Mama Cat

My wife and I live in South Jersey in a development carved out of an old horse farm, of which all that's left is the house, paddock and barn, also, one horse. The barn has become home to feral cats that use our development as a hunting ground. We'd see them from time to time stalking birds and using the storm drains as a feline subway system.

Having domestic cats of our own, we were particularly interested in them. And they were interested in our backyard because of the bird feeding station that my wife had established under a swamp maple there. She put it up so our cats would have something to watch as they lay on the windowsills. When my wife, Ann, noticed that one of the feral cats was pregnant, she put out bowls of dry cat food and clean water next to the deck we'd had built on the back of our house. She's a nurse and wanted to ensure the cat and her litter received good prenatal care. Ann named her Mama Cat.

As a consequence, Mama Cat made her nest under the deck. She dropped four healthy kittens: two females, that we eventually named Freckles and Zazu, and twin males, Sassy and Bratty. Freckles, the most curious and playful, Ann met first. The little one was most interested in this two-legged source of food, sticking her head out from under the deck and calling when she approached. Eventually Mama Cat let her litter into the light of day. She moved their home to a stand of exotic evergreens that our rear neighbor, Tom, had planted on the back of his property. But she continued to bring them into our yard to fill up on cat food. And Ann continued to feed them. And Freckles was always more interested in the source of the food than the food itself. As a result, she became the runt of the litter. She and my wife formed a playful relationship while the others followed the food. As we watched them grow, they started stalking the birds.

In time they reached the age when we knew they would separate from their mother and each other. This was also about the time that one of our two domestic cats died from kidney failure. After some discussion we decided to catch the litter and their mother. We would keep Freckles and Zazu, adopt out the inseparable twins and get Mama Cat fixed (Thank you, Bob Barker). We borrowed a humanitarian trap from another neighbor and, starting with Freckles, one by one, caught them all, ending with the wily Mama Cat. Once we had her fixed and inoculated we planned to release her back on the street. We promised the vet to put out food and water for her every day. There's no use in taking in a full-grown feral cat. She would never adjust to domestic life. Kittens, feral or not, are open to learn. They will adjust.

So the kittens and their mother got their shots and Mama Cat her hysterectomy. As it happened, we wound up taking Sassy back. And the three have settled in just fine. We saw Mama Cat come by for dinner almost every day. The kittens even adjusted to the dog we rescued from termination, a lovable yellow Lab named Max. Then for a few weeks we didn't see Mama Cat. Then mysteriously she returned.

One morning while walking Max I encountered our neighbor Tom working on his front lawn. I introduced Max and then remarked as to the cat carrier I'd seen on his patio. "Have you gotten a cat?" I asked.

He replied that he hadn't; but he'd managed to catch a feral female he'd been feeding and brought her to vet to be neutered. He'd seen her with at least one litter. They had been living in his evergreens for awhile before disappearing. He assumed they died. He didn't think she should have anymore.

"But the funny thing is, the vet told me she must have been born without reproductive organs. Because when he opened her up, there weren't any."

Poor Mama Cat. But she still comes around to eat and sun herself on our front stoop.