Alone

Probably the oldest cat in the feral colony, certainly the oldest tortie cat, OT has been spending a lot of time away from the colony lately, keeping to herself. Generally speaking, I would say that this is not a good sign. Her age is getting to her. She wants to be alone. She's tired of the rat race, so to speak. And I guess we all feel like that, sometimes.

We love Old Tortie, and we wish her the best. Sometimes, this is just how life really is.

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Old Tortie Cat Nap

A senior citizen of the feral cat colonies, Old Tortie has always been pretty quiet and she mostly keeps to herself. Even at feeding times, she tends to hang back and wait for the leftovers... not that this is has limited her girth in any way. :)

In any case, she seems pretty contented with her life. She eats and sleeps and stays out of trouble. When you're a feral cat, what more could you ask for?

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Tortie Cat Face, Up Close

Beautiful, shy Old Tortie cat, a long-time fixture among the local feral cats. She paused momentarily before running away, so I captured this photo. She's pretty old for a feral cat - I'm not sure how old but older than one would expect. She's still beautiful, though ...at least to me.

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Old Tortie Surveys Her Territory

Just our old friend, Old Tortie, who has been around forever, it seems. She likes to find a good perch to keep an eye on things. She's nowhere near as high in the air as Gizmo was, in our previous photo. She is just high enough to be comfy.

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OT's Precarious Nap

It's our old friend Old Tortie - or OT - long-time resident of the feral colonies. She's taking a nap, but in a precarious spot, it seems. It doesn't even look comfortable, yet the look on her face is that of contentment. I guess the angle of the sun was just right... or something?  I don't know but she seems happy and would rather not be disturbed.

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Georgia Finds it Dubious

Georgia the tortie cat, just sitting around observing - she looks like she finds whatever she's watching to be rather dubious.It's the color of her fur around her mouth that does it. It's like, "what the heck do you think you're doing?"

Georgia the Tortie

Well, I'm back - and the kitties are happy to see me. Georgia the tortie was right there to greet me, too. Georgia is a very sweet and independent girl: She's really among the adoptable kitties, having been tamed when young. She just never found a home.

Old Tortie Girl

In the previous post, you saw a group of feral cats hanging out and keeping an eye on me. She led that pack.

It feels like she's been around forever.  At maybe 8 or 9, she's an old lady for a feral cat. She's not tame, but she is no longer interested in expending the energy to run away when I approach. Instead, she'll just move quietly, slowly out of the way. If she were a pet, she wouldn't considered terribly old, but life is different for ferals.

Having said all that, I want to point out that she has a great coat, and is a little chubby, so I guess she's doing okay overall.  Old tortie girl never misses any meals, that's for sure! She just leads a quiet, unassuming life.


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Tortie Cat Nap

I've noticed that some people don't particularly like tortoiseshell kitties. Some have told me this has to do with the asymmetric nature of their coloring. I don't know, personally, I think they're cute. This is just Georgia the barn cat, again - she's often busy and we see her running, prowling, stalking... but right now, it's time for a little rest.

Georgia could still be someone's pet, in my opinion. She's not going to be a lap cat but she's tame enough to be friends with someone. However, she's also used to being here, so that's a consideration, too. By the way, she's a talker! She's always telling me what's what. Mostly, she tells me she wants more food.


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Camouflage Tortie

I took this pic with my little pocket camera so it's not the best, but I found it interesting that this tortie cat in a woodpile is almost invisible at a distance. She just blends right in! If she put her head down so her ears weren't sticking up you'd probably never notice her.

Tabby In Contemplation of Wild Wheat

A pretty tabby, some wild wheat, and a moment of contemplation. Perhaps our kitty sees beauty in the blades.... perhaps he spotted a bug. I don't know what this kitty is thinking about - I hardly ever know. Cats are mysterious, sometimes.

This is Star Cat, who is indeed a cat star, at least on this blog. I wrote recently about his unfortunate bout with idiopathic  Vestibular Disorder. It's an inner ear inflammation that makes cats walk strangely and with difficulty, and they fall down a lot. Nobody knows what causes it. All these years working with feral cats and I didn't see one case if this mystery illness, but this year we've had two! The notes say it's most common in July and August in the northeast, suggesting something seasonal. I don't know, I live in the northwest and these cases started in late June. Still, there must be something to it.

