I made a cat go out in the cold on Christmas Day. She had worn out her welcome. Here is the story of Orange Cat.
She came into our lives three weeks before Christmas. I was leaving to get groceries, it was dark and beginning to snow. While the door was open she came into the house and met our boy cat Mingy with a hiss and high pitched growl. I thought maybe she had confused our house with hers so I held the door open for her to leave but she stayed in the living room. I decided to feed her and she decided to stay.
During the next few days I worked to find the owners of the cat. I published an ad on Craigslist about how I had taken in a sweet orange cat on the night of the snowstorm. I described her friendly personality and cute face and included several pictures. This ad was posted on every church Facebook page in Circleville with the hope that a family would soon be reunited with their pet. One couple was hoping she was their lost orange cat and even came to see her to learn she wasn't. I wrote and mailed 30 postcards to our immediate neighbors with the simple question "did you lose an orange cat?" along with my phone number. Three ladies on the street behind our house called to tell me they regularly feed a colony of stray orange cats and described some of them. After a week of this I changed my approach. Deciding that she was not someone's beloved lost pet, I adjusted the Craigslist ad to offer Orange Cat for adoption.
Meanwhile, she was not getting along with our cats, especially our girl Dawna. Twice Orange Cat jumped her from behind while Dawna was eating and sleeping. Dawna retreated under our bed where I didn't see her for days. I left food on the floor by the bed and come back later to collect her empty plate. Mingy had been a homeless cat before we adopted him, and because of his background I think he understood Orange Cat's situation in life. He wanted to hang out with her and be friends but she wouldn't make peace. Toward people she was very sweet and affectionate. She loved to snuggle and play but hated sharing affection with Mingy and Dawna. She despised our cats and continued to be aggressive toward them. I knew she couldn't stay with us much longer but I didn't want to throw her out into the cold Ohio winter. It just didn't seem right. I was determined to find her a new home so I locked her into the spare bedroom with food, water, and litter box.
By the third week I was losing hope that Orange Cat would be adopted. The local cat shelter was full. A nearby pet store employee said that Pickaway County doesn't get involved with the stray cat population. He didn't know of any other resources around. I patrolled Craigslist and answered want ads from people who were looking for cats to adopt but when they learned about Orange Cat's story they lost interest. Two people answered my adoption ad but their reactions were the same. Nobody wanted to adopt a stray cat that had wandered in from the storm. And why would they want a cat that's no longer a kitten with no known medical history? A person adopting a cat is like a person with money buying a house during a real estate market crash.
After I found a long red scratch from Mingy's eye to his lip, I moved Orange Cat from the bedroom to the garage and checked Craigslist one last time before going to bed. That night I dreamed about May Grim, my beloved black cat who was lost to the outside five years ago. May said I was keeping a wild animal prisoner in my home and risking the happiness and safety of my own two cats. The next morning I fed Orange Cat one last time and sent her outside. It was Christmas Day when Mingy and Dawna got their house back.
I can't feel bad about my decision to make Orange Cat move out. I know given my resources I couldn't keep her any longer. I expect to see her circling our house for awhile. She hangs out with the neighbor kids across the street. I've seen her fight off stray cats twice her size. She's a tough kitty and I believe she'll be able to take care of herself. It just makes me sad to know that I couldn't help her find a cozy home with a human family to love her and spoil her the way I spoil my furry children. Stray cats lead short and stressful lives. It's winter in Ohio and there are homeless cats all around my neighborhood, my town, your town. I wish I could save them all.
