The Cat Clan

Many of you know I have a fondness for cats.   I come by it honestly.  There is a picture in my baby book of me at the age of 4 days and curled up next to me is huge grey cat named Smokey. 

On a trip home from Austin in 1984, I stopped for fuel in Fredericksburg.  There was a little boy sitting near the front door with his head hanging and on the verge of tears.  Next to him was a box of 4 kittens.  He told me his daddy was going to kill the kittens if he didn't find a home for all of them.  Well of course I loaded up the kittens, box and all, and delivered them to Telegraph.  My dad still reminds me of this story from time to time because all four kittens were females.  Can you say prolific? 

Our current cat count at the ranch is eleven as follows:

1.  Coalie:  Male.  Solid black long tail and the best hunter of the cat clan.  His favorite place to sleep is in the hay barn.  Approximate age is 16 or 17.

2.  Lucy:  Calico long tail with extra toes on her front paws. Very petite. Likes to hunt and is a loner.

3.  'Listo:  Male.  Black and white long tail with extra toes.  Loves Shannon and hates cats.  We tend to call him "POS" because of his attitude. 

4.  Jack:  Female.  Yellow long tail who once had a litter of NINE kittens.  Doesn't much like humans or cats and only tolerates two offspring we couldn't get rid of.

5.  Puff:  Male.  Yellow and white bob tail with extra toes on front paws.  Once lived with Dennis and Jayne but traveled 7 miles to our house.  Made trouble with other cats and Sam shot at him.  He learned to get along and allows only me to pet him during feeding time. 

6.  Little Bit:  Male.  Yellow bob tail with extras toes on front and back paws.  Started out as housecat but now lives outside due to some "marking of territory" issues.  Little Bit and Buddy Dog are best friends.

7.  Simba:  Male.  Long haired, long tailed yellow cat with green eyes.  Was also a housecat but had same issues as Little Bit.  Sweet personality but can hold his own against "POS".

8.  Girlie:  Female.  Yellow and white with short tail.  Petite and talks a lot. 

9.  Fuzzy Pumpkin:  Male.  Long haired yellow cat with an extra long tail and beautiful amber eyes.  Litter mate of Girlie and they are best friends.

10.  Squeaker:  Male.  Mostly black with some white, long tail and extra toes on front paws.  Squeaks instead of meows. 

11.  Grey Cat:  Male.  Long hair and long tail with front paws that are as big as my palm due to extra toes.  Inside winter/outside summer.  Prefers to drink water from the tap instead of his bowl. 

On occasion we will have Kristin's two cats:

12.  Daisy Duke:  Calico long tail with extra toes on front paws.  Sister of Lucy, mother of Grey Cat.  Sweet kitty and loves to sit on a lap.  Talks A LOT and snores when she sleeps. 

13.  Kitty Friend:  Male.  Tuxedo cat with long tail.  Kristin rescued KF when he was a malnourished kitten.  Definitely a "mama's boy". 

All cats are "fixed" but for Puff which doesn't matter at this time.  Everybody shows up at feeding time expecting a hand out and an ear scratching.  Sam and Mike are anti-feline and growl when I say, "Love me, love my cats."