Minnie’s recovery has entered a different phase, for her, for us. The drama is over, the attack, the surgery, the great pain, the medicines and stitches, now poor Minnie has to begin to adjust to life with three legs, and the last two days have been a struggle for her. She is having trouble walking, keeping her balance, figuring out how to climb, and I think the advent of the cold weather and rain has brought out some pain, she seems much quieter and reluctant to move much.

This phase has brought out the advice-givers and pleaders online who are begging me – us – to keep Minnie inside, especially at night. They assure me in absolutely certain terms that if Minnie is outside, she will be taken by predators like coyotes quickly and savagely. It’s odd, but having lived with barn cats for 15 years, and seen many three-legged ones thrive, I am not sure how people in distant places can know for sure what should and will happen to Minnie. I sure don’t.  As always, we will make our own decisions and not argue them over the Internet. People often say that if you put it out there, you are asking for it, and I don’t accept that, I often that say that the challenge of writing online is to share your life, not surrender it. Manners are manners, online or off.  I like where I am with this, sharing my life, defining the new boundaries of the digital world.

I have been worried about Minnie, her progress has really stalled, and she is acting as if she were in considerable pain – this sluggishness is characteristic of pain in animals. But it has also been less than three weeks, not a long time for an amputation to heal. Minnie is eating well and is not especially warm, and there is not much to do right now but give her the chance to rest. She was out for several hours this morning, I am going out now to bring her in. I know that Minnie cannot learn what she needs to lean on the sofa, she has to get outside and figure things out. But love is so important. Last night, she sat next to me and then Maria and I got another opportunity to see the healing power of human affection. I think Minnie needs this as much as food.