My Disciples,
The Guardians continue to work with Theo to bring him out of the shadows and into the light. It’s slow going, as it was with Me, but they are seeing some progress. He no longer runs at the sight of them. He still keeps a wary eye on them, but you can see that the seed of trust is beginning to take hold. He even returns “kitty kissy eyes” to them now and then.
Theo is showing signs that he may be starting to trust the Guardians.
It is heartbreaking to watch Theo struggle. His is the story of millions of cats that have been abandoned to the shadows. His life of stress and despair is evident in his overly lanky body and the scabs of recent fights and the scars of fights past pepper his face and ears.
Scars and scabs testify to Theo’s struggles in the world without walls.
I looked out the door last night and was surprised to find Theo looking in at Me. He had jumped up on a chair that Mama Cat usually sits on, and he peeked around the Toastinator that Mama lays under. I hoped this was a sign of curiosity, a sign that he was curious what awaited him on the inside.
Theo peeked into the house. Was he curious about what awaits him inside?
I hope to report someday that Theo has been swept up in The Capture and his time in the shadows have come to an end. Until that day, the Guardians’ work with him continues under My watchful eye.
So Sayeth Otis
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That’s so wonderful to hear! And good encouragement for us as we continue to try and get our beautiful little Wolfie to trust us. We feed him twice a day and he’s getting much better, although he hisses when he thinks were too close. It’s really obvious though that he would love some of the affection he sees us giving our 3 indoor cats every day. Hopefully soon the desire will outweigh the fear.
Theo hisses at the Guardians too, Linda. Many other frightened and hungry cats have done the same to them and then later ended up being adoptable. I think once they feel like they are no longer in full-on survival mode, they begin to open up more to human attention. I know I did. 🙂
Dear Otis, Our Person was unfamiliar with the”kitty kissy eyes” until we got her to read this post. She tried it with us! She did it very well. We have high hopes that she will continue this form of communication with us un the future. Bandit, Selleck, and Their Person, Emily.
Yay! The kitty kissy eyes are what originally made Me show interest in the Guardians. The gesture, and My response to it led to My life changing forever!
So glad your Guardians are the kind of people they are. Theo is too.
Thanks Chris. I guess they are OK. 🙂
Yow Leader Otis….we iz purrayin fer theo to come into the Light n be wif all of ya n da Guardianz!!! he haz such sad soulful eyez n dat piccie where he iz lookin in we can see da ‘kitten’ in him…dere IZ a cureeuss look dere….pawz crossed fer Theo!!!!
Lub Nylablue n SherriEllen ❤
Thanks Nylablue and SherriEllen! 🙂
Otis, you have trained your Guardians well. ♥♥♥
It took a lot of hard work, Batya, but it was worth it. 😉
Theo is gorgeous
Yes he is, 2 cats. 🙂
As someone who’s never tried to tame a feral cat, I find these posts useful and informative. Maybe someday I’ll cross paths with a cat who needs to be socialized before it can be adopted, and now I’ll know what to do!
It’s often a long process, Pezcita (more than 5 months for me), and if the kitty is truly feral they may never trust humans. But I think there are a lot of kitties out there that can be brought to the light if only someone is willing to reach out to them. 🙂
We are very lucky that our neighborhood has very few limbo kitties. There are three that we have seen in recent years. Of those 3, two are only see when they escape their Guardians. We try not to be too critical because young children should not be blamed for occasional mistakes and the In this case the kitties were there before the children. The third lives across the street and has twice been scooped up by our HuMom because, with only the streetlight or at a distance, he looks very much like Hitch. He has also been pursued by the HuMom’s brother on one occasion when the brother came to visit. But, we will stay vigilant and alert our. HuMom whenever an UFV (unidentified feline visitor) is in the area. We hope that those remain few and far between, and that the UFV has identification allowing him to be returned to his worried Guardian. We thank you and the entire Cult of Otis for educating us on the plight of the shadow and limbo kitties. We pray that Theo remains safe and learns to trust the Guardians of Otis.
Purrs,
Mistletoe & Hitch
rwb
Thanks for your vigilance M and H!
Fingers and paws crossed for Theo!
Thanks Andrea! 🙂
We purr that Theo will be swept up in The Capture soon too. He deserves it.
Thanks Island Cats. He does deserve it.
What wonderful thoughtful guardians you have Otis. I hope Theo sees life is better on the inside, no worrying about food, shelter, enemies, just being loved and adored. Have you tried to talk to Theo about how good things can be?
I’ve tried, peacelovenwhiskers. I think he is slowly starting to believe. 🙂
We wish the best for you, Theo! From Christie, Dave, Digby, Susie Q and Dexter (the cat who dealt with a Dog Uprising).
Thank you all! And please send any tips on dealing with a Dog Uprising to Brother Henry!
We hope Theo can be swept up also…those scars are so sad and of course fighting is not a good way to live your life..breaks our hearts the lives of the shadow kitties 😦
Yes indeed, Fozziemum. 😦
😦 poor baby..
His poor little nose! Otis, maybe Mama Cat talked to him? He looks like he’s wondering if maybe…maybe there’s a different way to live. Oh, purrs of courage to him.
Thanks Phil. He and Mama Cat do eat at the same time, but they are about 10 feet away from one another. I think she might actually be telling him he needs to get in line because she’s been here longer. 😉