Pierre’s legacy: Homer

My house has been so quiet since Pierre’s death. He was very vocal, yammering comically in his Siamesy way, like a stuck car horn or endless running commentary.

Pierre had been mentoring a feral kitten, Homer, a grey tabby who has been in the house for several weeks and who followed Pierre everywhere. Homer became tame just before Pierre’s death, and every day he's more loving and adorable. Homer reminds me of Pierre, with his complaining voice and silvery paws. Homer is shown here with his other buddy, Francine, Pierre’s sister, who is still painfully shy and untouchable.

Pierre is gone

I am too devastated to be writing this yet, but I need to tell that Pierre was run over late Monday night. He was less than a year old, a former feral who had been tame only about four months. He was the most beautiful and charming and delightful kitty – he was like a crown jewel. I almost worshipped him.I will write more about Pierre later, when I’m feeling less shattered. At left is a “labels” link to previous posts about Pierre.

On top of this pain, I feel guilt for exposing my kitties to the dangers of the street. But even when the price is this high, I do not regret the freedom and joy we have by living so much of our lives outdoors.

I don’t want this blog to be a sad read with stories of kitty suffering. I can’t bear to hear such tales, even if they have a happy ending. So my memories of Pierre will be positive and life-affirming.

48 hours of fame

We are Etsy's featured seller!After midday Sunday, my interview will be archived here.

Catnip boomerangs

Our most fun Christmas moment was a surprise package of Jake & Micah catnip boomerang toys. This catnip is so potent, it's bound to become illegal! The ecstasy-inducing nip even permeates the packaging the toys are wrapped in.Alvin (above) was so intoxicated by the catnip-infused tissue paper, he couldn't find the toy.Pierre's blue and orange-flash eyes (above) match the toy's fabric. The dark spots on the fabric are happy-drool marks.
Marvin passes out after a few rounds of boomerang.

Christmas riches

I'm so thankful this Christmas for my friend Delicia in Tennessee. In exchange for kitty beds, she let me have three rare rolls of gorgeous mod vintage drapery fabric. Below are those fabrics as beds.Since then, Delicia has generously given me more wonderful vintage fabrics for kitty beds. She too cares for homeless/abandoned cats -- the photo below shows her ingenious "Tennessee deck house," a storage bin-within-a-bin that keeps stray kitties warm and dry. She says, "Any benefits of the fabric I send can be used to spay/neuter/shelter or feed the felines."

Sir Pantsuit

I have not mentioned Pierre much lately, but he is nevertheless the center of the universe.His nickname has morphed from Misterpants to Sir Pantsuit. He plays with his sister Francine but sleeps alone or across my chest. He's seen here on the closet floor bedding used by almost-tame feral kitties. (There's a hole in the floor leading under the house, a great big warm place for ferals to hide.)

Tandem sleeping open call

Pierre and Francine have joined the tandem sleeping performance circuit.They aspire to challenge the reigning tandem sleeping champs, Olga and Jesse, who in the past year have turned professional and taken their show on the road. They recently appeared in the backyard shed's winter bedding I've set up for feral kitties.Today I caught Olga and Jesse rehearsing their new act: "Chopsticks" and "That's my hiney, dude."

Misterpants and Sisterpants

Feral tabby kitten Francine is finally a housecat!With the suddenness of winter (39 degrees here last night), I have worried about Pierre's sister Francine. In the past few weeks she has started letting me pet her while giving her treats. Outside today while she was lapping her dish of lactose-free milk, I impulsively grabbed her with her dish and hurried into the house. She freaked out but didn't scratch me. I plopped down in the living room floor with Francine in my lap, and she huddled there, stress-purring loudly for a long time, then relaxed a bit and finished her milk. Finally Pierre came in, and when Francine saw him she stepped out of my lap and rubbed lovingly on him. I hopped up and closed the kitty door to keep her in, while Francine meandered around the house, following Pierre's lead. An hour or two later I got these photos of the brother-sister duo on the bed.

I have such a Christmasy feeling now that this Francie care package has arrived! Big Daddy Alvin looks on, perhaps dimly aware that those two kids are likely his offspring.

Pierre's playstation

Healthy child development today requires multiple sources of stimulation and relaxation, preferably all at the same time.

Pierre pressure

Feral kitten Pierre took the plunge last week -- he dove his head into my waiting hand and discovered love, love, love. He became tame practically overnight. He has trained me to rub every inch of his head. He purrs in my lap. He lets me pick him up and carry him. He's underfoot in the kitchen, hollering for treats. He's become more tame in a few days than Jesse and Olga have in months.Pierre is absolutely adorable and one of the few rescued ferals that could be adopted out -- to a Siamese-lover's home of my choice. It would be only fair to my other kitties, who already have to compete for attention. But can I part with Pierre? This is where they separate the kitty rescuers from the kitty hoarders. I can think of a dozen arguments for keeping him and just as many for letting him go.
Just writing this makes me want to hug him and kiss him and hoard him.

Lookie there, Pierre

I'm looking already, Jess.

Captain Kittybed

Pierre reacts on his first sight of a ceiling fan in motion.Hardcore Pierre likes his kitty beds raw and metal.Pierre's photo session was going great until his mother started freaking out about claws in the kitty bed.

Son of a bunny

It's time to break out the baby pictures of daddy Alvin (also known as Bunny) and compare them to son Pierre.That's Pierre on the left, and on the right is Alvin as itty bunny and big bunny.

Francine and Pierre

This is my latest feral couple, kitten siblings Francine and Pierre. She looks like their feral mom Suzy, and he looks like, er, my Alvin. I am ashamed for not having gotten Alvin neutered until March of this year. I'm still trying to trap and spay mom Suzy.I haven't been able to touch these kittens yet, but we play lots of games of string and mouse and ping-pong ball, and they let me get closer to them every day.