Boss

I almost always feel very good after a rescue, but this one was an exception. The cat was unknown, and he was stuck in a tree in a nice, large trailer park. I had only vague information about how long he had been there, but my best guess is that it was at least five days. He cried from time to time, but he was mostly quiet, so it was hard to judge his level of tameness. He made no sound at all when I arrived, and I had a hard time finding him. He was about 35 feet high near the top of a dense Cypress tree, and I knew right away that I would not be bringing a carrier into the tree with me. It would be hard enough to weave my body between all the many limbs, so I didn't want to make it harder by dragging a bulky carrier along with me too. Whether this kitty is tame or not, I will have to get him in a bag to bring him down.

Climbing up to him was a bit slow, but once I was within sight, he looked down at me and cried. Even though his cry sounded a bit distressed, I took this as an encouraging sign, because I knew that a feral cat would not cry at all. When I climbed up a little higher, he appeared and sounded like he may actually be a little excited to see me, but that turned out to be a misinterpretation on my part. By the time I reached his level, he walked out to the end of his short limb and settled there while refusing to interact with me. His demeanor hinted at a short fuse if I were to get too close, so I kept my distance and worked to get him to come to me.

My efforts to charm him and earn his trust were clearly being rebuffed, so I decided to see if he would react to food. When a cat is scared in a situation like this, food usually doesn't make a bit of difference to him, but sometimes it does, and this was one of those times. I watched him as I opened a can of food, and he perked up immediately. He knew that sound, and he stood up and began coming toward me. It is at times like this that I like to use a carrier, because I can simply place the food in the back of the carrier, and most cats will walk inside to get it. But I didn't have a carrier with me this time. Still, I have my cat bag, and once the cat eats and trusts me, I can bag him. At least, that's the way it usually works.

As the cat came toward me and the food, his disposition changed from scared cat to strong, fearless, mean beast who was intensely and aggressively focused on the food. He is the boss now, and nothing better get in his way. Never in my life have I ever seen a cat eat so ravenously. He grabbed the bowl with his paws to hold it close, and he opened his mouth wide, took huge bites, and gulped it down without chewing as quickly as he could. He buried his face into the food and didn't care that most of his face was getting covered with the gravy. Several days of silent suffering lead him to this desperate point, and I felt both frightened by his intensity and saddened by his severe hunger.

I was a bit scared to try to pet him while he ate, but I gave it a try anyway. Either he was so focused on the food that he didn't notice, or he was familiar with being touched, but whatever the reason, he didn't even flinch as I petted him repeatedly. I continued to hold the food bowl with one hand while he ate and licked the bowl clean. After several minutes, he finished, and then he began to recover from his eating trance and clean his face. As he did so, he seemed to become aware of how close he was to me now, and he began to back away a little at a time. He uttered some soft growls to let me know not to bother him anymore. Even though I had been petting him repeatedly while he ate, now he didn't want to have anything to do with me. He growled if I made any movement toward him, so I kept my distance and even backed away. He was still the boss, and he was still in charge.

Not once during this feeding frenzy did I think I could get this cat in a bag. I knew that if I were to try to grab him by the scruff or pull the food away, I would have been in a violent fight which he most certainly would win. If I had had the carrier with me, however, I have no doubt that he would have gone into it easily for the food, and I could have had this kitty secured safely inside. Instead, I stood there at a loss about what to do next as he backed all the way out toward the end of the limb. I decided to go back down, bring the carrier up with me, and see if he would still be hungry for a second can of food.

Climbing back up the tree the second time with the carrier turned out to be much easier than I expected, and I wished I had brought it with me the first time. When I reached the top of the tree, I was surprised to see that the cat was not where I left him. While I was away, he climbed up and over to the second-highest limb in the tree and perched near the end. I climbed up there with him, opened a can of food, held the carrier in position, and watched with great disappointment as he showed no interest. As ravenous as he was the first time, I thought he would still be hungry, but he wasn't. He had no interest in the food at all whether the carrier was near or not. I didn't know what else to do except try a different kind of food, so I shook some dry food to see if he would react to that, and he actually seemed to respond to it. Or maybe he just happened to feel the need to move at that time. I'm not sure which, because at that moment, he slipped on his flimsy limb and fell down about eight feet where he landed on another limb. I thought he would settle in there, but to my surprise, he slipped again, and, this time, he fell all the way to the ground. I could not see him through all the dense foliage, but I heard the sounds of his crashing through the limbs and landing with a thud on the ground.

I could not see the ground at all, so I don't know how he landed or if he was injured or where he went. I know that most cats who fall from this height survive it without any injury, so I was optimistic that this cat was fine, but I would like to know for sure. Once I got back down on the ground, he was nowhere to be found. I don't know if he went back home, or if he is a lost cat longing for home, or if he even has a home. I never had a chance to check him for a microchip, and I did not find any Lost Cat notices for him. I don't know his age or gender, though I'm guessing he is a male between two and four years old. I feel sad that this cat fell and that I don't know the answers to all these questions, but it is comforting to know that at least he is not stuck in the tree anymore and his belly is full.