My sister lives in the country. One of the fortunate, in her county, to reside on a paved road, for many residents' homes are on gravel roads. Dirt is alive and well in rural America. Her home, should she ever choose to sell it, would fetch more on the real estate market simply due to the fact that her road is black-topped.
Not only did the gods smile warmly upon her when depositing her on a paved road for life, but the feral cats of the county seem to have chosen her farm as a favoured place to live.
For as long as I can remember, there have been many, many cats to feed at my sister's place. My sister was raised on a farm and has a deep respect for the typical, domesticized animal, cats in particular. Whenever she opens the rear, garage service door, cats of all ages and sizes come a-runnin', hopeful for yet another pan-full of whatever leftovers they will be lucky enough to feast on. Oh, yes, she keeps their numerous bowls full of good-quality cat food, but the cats know that special treats come in cooking pans. Felines typically have excellent olfactory senses, and my sister's are no exception. The cats can be curled up, seemingly sound asleep in their various nooks and crannies, but as soon as they hear the click of the door's latch, they are on alert. My sister has only to step out and the cats noses begin twitching, ready to catch the faintest aroma of bacon grease, meat scraps, fresh milk, bread cubes.......whatever is scraped from the serving dishes goes immediately to the cats. If there doesn't seem to be enough scraps, full pieces of meat will be chopped and cubed for the kitty-cuisine.
Young ones, old ones, infants.........all the cats are well cared for and have lots of shelter, both from the sun and snow. Her farm is a cat haven from the brutal life of a feral cat. Many of the animals will grow to trust her and allow themselves to be petted and cared for, in the event of illness. She can describe the personality of each cat, when it came, and where it falls in the food-consumption pecking order.
Yes, there are plenty o'cats at Sandra's Cat Chalet.
Ancora imparo
