Monday 3 August 2020

Momma Cat Salami Makes Herself At Home


Salami and her kittens. Pictures on this page by Ida Floreak


Here’s a story that brought back memories because I experienced a similar situation.

Ida Floreak, of New Orleans, was woken at 5am by the sound of a cat meowing. She thought at first it was her own cat Bruce but on going to check found another cat on her doorstep. She recognised it as a stray cat she had been feeding on and off for a few weeks.

She had called the cat Salami and there she was, meowing insistently, begging to be let in.
Once inside, Salami continued to meow and Ida soon sussed out what was happening. Salami had become very round since she last saw her and it was obvious she was about to have kittens.

Sure enough, by 9am Salami had given birth to four babies.

In the following weeks, the four kittens all went to good homes but Salami remained with Ida and Bruce. Ida made inquiries but no one claimed Salami, so she stayed.


Best friends. Salami and Bruce

‘I was able to get her fixed and vaccinated, and she and Bruce hang out all day together,’ said Ida.
‘She’s adjusted really well, and is a very sweet and loving little cat. All of the kittens have gone to friends: one is in Mississippi, and the other three are all in my neighbourhood. I’m glad I get to still have a connection with them.’

As for my own experience, a few years back I awoke to the astonishing sight of a cat with three kittens making herself at home in my hall. The kittens had obviously not long been born but weren’t newborn. So momma cat must have carried them one by one from wherever she gave birth and then through my catflap into my house. My own cat didn't seem to mind at all!

We asked around and found her owners. We think that as her owners had young, noisy children, the cat had decided ours was a nice quiet house in which to keep her kittens. They took her home and she was happy to stay there. Her kittens were later all adopted.


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If you are a cat lover - especially a lover of the grumpier members of the species, this is the book for you. Written by Toffee who, despite her name, is the least sweet cat you can imagine. The world according to Toffee exists to serve her and woe betide anyone who forgets it. Paperback on left, Kindle version on right.


            





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11 comments:

  1. This is very sweet and, it reminded me of when I was young. We always got cats who came to our place hungry. So many farmers, etc...would just dump their cats and my mom could not let them go hungry even though she didn’t think they should be in the house. Well, one day a pussy cat of ours was crying and my mom knew what she needed so she made a bed in the basement bathroom and the cat just walked right in and made her home there. I watched she she gave birth to 6 kittens. She was such a loving mom.

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  2. Looks like Salami and your neighbor's cats both knew where it was safe to go.

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  3. Such a sweet story. I hope your idiot neighbor got her cat fixed after that.

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  4. Incredible animals, cats. I have a friend who has managed to adopt a stray cat. Took her a lot of work to get the cat to be domesticated mind you.

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    1. I'm always happy when stray cats come in from the cold! It's no joke living wild.

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  5. My brother lived in a very rural community right after seminary (it was his first call as a pastor). Soon after moving in, a female cat chose them and brought them her kittens. It was a little too late to socialize those kittens - but each year, she brought another litter and I loved the stories of how well she took care of her kittens. I'm still a little bitter that my brother didn't get that sweet girl fixed - by the time they left the area, she and all of her babies were no where to be found. I hope for the best, but the reality of living in the wild can be ugly. Mom was great with the human kids when they came along too - she chased off two huge neighbor dogs who didn't understand how terrifying they were to the kids.

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    1. She sounds like a really good cat - and very protective too!

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  6. How wonderful to read about happy endings. Thanks. I needed this. Be well!

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Thank you for your commenting, Purrfect.