Our Cat, Cheetah

My sons, for years, have been asking me and my parents, who live close by my place, for a pet." Later, later, when the time is right," is what they were constantly being told. If it wasn't one reason, it was another reason "They are too expensive," or " take up too much time" for example.

However, sometimes situations like these are resolved on there own. Our cat, whom we call Cheetah, found us. My oldest son noticed that she was trying to steal the heart of a neighbor who already had too many cats. He did the right thing by putting "cat found" signs with her picture on them so that an owner can have a chance to claim her. A neighbor quickly pointed out that she was abandoned. Before we knew it, she let us know in her own way that she wanted to go inside my parents house. It was not long before the cat was considered part of the family. Before we knew it she had her own veterinarian, regular cat food, and a scratching post.

She has some interesting habits. She enjoys sleeping on either of the children bed. She loves to drink from the bathroom faucet. She also covers her food when she is finished eating. She has her own way of telling us when she wants to eat, or when she wants to go outside. Sometimes, however, when she tries to get our attention, we are completely stumped about what she wants.

We had one scare shortly after Cheetah came into our lives. I admit it was my fault. I took her for a walk and lost track of her. After three very long days of not knowing weather or not we will ever see her again, she came back. That was quite a relief for all of us. I don't take walks with her anymore, and she doesn't seem interested in doing so either. She won't go even a little bit away from the house with us. We will never know where she was or what happened to her when she was missing those three days, but apparently, she learned, her lesson.

Unfortunately, we missed many years with her. The veterinarian said during an early appointment that she was probably 4 or 5 years old. We just need to make the most of the years we do have with her. One of my children asks about getting a dog sometimes. For now, we all are just enjoying her sweet, soothing presence.