stirling Highway, Claremont and even then the traffic was very heavy as it one of the main thoroughfares between Perth and Fremantle.  One afternoon my children arrived at the office where I worked and asked to talk to me.  I had someone take over the switchboard while I took the kids into the lunchroom to find out what they wanted.  I was surprised when they presented me with some sweets and of course realised something was terribly wrong.  They broke the news to me that they'd arrived home from school to find Charlie Brown dead on the side of the road outside our house.  They had telephoned Phil and he'd come home from work and buried Charlie Brown so I'd not see him when I arrived home.  I've always admired, and been very thankful to, my two children for being so very thoughtful and will never forget that kind act.  We all loved Charlie Brown so much and even today I think of him and miss him as I do all our other furry friends that are long gone.  That was in 1967.

After we had moved into our home in Hamilton Hill we bought another Siamese cat and called him Koko.  He was a lilac point:

He was well named (Koko was the lord high executioner in the Mikado) as he had a habit of biting people and he was quite an 'attack' cat as well.  One day he hid behind a corner in the hall and pounced out on me and I ended up with a nasty scar on my ankle for many years afterwards.  I remember once when we had a BBQ I warned a friend to be careful of him.  "Oh, he'll be fine" said she as she bent down to stroke him and with that Koko bit her.  Fortunately not hard enough to draw blood but that was our Koko.   Otherwise he was a lovely pet and very friendly.  One day he didn't come when called and we never saw him again and yet he wore a collar.  Phil walked the streets near our home in case he had been run over but there was no sign of him.  He had been sterilised so seldom wandered and we wondered if someone had perhaps stolen him.  He was quite a handsome fellow.  We always wished we'd known what fate had befallen him and hoped, had someone stolen him, that they had been kind to him.  He was with us for perhaps 3-4 years and we missed him as well.

I have always been so glad I've taken photos of our pets.  Not that we have ever forgotten them but we can look at the pics and see them as they were when they shared our lives.  I have an album devoted entirely to pets (even have some fish and birds in there) with notations of who they were etc.  I often look through the album just for the sheer enjoyment of it.

P.S.  The picture of Koko must have been taken not very long after we bought the house as it still had the vinyl tiles on the kitchen floor.  We eventually had them covered with vinyl....the very vinyl that now has to be replaced because of the flood in the kitchen.