How I Got Three Cats

by Jeff Baker

First of all, I did not intend to get three cats. Just two. A little orange male and a calico female.

I’d better explain.

My house has felt empty and too quiet since Darryl died almost a year ago. Last June I was down at my Brother’s and his family for a week or so. And they had cats. Lots of cats. I eventually counted about fourteen.

What happened was the crazy cat lady who lived next door up and bailed this past spring and she had several cats. My Brother and his family took the cats in hoping to place them in good homes. Then, two of the kitties had litters. And then one of those two cats got pregnant and had another litter!

Three litter groups of kitties running around the house. Along with two little dogs and some grown cats.

Eventually, the little kittens got placed with other people. And I claimed two of them.

Yeah, just two.

I named them Camden and Ebbet. Baseball names after Darryl’s love of baseball. I planned to take them after the first of the year. Meantime, the kitties got spayed and neutered, and got all their shots. I went out there once a month for a week or two and got to know the kitties.

When the other kittens were almost all parceled out to families in the area, one remained. A black and tan female named “Little Miss Meow-Meow,” for the obvious reasons. She’s either the sister or cousin of the other two. She and Ebbet became playmates (yes, she’s been fixed too.)

We didn’t want to split them up, so I agreed to take Miss Meow-Meow.

And so, on Monday February 12^th I made the drive back to Wichita, with the three kitties in their respective cat carriers. They had been fed “calming treats” before the ride so they snoozed covered-up for the trip. Once I got them home they set about exploring and quickly found the cat boxes in the hallway and in the basement. They felt at home very soon and so did I.

Camden has a few neurological issues; she has seizures sometimes and may need a little extra care but the three of them play together and groom each other and seem to enjoy their new home.

So, I have someone to come home to again as well as talk to and I’ve missed that. They hop onto the bed with me and snooze, and they may be getting used to my weird hours. I tend to be up until the wee hours of the morning.

There are a few inconveniences; I can’t leave my food laying around unattended on the table or even the stove. And I have to watch out that they don’t run out when I open a door. They are indoor cats now, but they had the run of the backyard back in Hugoton at the house where they were born.

I tend to use the back door a lot; coming onto the screened-in back porch and then using the back door to the kitchen. I call it “going through the airlock.” I grew up with cats, and this is not my first time taking care of them. And it brings back memories of twenty years ago when my Brother and his family were moving and I took care of their two cats “Stubby” and “Boo-Boo” for a couple of months. I called them “The Naughty Kitties,” because they were into everything. And when they went to their new home I missed having them around. So I guess I’ve come full circle now, with a house full of active, sweet cats. I call them “The Kitties Without Pity.” But they are sweet. They don’t tear things up but they do knock them over.

Like I have said, the house feels warmer now, it feels like a home again. And there is endless fun with the kitties playing, curled up to snooze on the couch or snuggled next to me in bed or demanding my attention.

It is a full life.

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