I was known as the assassin!

“I used to be a great hunter! In my early life, I was known in our house as the ‘assassin’.

Birds, small fish…why I even dragged a baby squirrel across our front porch one night. I was only a kitten at the time, and this act of great courage and nerve, was witnessed by a member of our household.

My freedom ended abruptly. My owner became concerned about my safety and ordered me to stay indoors. I did try to escape on more than one occasion but was captured and brought back inside.

And so it has been for many years now.

But, I get her back. I sneak into their bedroom every night between 3 and 4 AM and I meow so loudly ‘she’ wakes up. She is not amused.

This act of vengeance gives me great pleasure. Can’t you see me smiling inwardly?”

My humble beginnings.

Sometimes I amuse myself by thinking back to where my story began.

It was 2006, two years after the missus lost her husband. Her teenaged son decided she needed another pet. I was just a kitten in the local shelter. He paid $25 for my freedom and we headed back to his place.

My new home was magnificent. A cat’s dream. It was a big ‘ol 1850 estate home located on the river. Fish in the river. Birds in the hedge that framed the front of the property. Squirrels in the trees. Yes. It was paradise.

Not what she needed.

The Missus was less than impressed when we first met. She already had a pretty rambunctious dog, two teenaged kids, a business to run and a home to take care of. She didn’t want, or need another responsibility. I was determined to show her, I was worthy of staying. I could look after myself.

With no one particularly interested in my whereabouts I decided to make the outdoors my playground.

Besides, that dog was a maniac. One peep outta me, and he demonstrated with his paws that there was only room for one of us. And he had been first dog in.

Life was pretty darn sweet. Sleep during the day in one of the bedrooms upstairs. Steal my way outside when the sun went down. I discovered that by climbing the birch tree in the back, I could gain access to the porch roof, which led to two of the bedroom windows. If I made enough noise one of the occupants inside would let me in. This came in handy on really snowy nights. Sneak out when I felt like it. Come back in on demand.

It was during one of these nightly sojourns that I tracked down the aforesaid baby squirrel. I could hear voices on the front porch where the boys were, and decided to make my grand entrance dragging the baby squirrel quite a distance, and then onto the porch and across their path.

Because of this single act of fortitude, to this day my story is still the stuff of kitten legends.

Birds in the bush and a River for fishing

A trellis built into the hedge provided me a hiding spot. The hedge itself was so overgrown and thick it provided excellent camouflage for my deadly intentions. The river was shallow enough that I could paw up the tiniest of fish. I dropped them at the back porch just outside the patio doors for easy access to the kitchen.

Snake in the dining room

I was fearless if not a little reckless. In another memorable adventure, I dragged a live garter snake into the dining room. With the Missus occupied with the vacuum cleaner in the other room I saw my opportunity. I just about had him down and out when the son noticed I was playing with something suspicious. He snapped up the snake just as the Missus, after hearing the commotion, came running into the room with the broom.

Our big move north

The Missus finally sold the big house in 2010 and me and the mutt moved to Dryden in Northwestern Ontario. By then the Missus had met Mr. Bill and we began a new life. That’s also when my outdoor life came to an abrupt end.

In spite of that move the adventures continued. Mr. Bill and the Missus bought a place in Arizona so they could winter a few months in warmer climes. That meant me and the mutt had to be farmed out.

Initially we went to a local boarding facility. I loved the owners. These were my people. She and he were cat lovers as well as cat and dog rescuers. At one time the shelter they owned had 150 cats. I wasn’t allowed to board in there though. I had primo accommodations with the owners.

Sometimes I was allowed to stay in their “bird room” where Ann kept her collection of exotic birds in various cages. (Ann was unaware of my reputation I guess). Anyway. I must have drooled or something because I was turfed out unceremoniously one day. Ann told the Missus I had to be relocated when I started to look at the other residents like they were my next dinner.

Meanwhile the mutt was roomed in with the general dog population. That’s exactly where he belonged in my opinion.

We did love it there. We were kinda sad to see our owners show up after a couple of months and take us home.

Moving to Dryden was not the end of my story. Only the beginning.

Stay tuned for more adventures.

I’ll be sharing some of them in the pages to follow. Here’s a teaser photo for you to keep you coming back”.

PS ~ of course this is not my best side!

~ Be Bold, Be Authentically You

Donna