Our 'family of cats'...

This is another post that probably should have been written on  my *Cats, Coffee, and Chocolate* site... but the problem is that I never know exactly what is going to flow from my head into my fingertips when I start writing. And even though I try to 'categorize' the subjects into different blog sites, let's face it,  they are all part of our life...

Walked around the house today taking pictures of our 'family of cats' in their various places.  Thinking about it, they could probably take pictures of DH and I in our favorites spots also...

Molly

Going by age, Molly is the oldest... around 19-20 years. My son found her in an apartment parking lot when she was about 6 - 8 weeks old and brought her over to us.  She is a DSH Tortie, very friendly, and relatively healthy for her age.

Rose

Rose is next oldest... also about 19.  She showed up in our backyard rose garden (hence the name) in 2001.  The Vet said that she was about 7 at the time (had 2 broken eye-teeth - looked like she's been kicked?).  She has a strange disposition. We don't know if her disposition is due to the 'alleged' abuse or if the 'alleged' abuse was due to her disposition.  But whatever the reason, she found a home with us and even though she is not the friendliest cat, she has gotten better over time. I think she's mellowing with age.

Jack

Jack, as I've mentioned before, is the 'heart' of the house-hold.  He is the sweetest most intelligent cat we've ever had (and we've had a lot of cats over the years). His disposition is loving - to all people - and all other critters.  He accepts all and has never met another person or animal he didn't like. He's extremely curious and will follow us or workmen around and watch closely as to what we or they are doing.

He loves to play whether with the other cats or grand kids... or at least he did.  Jack is 9 now, but he was diagnosed with a form of Feline Leukemia when he was 4.  He and his siblings were born in our backyard and taken in when their mama left them on my patio at about 3 weeks old. So he was born outside, but has never set foot out since.  We had them all vaccinated and tested before adding them to our house-hold.  So when he was diagnosed with Leukemia, we were shocked. The only conclusion was that he inherited it from his mom.  The others were all tested again.  All tested negative. He has episodes where his blood count drops dramatically and the Vet tells us that he will not make it.  But he always does.  I am convinced that he pulls through because he knows we all need him. But he doesn't have much energy... so he doesn't play as much as he used to...

Tux (Jack's sibling)

Tux is basically a mama's boy. He spends a lot of time in my lap.  Actually gets very upset if I don't take some time to either sit with him or nap during the day.  He will follow me around crying.   He and Jack are very close... spend a lot of time lying together cleaning each other. Poor Tux has no whiskers because Jack 'cleans' them right off.

Julie (Jack's other sibling)

Julie is a 'little Jack' look alike.  Markings are similar, but she is female and half Jack's size.  Julie has been called many names since her birth, "Monkey Mouse", "Squeaky Toy", and "Julie".  Squeaky Toy is most appropriate as the cat actually squeaks when you pick her up. And she talks non-stop!

Ghost

And last, but by no mean least is Ghost.  Ghost was also born outside and abandoned on my back patio when she was a few weeks old.  She had other siblings that took off when danger approached... loud noises, other animals, etc. But Ghost was obviously a bit 'handicapped'.... she never ran off... just sat there looking around when the others disappeared. DH and I figured that we 'd better take her in or she wouldn't survive.

The Vet agreed that she had some 'problems' as a kitten.  At first he thought she had a form of diabetes... and later decided that she had a genetic kidney problem that wouldn't allow her to live too long. He said for us to make sure that she always had access to water as without it, she would die. She urinates a tremendous amount, but it is very dilute.

We decided to give her free access to water and lots of love.  She is now 5 and although her kidney problem persists, she has done really well.  She is a sweet loving cat.  The reason we named her Ghost is because we have 'shades of gray' slate floors and as a kitten (and sometimes even now), it was difficult to see her.

So that's it - the story of our family of cats. Sometimes I wonder how much simpler life would be  (and the house so much easier to keep clean and fresh) without them, but then I know how much we would miss them.  They give us joy and laughter... and sometimes tears.  But they are a part of our life and we love them.  What else can I say...