Saturday, January 30, 2016

Homeless Animals in Wintertime by Denise Devine


I have been feeding a feral cat off and on for about two and a half years. He shows up when he’s really hungry and cries to me for something to eat. My horse barn is empty now and I have a small shelter set up in there filled with blankets and an old comforter, but he only uses it occasionally. I’m sure he’s also getting food from another source in our neighborhood and possibly a warmer place to stay, but I don’t know who else is providing for him. My rural neighborhood is surrounded by State lands and we have a lot of wildlife roaming our area. I can’t leave food unattended because opossums love cat food and they eat it all every night. So I feed the white cat whenever he comes around.

He showed up about a week ago on my deck, peering through the sliding glass door. I hadn’t seen him in six months and I have to admit, I honestly thought he was dead. Even though he’s covered with a thick coat of hair, it’s obvious the years have not been kind to him. His face was full of scratches from fighting, one of his ears was nearly bare and his right front leg was injured so badly that he limped. I set out a blanket for him to rest on and gave him a bowl of dry food with a huge helping of canned food on top. He allows me to set the bowl in front of him, but if I try to touch him, he hisses and slaps at me, extending his claws.

He’s better today. The lacerations on his face are healing and he walks normally again. I don’t know how long he’ll hang round this time, but I’m happy to be there for him when he needs me.

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Denise Devine is a USA Today bestselling author who wrote her first book, a mystery, at age thirteen and has been writing ever since. Her newest publication, A Christmas to Remember, is on sale now for 99 cents. And, yes, it includes a pet!

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8 comments:

  1. Oh, Denise, all my pets are strays too! I have to avoid the animal shelter.

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    1. Yes, me, too! I could never look at all of those strays and not cry. I would want to take all of them home.

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  2. In Arizona that poor kitty would be dinner for a coyote. I'm glad you are able to feed him.

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  3. I have three stray cats. It breaks my heart to see homeless animals.

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  4. All of my pets came to me as homeless due to one reason or another. I will never have any other kind. Fortunately, most of my family feels the same way.

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  5. I think that today homeless is not the biggest problem, they are loved like anyone else. https://kovla.com/blog/how-i-fell-in-love-with-a-homeless-man/ I understood it after reading this post. Read it too, it will change your view!)

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  6. Beautiful blog, Denise. You are obviously an animal lover, like me.

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