Cookie Comes Calling

So it happened. We knew it was inevitable. Cookie came, he and Sydney left for a few days, and Sydney returned alone. I guess Tater Tot followed along, because she was with Sydney. They seemed inseparable. And I knew it was time for action.

I looked online to see what the gestation period is for a pregnant cat: approximately 2 months. This would be my timeline for accomplishing my goal. It was cold outside, so I planned to trap the cats the same way as I trapped the kittens two years ago.

The bedding was set up in the garage with a heating pad. I put food and water in the garage. We have a detached garage, about 10 feet from our back door. The garage also has a door for people to go through.

I parked my car outside the garage and shut the big door. I then left the small door open. On the knob of the door, I knotted fishing line and strung it to the inside of my house. Because the fishing line was clear, the cats couldn't see it, and because it was thin and plastic, it slid nicely inside the door of my house. I was able to test it to see that if I yanked at it, the garage door would yank shut. My trap was ready and I waited for the cats to come eat.

Both Tater Tot and Sydney came into the garage. At that moment I yanked at the fishing line and they were trapped. My heart was beating so fast - I finally caught them!

But something went wrong. The next morning I went out there and there was no sign of them. I looked everywhere and couldn't find them. I saw a sliver of light from the corner of the roof and I investigated.

That sliver of light was a damaged soffit vent in the eave of our roof, not more than 2" wide. Apparently, they jumped up into the roof and jumped out to freedom. Fortunately for them, there was an air conditioner just beneath that damaged soffit vent, so they jumped on to the air conditioner and then to the ground. They came back for food the next day, just as if nothing had happened.

I felt like I was starting all over again. I felt so discouraged. This was going to be harder than I previously thought. I had underestimated these cats. I never would have thought they were capable of jumping to the roof in the first place, let alone escape through that sliver of a vent.

I took a few days to think about what to do. Sydney's belly was growing.

Sydney, Cookie's Girlfriend

About 8 months ago, a small grey and peach patchwork cat with beautiful green eyes came to Cookie's food bowl on the patio. I was inside the house, and as soon as we locked eyes, she went running out of the yard. Probably a feral, I suspected. I had never seen her before this time. She was so wild that I assumed she never had human contact before.

I began looking for her every day. I put food further out in the yard for her, and she must have come to the food (even though I didn't see her much) because eventually, she was more comfortable eating closer to the house. My daughter named her "Sydney".

One day, I spotted Sydney at the far end of my yard. Now, my yard is about 1/4 acre, and she was all the way at the back of the fence, so she didn't see me. And she had a kitten with her! My heart melted. I didn't wonder long if there were others. They probably hadn't survived.

I began to feed them both, all the way at the back of that fence. I would place soft food and dry food and fresh water there, twice a day.

I slowly moved those bowls a foot or two every day, and within two months, they were both eating on my patio.

The kitten was a combination of Cookie's total black with Sydney's grey/peach coat: black and peach patchwork fur with golden eyes! I named the kitten "Tater Tot".

But after a few months, I could see a problem coming. I knew Sydney would get in heat again and Cookie would come calling. Furthermore, I was able to get close enough to Tater Tot that I determined she was a female. Eventually, she would be mature and would get in heat. Time was limited if I was to prevent this new colony from growing.

Next post, I'll continue with what happened.