
You may have noticed it’s been a kind of a catty week. Here’s why.
It’s Abby Week! This weekend, we are celebrating our 1-year gotcha day, with our nutty, cranky, endlessly-entertaining cat Abby (A.K.A. Stabby Abby, Grabby Abby, Crabby Abby, and at 3 AM, Gabby Abby). We took in our little buddy as a foster, but she was so unapproachable, we thought we’d probably be bringing her back when they found her a forever home. The poor little thing was nearly feral, having come to us after 12 years living alone in a basement with little human contact, no love, and not much stimulation. It was a real challenge getting close to her, but even with all the setbacks and struggles, after a few weeks, it was clear she was meant to be ours forever (and only partly because we knew we couldn’t get her back in the carrier). Though Herself is plenty social, plays hard, snuggles nicely (for about 10 seconds at a time), and has adapted to life with people pretty well, she’s still a perplexing collection of habits and moods, of personality tics and triggers. We have all learned to live together, but Beloved and I are constantly puzzled by our littlest family member.
While trying to figure out how to help Miss Abby get more socialized (and how to get her to stop shredding Beloved), I periodically turn to the internet for answers, and I have found an unexpected (if not terribly practical) treasure trove of useful information. Bizarrely, TED turned out to be one of the better sources of cat information. Go figure!
Have a happy Abby Day, all you cats and kittens!!
March 12, 2021 at 9:45 am
One more time Donna and I have something in common. My son. who lives on a farm had their barn cat give birth to kittens. Knew the mother was feral but thought the kittens would not be. He gave one to my wife/his mother. The kitten about 3 months old and had never been with a person. They lived in the barn. That cat never really took to living in a house with people. She did not bite etc but wasn’t people-friendly. She did sit/lay near my wife at times etc. We kept her until I moved and a rescue group took the dogs and both cats. Yes, I enjoyed the tubes. Hal
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March 12, 2021 at 10:02 am
Our little nutjob bites AND scratches, but I think it’s mo stly when she’s playing with Beloved that she gets too aggressive.
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March 12, 2021 at 10:05 am
Awww, Crabby, Gabby, Stabby girl is beautiful!
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March 12, 2021 at 8:14 pm
That she is!
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March 12, 2021 at 10:21 am
You have to be a cat person to understand.
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March 12, 2021 at 8:15 pm
True story!
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March 12, 2021 at 10:40 am
Stabby Abby is beautiful! What kind of person keeps a cat in a basement for 12 years??!! So glad you all found each other.
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March 12, 2021 at 8:17 pm
I can’t imagine. It was an older couple who got her as a plaything for their grandson. He apparently didn’t have the patience for her (she really is a lot of work), so they left her alone. The poor thing cries and cries whenever we go out. Heartbreaking.
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March 12, 2021 at 8:42 pm
That’s nuts.
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March 12, 2021 at 9:35 pm
That basement story breaks my heart. As for biting and scratching: she’s a cat. That’s what they do! And we still love them.
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March 14, 2021 at 1:11 am
She’s so much more aggressive with Beloved than she is with me. It bums M out.
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