Ann, a rescue group foster, plans to bring Zip, our new Barn Cat, over in the morning if she can catch him. He’s very friendly, she said, but he doesn’t like to be put in crates (who does?).
He has been living happily outside for all of his eleven months. Maria hauled Frieda’s old and large box down from the attic this afternoon, and we spent the afternoon getting it ready.
If she can catch him, she’ll bring him right over to the farm, and we’ll put him in his new crate in the red barn. He’ll stay there for two weeks, long enough for him to know where he lives and get fed her every day.
We went out today and bought cat food, treats, and a new litter box. We put down some warm blanketing for the bottom of the crate. We put a plastic wall covering on top.
A water bowl will go next to the litter box. We’ll visit him several times daily so he can get used to us and the dogs. Fate will ignore him, and Zinnia will try to kiss him. Once we are sure he knows that he lives here now, we’ll open the crate door and let him sleep outside wherever he wants.
I am a great fan of independent, valuable, and mystical barn cats. Bedlam Farm animals are safe, clean, happy, and much loved. It’s a great place for a friendly barn cat—lots of mice and moles.
We will be home all day tomorrow except for an afternoon visit to my primary care nurse practitioner, Amy Eldredge, in the early afternoon.
Zip looks like a character. Bedlam Farm needs a barn cat to keep rats and mice out of the barn and join our animal kingdom. It requires a barn cat, and Maria is excited about it. So am I. I think we’re ready. Thanks to Salem Community Cats for making this happen, and for understanding that barn cats need to live outdoors.
We have a tuxedo cat named Gracie. We call her Crazy Gracie (affectionately). We call her that cuz we think she thinks she part dog and does crazy things. They say tuxedo cats are the smartest of cats. We’ve had a variety of cats, Buster, Louisa (‘uise) and Pippa ( banana, don’t ask😝) and they have all been special and unique) . I call Gracie boobalicious) and you will see why with Zip , your tuxedo 😊
The big difference with ours is she hates the outside and she was a rescue🤪She’s lying with me as I write this and says s “That’s right”!
sending pre-welcome to *zip*……whom I hope will fit in well…and be as loved and happy as Minnie and Flo were. i’m happy for you both! And…..your flower pics continue to amaze…….they just get better every day. Hope your head healing is on the same track!
Susan M
Oh how exciting! I am sure he will not instantly understand he is in a good place, but cats live in today’s day so he will soon forget about his confinement once he is out…
It reminds me of our first 6 weeks with our previously feral tabby Mitsy. We never thought she would turn into a cuddlebug and were looking for a good barn for the just in case scenario. It was not easy. A lot of the properties that were called barns for cats that were not deemed socialisable (is that even a word?), turned out to be huge attics or basements in a barn where there were quite a number of them, always inside. I am sure that they were well cared for, and it would have been a solution for Mitsy.
But she decided to like and love us, even though she has to stay inside. Too much wildlife, crazy dogs and other bad stuff out where we are now, still in a suburbian though somewhat rural setting. She enjoys sitting at the screen door and in the window panes. When go in and out to the patio, it is weird, we expected her to try and wiggle past us to enjoy the great outdoors. But I guess she does not have a good memory of her previous time outdoors. We think she was still a kitten when she had her outdoors litters. She has a nasty scar in her neck, so who knows what happened to her. Not a happy family that cared for her. But we are providing that now.
Enjoy the introduction of Zip. It will be an experience, for sure, and a tad bit different probably because he has been neutered. Less inclined to go walkabout, I hope. And different from female cats as well.
I am looking forward to the photos you will post. Enjoy the experience and good luck at the doctor’s!
Not sure I know a living thing that enjoys eating/drinking right next to where they relieve themselves. Odd.
My cats have always liked their litter box pretty private ( kinda hidden). NOBODY likes pooping while watched.
Yay zip! Welcome home!
I am excieted for you and Maria and Zip. Tuxedo cats are a lot of fun. We adopted ours, Milo, when he was 8 months old. Milo was raised with dogs and thinks he is a dog also. Milo loves to be outside and is a great bug catcher.
He looks like something you don’t want to mess with.