TWO BEAUTIFUL CATS

I just wanted to share Precious with my friends. She will be 10 years old in October and we love her so much and we know she loves us as she always wants to be with us. She does go outside in the daytime but usually sleeps up on the pergola or sits on the carport roof keeping out of the way of other cats that sometimes cause trouble in our garden. Why they choose to come here to air their differences is beyond me but Precious keeps well and truly out of their way whenever she can.

Precious is, and always been, a very timid cat and it is only in the past year or two that she has begun to come into the living room when anyone other than MOH and I are there.

Going on 10 years ago Kakka and I went to the Cat Haven with the idea of getting ONE cat as our dear old black cat had succumbed to cancer several months before. We saw this very lively white and grey kitten climbing and jumping everywhere in the very large 'room' where the kittens were and decided he would be great friend to have. As we were deciding this I noticed this tiny face peeking out from under a blanket watching the other kittens frolicking about and I asked the attendant if she would bring her our for me. This she did and once I held this wee tiny kitten in my arms I just knew I had to take her home.....so, we went home with two kittens.

These two kittens played together and would curl up and sleep together but as Henry grew he got a little bossy and if Precious found a nice place to curl up and sleep, the next thing you would see Henry had taken over that spot. They still played but he was sometimes a little rough and I don't think he knew his own strength as occasionally you'd hear Precious give a little growl to tell him to cut it out.

A strange thing happened about 5 years ago. MOH and I decided to buy twin beds as we felt we would both get a better night's sleep in separate beds. Now, the cats used to sleep between us on the queen size bed but the twin beds caused all sorts of confusion and it was as though they thought MOH and I had fallen out as the two of them just didn't seem to get on so well from then on. It was quite weird. You'd still see them playing chasy out in the garden at times but there just wasn't the same camaraderie between them as before.

We lost our Henry in August of 2009. He and Precious were lying close to each on the carpet by my feet (in front of the little fan heater) when suddenly Henry gave a great 'sigh' and I just knew that at that moment he had left us. Previous knew too as she got up and began to wash him. I said to MOH "Henry just died" and poor man thought I was joking but it didn't take him long to realise I was serious about it. Henry lies out in our back garden and a cairn of stones has been built over his grave and a plant I have put there I hope will grow and cover it up nicely. We do miss that big cat and often have a laugh about the funny things he would do.

Precious in the picture is in her winter finery. She loses all the fluffy hair before summer and becomes quite a short-haired cat. I have never before seen any cat I've had or known lose so much hair as the weather warms and then grow it all back each year. MOH always reckons when he empties the vacuum cleaner bag that there is enough hair in their to cover a complete cat.

I have had many cats through my life but these two have been so very special and Precious still is to both of us. We know we are too fond of her but just hope she will be with us for many more years to come,

WHY I LOVE OWNING (?) A CAT

My dear little Precious is 9 years old today and I am so glad she is still with us. Since Henry's death she has become quite a different cat and I now think she was sort of in his shadow as he was such a large dominant cat compared with her.

We have had many canine friends over the years but I feel that we are now too old to own one (at least one does own a dog whereas I sometimes think that a cat owns us). At least with a cat they don't smell, bark, need a regular bath or have to be taken for a walk. I can't do the latter and I sincerely think that however good my MOH's intentions would be, he just would not do justice to a dog and give it sufficient exercise.

Precious stays in all night and sleeps on one of the beds, usually on mine. She is no trouble and doesn't often want to go outside until it is well and truly light and, when she is let out, she if often back (through her cat door) within five minutes and once again curled up asleep on a bed.

She is now losing all her long winter coat and surprisingly enough it was thicker and longer this year and we had a very cold winter. Did she know something we didn't know perhaps? She was also slow in losing the long fur and it is only now with the weather rapidly warming up that she is shedding and leaving lumps of herself all over the carpet. MOH often says when he empties the vaccuum cleaner at this time of the year that he feels there is sufficient cat hair in there to cover another complete cat.

I wish my little bubby cat a very happy birthday (she shared my fish and chips with me at lunchtime) which was a treat for her and also for us as we seldom indulge in such things. Just felt that we needed to do something different today so we did. You have to sometimes!!