Sage's Tale

Shadow & Secret

Many years ago two 8 week old kittens were bought in to the clinic to be put to sleep because they had severe cat flu, so I adopted them instead. I named the black and white female “Secret” and the black male “Shadow”.

During treatment both kittens made a good recovery with no lasting effects except that the virus had taken one eye in each kitten. Secret had several bits of her Iris adhesed to the cornea distorting her sight and Shadow had a very small disfigured eye that didn’t open properly and weeped continually due to adhesed tear ducts, but neither cat was ever bothered by their disabilities as fortunately they had one good eye each.

It turned out that I had aptly named them as Secret grew up to be secretive – hiding wherever she could – unco-operative and unsociable, a bit thick but very sweet and Shadow was to become literally my shadow, always close to me,friendly, intelligent, wise, infinately patient, kind and gentle.

If I was sitting on the floor he would wrap his paws around my neck and press his head into my shoulder as if hugging me. If I was standing he would launch his large adult self at me, digging his claws in as I caught him. If I patted him before leaving for work he would grasp my hand between his two front paws and hold onto me tightly. He really was a little person in a fur coat! Very sadly, dear Secret was put to sleep at the age of 12yrs with liver failure shortly before the arrival of Sage.
Misty

Misty joined Secret and Shadow when they were 10yrs old. Because Secret and Shadow were well used to me bringing home any waif or stray from puppy to pigeon they accepted her immediately. My friend and I had gone to a family home buy a kitten for his niece and here we met Misty. She was the runt of the litter, the tiniest scrap of a thing you ever saw.

The other kittens were twice her size but despite being a fiesty and very determined little creature, because of her size she was most definetly pushed out. Her hind quarters seemed higher than her shoulders which made her gait quite peculiar and though we picked a normal, healthy, robust kitten for the niece we could not leave the strange looking, miniscule, angry tabby kitten fighting for her bits of food behind, so home she came with me.

Size was everything to this diminutive little kitten, she thought she was a big cat. We use tall plastic storage boxes for litter trays to stop any accidents over the side but we purchased a small litter tray for Misty kitten. She ignored this completely, prefering to run and hurl herself at the adult litter trays, struggle over the top and drop into the litter below. However, having done her business she would then squeak her head off when she found she was far too tiny to get out again, so we were forever rescuing her from the dreaded toilet.

Misty has grown up into a very shy intelligent and sensitive cat who is very loving and affection to us but hates strangers. She can quickly assess the mood of a room and gets stressed if we are upset or depressed, running around trying to offer us support with little head presses and cat loves. She adored Shadow and Secret but she gets grumpy with Sage and Gypsy and will often hide behind a door or chair to swipe them as they walk by.

Needless to say she is not very popular with either Gypsy or Sage, but she does have her more affectionate moments when she will cosey up to them both.

Gypsy

About two years after acquiring Misty, a lady arrived at the veterinary practice with an approximately 4 month old stroppy tortioushell kitten in her arms. She told me that a feral cat had had a litter of kittens in an outhouse close to her flat and she had been feeding them for a while. On this particular day she had gone to feed them but found the kitten she was holding sitting next to it’s dead mother and all the other kittens gone (feral kittens stay with their parents longer when living wild).

She could not keep the kitten as she lived in a flat where no animals were allowed but neither could she ignore the distressed kitten that refused to leave it’s mother. She begged me to take the kitten in and that was how I met and named Gypsy.

Gypsy was the scruffiest, ugliest, flea ridden singed looking, lost looking, ginger and black kitten I had ever seen. I de-flead and wormed her and put her in a kennel with bed and food whilst I waited for the dead fleas to fall off which they did in their hundreds.

After a few days I tried to rehome her but this proved to be impossible as nobody wanted such an ugly, unsociable kitten, they wanted a pretty one and so after a month or so I had her spayed and brought her home with me.

As I expected , the ugly duckling grew into a beautiful, intelligent, mischevious, naughty, regal looking cat and suddenly everyone wanted her, but it was too late, she was firmly in my heart and home.

She has an enquiring personality, always trying to help: climbing up ladders when I am cleaning windows, getting her foot stuck in the typewriter while I am writing and swinging from the wing mirrors whilst my partner Chris is cleaning the car.

She worships large dogs and children and is absolutely fearless. She annoys us, frustrates us and amuses us all at the same time.