Some mornings when I go over to feed the feral kitties, I’ll see one or two of them waiting for me. Today I didn’t see anyone when I first got there, but since I had some extra time, I decided to go get my camera out of the car and stay for a few minutes to see if anyone showed up–and they did!
“Mama Cat” was the first one to appear. I trapped her last December, along with her four kittens. She was spayed and returned to her “home” (TNR), and her kittens were all fostered, socialized, and then adopted through the SPCA.
I wondered why she was wasn’t eating, but when I moved over a few feet to be able to see into the feeding station, I could see that “Orange Girl” already had her face in the food bowl!
After a few minutes, the orange kitty left, and Mama Cat took her place:
Orange Girl didn’t move too far away, however. She seemed very, very curious as to why I was still there, and I guess she wanted to keep an eye on me.
Even when they’re eating, these cats are completely alert, and they react to any sound. I startled Mama Cat just by changing my position. She looked up, then continued to eat when she realized I wasn’t moving any closer.
In the meantime, Orange Girl just sort of settled in, and kept watching me.
I saw something moving to the left of the feeding station, and soon I saw the sweet little face of “Cali-1.”
Mama Cat finished eating and walked into some weeds to the right of the feeding station. Instead of getting on with her day (doing whatever it is that feral cats do all day), she continued to watch me, too. I love this picture of her peeking out at me. 🙂
A couple of the maintenance workers drove by, but I’m hoping they couldn’t hear me talking to the kitties as I stood there, taking pictures. I was asking them about the other kitties (Black Girl, Cali-2, and the big male cat I trapped last spring), asked how “Floofy Tail” was doing (haven’t been able to trap her, and I’ve only seen her on the trail cam when she occasionally shows up late at night), and I asked if they knew of any kittens on campus…. I just kept up a quiet, gentle, conversational tone, no doubt confirming my “crazy cat lady” status to anyone who might have heard me. 😉
Soon Mama Cat ventured out again, and she came within 8-10 feet of me.
Then Orange Girl–exceptionally bold, thanks to her “camouflage”–sat down just 4-5 feet away.
Cali-1, the more cautious of the trio, stayed near the feeding station.
I’m so glad I had the chance to see them this morning because I’m always trying to monitor their condition. These three continue to look extremely healthy; their weight is good, their eyes are bright, and there are no signs of cuts or other injuries.
In a perfect world, I’d love to be able to bring these beautiful girls home with me, but as I’ve said all along since I started feeding them last winter, you do the best you can….