In any case, Star Cat is much better now, although he has some residual head tilting - generally he seems to be getting around much better. Most cats get better in about three weeks, I've read, although some have some symptoms that last longer, like Star Cat.  He seems happy again, though, and that's the main thing.

Georgia Sun and Shade

Not the state, but the pretty tortie cat named Georgia. Here she has found herself a spot where she can be half in the sun and half in the shade. She was just rolling around on the grass having a good time, enjoying her life. I just happened to catch her between rolls.

Georgia is tame, basically speaking. We had her up for adoption as a kitten but when there were no takers she just ended up staying here with us. It's not the good life that a beloved pet might have but it's better than many cats.

A Peaceful Moment

Taking a little rest in the middle of the day.... I caught one of my favorite feral cats enjoying a moment of peace and quiet. We all need moments like this.

I'm also glad to know that some feral cats are this comfortable around me. While one could never touch her, she isn't afraid of my presence in general and she's relaxed enough to close her eyes ....perhaps imagining a better life.

Pretty, Curious, Tortie Girl

Bright and curious, Pretty Tortie Girl looks at the camera with eyes that betray her intelligence. It's what makes her a star among feral cats.

In a way, she's almost a pet even though she's completely feral. This too, is due to her exceptional mind. Instead of just being fearful, her desire to know about the world has led her to sneak quietly into my sister's house to explore. She also follows me around the yard to see what I'll do next.

What a wonderful pet she would have made!

With Abundant Curiosity

Looking ahead to the future, what comes next ..what's out there: It's Georgia the tortie cat, who always evidences an abundance of curiosity. Wow, this is a post that's just full of words I can't spell. :)

Georgia is the daughter of dilute tortie Dora the Explorer - and from kittenhood she was always the most curious, busy kitten. She was named Curious Georgia for that reason! Dora and Georgia have both been spayed, of course, and now Georgia and her mother are best friends; more like sisters than mother-daughter. Anytime you see Georgia, Dora will probably be within a couple of feet, too.

Tortie Cat Pose

Looking cute while surrounded by dead leaves and some building supplies, this feral tortie cat seems to be posing for me. At least, she held still while I took her photo. Her coloring is brighter than many tortoise shell kitties, so she stands out.

Old Tortie Girl

She's been around a long time. You can see one ear is clipped and she's gotten a little chubby over the years - but that's really nice to see on a feral cat.

Ol' Tortie Girl has almost gotten tame over the years. Not quite, but enough to where she will come up to me to ask for food... and not leave until she gets it.

In a feral cat colony like this, nobody is here forever. Come to think of it, none of us are here forever, or even the amount of time we were expecting. I feel sad when we lose cats I know and I will definitely feel sad when Ol' Tortie Girl is gone. She's not a pet, but she is a friend.

The Invisible Cat

The cat I never see at feedings, photographed with a 400mm lens and still barely more than a spec until the image is close-cropped. Even without participating in the feedings he looks well-fed. He, for his own reasons, has decided not to socialize with the other members of his cat community.  Were it not for this photo, he would be effectively invisible.

This tabby is either a great hunter, or he sneaks food after I leave. Either way, I guess he's doing okay. It's not really safe out in the woods though; I particularly worry about coyote predation. But he has to make his own choices.

Here's the thing: The world is full of invisible cats. They are out there, just trying to survive. They've figured out that people can be dangerous (and they're right about that). These cats want to live and they're doing their best. One can only hope that somewhere, somehow, some ONE is caring for them.

Tortie Cat Macro Version

It's cute, bright, independent-minded Georgia the tortie cat, thinking about something or another - like, what game to play next.

It wasn't a cat-picture expedition: I was out taking some macro images of plants and insects, like the one below....
I've found that macro photography has given me a new appreciation of the small things in this world; things I never gave a second thought or sometimes even noticed. But now I do. While doing my macro world expedition, Georgia was there looking cute enough that I wanted to capture her. I didn't take the time to remove my macro extension so this is what you get.

I'm happy with it, anyway.

Dora On A Tractor

It's pretty, adorable, adoptable Dora The Explorer cat, sitting on a tractor seat, watching the world. All things considered, she seems pretty happy with her life. And she's certainly a bright, friendly, independent-minded kitty.

Although we've had a few torties and even a few dilute torties of the more reddish variety, Dora is the only dilute lilac tortie we've ever seen in the feral cat colony. She self-rescued as a kitten, and we're glad.