It's so strange because I was just thinking to myself today that I never see any stray cats around this neighborhood after I had read a thread about someone seeing a bunch of stray cats in their area.
So imagine my surprise when I came home from running errands a little while ago, and found this guy in my driveway! He's obviously a stray. He was very dirty and his hair felt really coarse and yukky like he hadn't been cared for in a long time. He wasn't neutured and he looked like he'd been in more than one cat fight. His right ear has a lot of notches in it where it looks like it has been bitten several times. But even under all that dirt and grime and scars.....he was a beautiful cat. He had the bluest eyes which was strange for a full grown orange tabby. He was also HUGE! He dwarfs Leo....I would guess that he probably weighs a good 25-30 pounds!!
He was very sweet too.....although extremely skiddish of me. It took several minutes for me to coax him over to me. (but then I've always had a way with animals) I sat down on the driveway and just kept talking to him and holding my hand out. He crept closer and then began rolling around on his back. Each time he rolled over.....he'd roll a little closer to me...until he finally got right up to me and he stood up and just plunged his head into my hand to be petted. I petted him for several minutes and he just loved it. Then I went inside and fixed him a big bowl of food and a bowl of water. He dove right into that and ate like he hadn't eaten in a long time.
My camera scared him though, so it was hard to get really good pictures of him. I had to stay a good distance and zoom in to take his picture so he wouldn't run off. I thought about trying to catch him and take him to the shelter here (which is a no-kill) and give him the chance at a new life. He's such a pretty cat and his basic personality seems like he's very loveable. But I was kinda afraid to try and pick him up because he's so big and skiddish. He could have really hurt me if he had freaked out while I picked him up. I guess I'll keep an eye for him and keep feeding him until he learns to trust me a little better.....then I'll try to get him.
So imagine my surprise when I came home from running errands a little while ago, and found this guy in my driveway! He's obviously a stray. He was very dirty and his hair felt really coarse and yukky like he hadn't been cared for in a long time. He wasn't neutured and he looked like he'd been in more than one cat fight. His right ear has a lot of notches in it where it looks like it has been bitten several times. But even under all that dirt and grime and scars.....he was a beautiful cat. He had the bluest eyes which was strange for a full grown orange tabby. He was also HUGE! He dwarfs Leo....I would guess that he probably weighs a good 25-30 pounds!!
He was very sweet too.....although extremely skiddish of me. It took several minutes for me to coax him over to me. (but then I've always had a way with animals) I sat down on the driveway and just kept talking to him and holding my hand out. He crept closer and then began rolling around on his back. Each time he rolled over.....he'd roll a little closer to me...until he finally got right up to me and he stood up and just plunged his head into my hand to be petted. I petted him for several minutes and he just loved it. Then I went inside and fixed him a big bowl of food and a bowl of water. He dove right into that and ate like he hadn't eaten in a long time.
My camera scared him though, so it was hard to get really good pictures of him. I had to stay a good distance and zoom in to take his picture so he wouldn't run off. I thought about trying to catch him and take him to the shelter here (which is a no-kill) and give him the chance at a new life. He's such a pretty cat and his basic personality seems like he's very loveable. But I was kinda afraid to try and pick him up because he's so big and skiddish. He could have really hurt me if he had freaked out while I picked him up. I guess I'll keep an eye for him and keep feeding him until he learns to trust me a little better.....then I'll try to get him.
