Earlier this week the trap captured a male Tabby, who was then delivered to the local SPCA for neutering. He was a pretty kitty and the SPCA tech said he was probably 3-4 years old judging from his teeth. In other words, he was hardcore feral.The next day Umlaut went to the SPCA after work to pick up the Feral Tabby. The plan was to have him recuperate in our backyard shed for a couple of days and then release him back into The 'Hood. Feral Tabby didn't make a sound on the ride home or when I carried the cage from the car to the shed. He was no doubt still woozy from having his balls removed. I opened the cage, double checked the food, water and litter box and shut the door for the night.
When I went to check on him the next morning, Feral Tabby wasn't in the cage and was hiding somewhere in the shed. He was no where to be seen, but had eaten some of the food and also used the litter box... Obviously, Feral Tabby was active again, despite having his balls removed.
That evening when I got home from work I was greeted by a scene of impressive feline destruction:
Feral Tabby had clawed through the wall insulation next to the door.
Feral Tabby had also climbed up on the treadmill in front of the window and completely shredded the window blind.Ironically, despite the destruction, Feral Tabby still used the litter box! Despite his anger at being trapped in the shed (and having his balls removed), he still had a sense of civility. Admirable.
However, he was still no where to be seen... and I didn't feel like snooping around the shed or climbing up in the storage loft for fear of having my face or hands clawed by Feral Tabby.
After consulting Skychick, I removed the food from the shed and left the door ajar overnight. The next morning there was no sign of Feral Tabby. Since I didn't want to leave the shed door open all day, I put some food down in case Feral Tabby was still hiding inside and shut the door. Chances are he had bolted overnight, but I didn't want to find a angry AND hungry Feral Tabby when I returned.
When I got home from work there was no sign that the food had been touched so I think it's safe to assume that Feral Tabby is back in The 'Hood... minus his balls but no doubt still angry.
Finally, in order to add some gratuitous Old Metal content to this piece:
Wild Cat is a great NWOBHM album.. Tygers Of Pan Tang were a good band back in the Metal Days. Lars Ulrich was a big fan. During a drunken party circa 1983 at the old Metallica Mansion in El Cerrito, CA Lars gave me his Wild Cat 1980 Tour patch. A few months later, Lars noticed the patch on my denim jacket and asked where I had gotten it.. I reminded him that he had given it to me, but he had no memory of his generosity. I've always assumed that he thought I stole it. Oh well!===
Added 3/4/06:
Overnight a Feral Gray Kitty was conned into Skychick's trap. He's a big 'un too! He will spend the weekend as a guest of Casa de Umlaut before his trip down to the SPCA on Monday to have his balls removed.Lesson learned: Feral Gray will be kept in a crate and not have free reign of the shed.
"Wild Cats are we..." - Tygers Of Pan Tang
