Unusual Friends..........

After my father had his stroke in November of 2008, I worried about what would become of his beloved farm cats. Although shy, they were accustomed to being fed each day so they were not feral. The ones he had when he became incapacitated were about 30th generation descendants from his original two cats, which were gifts from a dear friend many years ago.

Several of my "cat" friends told me dad's little cats might have a difficult time fending for themselves among the larger wild animals that inhabit the vast, extremely rural farm area. So, each weekend, I take 45 pounds of food and place it in various elevated bin areas in the barn.

I know that sometimes, this food is shared with raccoons, opossums, squirrels and other assorted animals of the wild, but I don't mind. As long as the cats have enough to eat, it is okay with me if other hungry animals share their bounty. The cats are always excited to see me and run to greet me, talking their cat language non-stop until I can get the bags open and their bins filled.

I have tried to pet them and interact socially with them, but they do not want this. So I have learned not to bother them........I just stay for a few minutes, knowing my place is that of a delivery person only. But they definitely seem to anticipate my arrival the following week.

However, a few weeks ago, I began to notice that they had accepted a new member into their pack. I don't know where he came from or how they worked out their very peaceful co-existence, but on multiple occasions, I have now seen them all eat from the same bin simultaneously.

I find myself thinking if this very odd paring can get along, maybe the rest of us could take a page from their playbook.

Just saying............