The Cats

You may have wondered my logo is "Two Cats Selling Stuff."  As you can see from the pictures, there is a reason for it.  For over six years now, these wonderful creatures have been more or less in Carolann's care.  They came with the little property she and her husband bought in 2002.  The old gentleman who sold the property told us they were a necessary component to living in the midst of wheat and milo fields. 

At first the cats were a novelty.  Family and friends alike wanted to meet the cats.  It was fun seeing all these felines scampering about; fun discovering kittens in the barn or in a thicket near the creek; fun trying to make friends with them.

To a great extent, they were wild, a feral pride of miniature lions.  Carolann vowed not to name them, not to get too attached.  But as they became used to our being here on "their" property, the names began to manifest themselves.  I believe Two Tick was one of the first to warm up to us.  And then there was Hissy, who would never take to us.  After that, the names came pouring out: Bootsie, Piggy, Wart, Mellow Yellow, Tom, Pale Walker, Shadow, Lucky Trouble, Bones, Twinkie, Bandit, Pepper Sad Eye, Butch, Sundance, Calimom and on and on. 

Population was exploding initially.  Carolann gradually managed to find the money to spay / neuter a good number of them.  In total, we managed to stop the repopulation of over 40 of them.  As you can imagine, this was an expensive venture.   Even though our goal had been to catch and fix them all, it simply has not been possible.

We still have several kittens born each year, but the population has stabilized for the most part.  Some cats go missing, a few others are born to take their place.  I imagine eventually we will have to start the spaying and neutering process again.  In the meantime, the cats still expect to eat twice a day.  I do see them occasionally with mice and rats, but hunting isn't always successful and is often dangerous.  Living in the "wilds of Kansas" there are still creatures that will take a cat -- coyotes, bob cats, racoons, and even skunks.

Check out Lucky Trouble's blog at carmelcats.blogspot.com/ if you'd like to know more.

I began selling on eBay to help offset some of the expense of the cats.  It seemed appropriate that the logo be "Two Cats Selling Stuff."  The two cats in the photo are Lovey Bud and Lucky Trouble.  Lucky found his way into the house due to illness.  Lovey Bud simply wormed her way in somehow.  Just thought I'd share this info.  If nothing else, it's a bit amusing and gives a little insight into my life.