Red Squirrel

By JJRW

Unexpected Guest

LARGER.

On Saturday evening when I went out to feed Tom there was a meowing from the direction of my old chicken run to my right. I thought it was Middy-cat, but then realised he was sitting on top of the gate post near the stable - to my left! I switched on the halogen lamp and out from beside the chicken run popped this little thing - surely no more than 5-6 months old, black with a white bib, very thin and obviously ravenously hungry. It was definitely no feral cat, as it was so, so friendly and easily picked up. Inspection revealed a young Queen cat. I went indoors, grabbed and opened a tin of sardines and took them to her - she devoured them rapidly. I gave her some of Middy-cat's biscuits soaked in water - she noshed those too. So I found a large plastic box, made up a bed for her inside it from an old flannelette sheet and put it into my old railway carriage (which has a suitable gap under the door for her to enter/exit by), along with some more food and water (Middy-cat meanwhile observed with a disgusted look on his face).
She's been living in there since, with me feeding her every morning and night. She comes straight out when she hears me about, coming into the feed store with me when I make up Toms feeds. She loves to explore and have a good roll in the loose straw. I noticed that the last 1" or so of her tail is hairless and hard - I wonder if perhaps she comes from one of the houses on the opposite side of the road, way up at the top of the 2 fields which separate us - perhaps she'd been crossing the road and her tail was caught by a car? And now she's afraid to go back over?
At the weekend I'm going to take a drive up to those houses and make some enquiries. Failing that I'll see if the RSPCA can scan her for a microchip.
If that all fails, it looks as if I may have two cats instead of just the one .... Middy-cat will NOT be impressed, so she'd have to stay out in the railway carriage until they can perhaps get used to each other .....
She's the 5th black cat in a row to 'adopt' me - I must have 'CAT-LOVER' tattoed on my forehead! lol

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