Thursday, February 12, 2015

A Poor Wayfaring Stranger





It was early morning a week before Thanksgiving.  I glanced at the indoor, outdoor thermometer beside the back door, 67 degrees inside 4 degrees outside.  I pushed open the door.  The dogs saw it before I did.  Something little and black streaking across the yard and into the barn.  The dogs were close behind but the barn door was partly closed and the dogs were too big.  It took me a few seconds to identify what I’d seen.  No squirrel, or rabbit, or possum or raccoon.  A kitten. 

What was a kitten doing more than a mile from the nearest house on a bitter cold November morning?  I searched the barn but the kitten was well hidden and wouldn’t come out.  I found the live trap and set it up in the barn bated with cat kibble.  An hour later the trap was sprung and a frightened kitten was inside.

I doubted if the kitten had walked across a mile or more of frozen corn stubble to get to my farm so the only explanation was that some good and kind animal lover had dumped her out of their car to die alone outside in the cold.   

You can’t just bring a stray cat into a house of healthy animals so we went to the vet.  Ear mites, fleas, skin problems, worms and malnutrition, but no upper respiratory.  The blood tests showed no FIP, FeLV or FIV (the dreaded alphabet diseases as my friend Judy calls them).   The kitten came home and lived on the porch, dosed with Revolution, until I was convinced she had no disease that could be transmitted to Toby or the dogs.

Because of the coming Thanksgiving holiday, I began to think of the kitten as a sort of  pilgrim. The dictionary says a pilgrim is a wayfarer, or a wanderer.  I know most of us think of pilgrims as part of a religious journey, and of course this does not qualify in that sense.  But in her plain little black and white coat, alone in a strange and hostile world,  I can't help but see the similarity.  Today, she is healthy and gaining weight.  A little like the Pilgrims we celebrate on Thanksgiving who came here seeking a better life, she made a hazardous journey and, at the end, found her new beginning.  




9 comments:

Nan and =^..^= said...

What a story…such a lucky kitty that she found your barn and the dogs spotted her. She found the right person to take good care of her and give her a wonderful home. She is beautiful. I love your comparison to the Pilgrims.

BeadedTail said...

Oh what a beautiful little girl! We're so happy you saw her and now that she's part of your family! She has lots to be thankful for but we know you're thankful for her too! We love happy endings!

tina said...

You are the one with the kind heart. It takes a special person to take in strays. Poor little thing. I once found a kitten in my compost bin. I took her to Maine for my sister and the cat is named Compost. To this day I don't know where the kitten came from tho we have neighbors. I always wonder about her siblings. So sad. Spay and neuter is really the only way to go.

troutbirder said...

Heartwarming indeed. Our new GSD Lily is also a rescue with a sad story & now much beloved...:)

Rambling Woods said...

That is a lovely story. Thank you for taking the kitten in. My daughter has raised two bottle baby kittens that somebody dumped off near where she works. I don't understand these people. My sister is a vet and does volunteer spay and neutering when she can....

Do take your cell phone with your outside. I did have mine with me finally as usually I don't but I feel badly last winter and was stuck for a bit till hubby found me.. This winter has to end... stay warm..Michelle

Rambling Woods said...

Marnie..you started blogging when I did and I remember visiting your blog. Nice to see you again..I hope you are well... Michelle

Southern Rural Route said...

Such a cutie! I'm so glad you took her in. Two stray cats showed up at my house in January 2012. In 2014, I also adopted a Siamese kitten because I love the colors. It was a reward to me for taking in the other two.

Rose said...

What an adorable face! I would hate to think she was dumped on a cold winter's night, but wherever she came from, she certainly found the perfect home. So glad you and the dogs found her and have given her the comfortable home she deserves. My daughters are both pushovers for strays or rescue animals; somehow, though, the animals often wind up living with me instead:)

sweetbay said...

I remember when I found our cat Penny in a park in PA. She was so thin it was sickening.

I just don't know how people can dump animals. That kitten is lucky she found you.