The Cat Who Came In From The Cold
The cat who came in from the cold has a new official status: formerly feral.
A week ago our feral boy Domino escaped the snow storm and entered a new life. For days he planted himself in an old cat bed far too small for his stocky body. He spilled out, lopsided like a boat about to capsize. Out of dozens of choices to sleep on, this was his choice and he oozed contentment so who was I to dissuade him? I draped his old blanket around it to make it bigger.
In the past week he’s made two quick treks upstairs but it remains out of his comfort zone. He likes the livingroom best; ideally close to his dad.
Domino expressed no interest in the outdoors until Tuesday when he and Odin played tag and gamboled on the lawn as usual. As if on cue, they returned for dinner. The transistion for Domino appeared so seamless and effortless, I thought it too good to be true. It was.
On Thursday, he refused to come in for dinner, so I brought his dish near the door, he came in, I closed the door. Shortly afterward heard a loud scratching and clawing at the door to go out. Not wanting to associate anything negative with being indoors, I let him out. Every hour, I’d check up an him, “Are you ready to come in? No? Okay. Are you cold enough? No, fine. Odin wants to play with you.” Finally at bedtime he agreed and curled up in his rocky boat bed. The same thing happened yesterday and it’s clear Rome nor formerly feral cats aren’t made in a day, but we’re making mega strides. Stayed tuned…
Meanwhile, Merlin and Gris Gris napped on the sunny porch, weather permitting and Odin excelled at being Odin.
Since the weather is cooler, we’re spending less time outdoors. That means Odin needs more indoor play and exercise. Without access to his favorite outdoor scratching posts and bored with his indoor ones, he exercised his creativity by finding novels places to nap and scratch.
With cats we never know what they’re going to do next, do we? It’s up to us to provide enough play and stimulation to avoid behavioral issues.
24 Comments
Marg
Your wild boy looks like my girl olive , I bought her as rag doll kitten with her sister Daisy,Olive has similar markings to your boy.Olive has as much ragdoll as he does lol.Daisy none at all. But I love them both. Your cats look much loved and pampered. Mine are too.
Daisy and Olive are the first cats I have ever purchased. They just come to me, even the really wild moth eaten mangy runny eyed flea bags who have arrived on my doorstep ,soon become used to the good life and become desexed fat sleek regal cats they were meant to be. They know it, and anyway who doesn’t love a challenge?
Oui Oui
We are so thrilled every time a kitty decides to become formerly feral. We’ve had a few, but Mica Moo has been the biggest challenge. The mom wonders if there was some abuse in her past. Is there anyway to tell? Probably not, cats are such individuals. Funny thing about our formerly ferals, none of them has ever shown any interest in going Out There again.
Deb
Domino looks like a calico, which would generally mean he’s a she. Has anyone checked?
boomermuse
Deb, we’ve be told Domino is part Ragdoll and our vet Dr. G. neutered him so he’s definitely a he.
Random Felines
Oh Domino – mom wants to kiss those big mancat cheeks – but she will resist until you are more comfortable. We hope it happens quickly – it will be OK.
Oh, and we have no idea why Odin got in trouble for the new scratchy place…..
Catsparella
Hooray! I’m so happy to hear that Domino is starting to come around! It sounds like he’s on the right track, and the boat bed is hilarious!
Brian
Way to go Domino, I am really proud of you! Hey Odin, nice scratcher ya got there!
Cheysuli
He’ll gradually start learning that he likes in there. Georgia would go for long periods of outside and come in only for meal time and then want out. After awhile she started enjoying inside more and more.
Marg
Oh Domino, we are so proud of you for coming in the house. Good for Dad for making friends with you. When it turns cold again, I bet he will be inside. The cats here that live outside mainly do want to come in when the weather turns. This just makes our Mom so very happy. Thanks Odin for befriending Dom. Great news.
Rumpy Drummond
Hello! We have two former ferals. One is totally assimilated and one would never know but for the tip on her ear. The other is afraid of most everything and spends a good deal of time on top of the kitchen cabinets when Jen is awake and at home- close but not too close. And yet Hissy Fit Jones comes to Jen’s bed every morning for petting and attention. Since none of our kitties go out that is not an issue for us. We just let him be who he is and accept him on his terms.
Caren Gittleman
Domino is probably just testing the waters. He wants to make sure like a commitment-phobic man, that should he want to leave the relationship he has that option! I am betting since you are not pressuring him to stay, he will want to be inside all the more.
He has exquisite eyes!
CATachresis
Perhaps you’ve hit the nail on the head!! Domino thinks he’s losing his catness and is fighting to the last to retain it. It’s only a matter of time (which, after all, is a human construct! Errr is it?) lol
Katnip Lounge
Sir Domino looks like a smart ‘un to us…we’re betting that he’ll decide IN is better than OUT fairly soon. After all, we did! All of us are former ferals.
boomermuse
Thanks for reminding us that all 12 of you are formerly feral!
@Austin, let’s hope so.
@Caren, “testing the waters”, exactly!
@Rumpy, I didn’t know about the two ferals. Must stop by.
@Marg, I knew you’d be thrilled. You’ve followed his escapades longer than anyone online.
Anonymous
Domino, I am happy to know you have a choice between the outdoors and a warm house inside.
Deb Barnes - Zee and Zoey
So nice to meet you “Formerly Feral Domino!” I love how you pointed out all of his “safety” spots and it made me smile to see him so completely at ease next to dad!!
boomermuse
Deb, he’s getting there and yes, he’s a daddy’s boy.
Pam Kimmell
What wonderful strides you’ve made in getting Domino to give the indoors a chance. He looks comfortable indoors – and even in his capsizing boat bed, he appears content. The call of the wild may fade even more over winter when the snow keeps him IN!
Yippeeee!
Pam and Sam
Ingrid King
The photo of Domino with your husband actually made me cry. Even though Domino may still be battling a minor identity crisis, he looks so happy in that photo.
boomermuse
Ingrid, he’s not out of the woods yet, so to speak. He refused to come in last night so we plugged in his electric heating pad on the porch. He came inside for his breakfast and is out again, but it’s a beautiful day and it will take a little more time for the transition.
Fisher
This is such a great adventure for all of you! Winter won’t be as cold with another cat in the house.
Milo and Alfie
What a lovely post. We so hope Domino can become truly FORMERLY feral before winter sets in. What a lovely boy he is. The pic by his new dad in the study is really special.
Kathryn
Oh I just love Domino so much. And Odin. And all the boys. But Dom and Odin the best. Amazing that Dom really made it inside. I was so worried last winter about him.
Are your boys writing a book? They should!
boomermuse
Kathryn, it’s going to take a while but once it turns icy, I think he’ll choose wisely. I wish the boys would write a book and give time to focus on my other writing.
@Milo & Alfie, thanks for appreciating his loveliness.
@Fisher, every day is an adventure 😉
@Pam & Sam, love what you said: “The call of the wild may fade even more over winter when the snow keeps him IN!”