THREE-RING CIRCUS

Tonight as I was tucking in the cats, some of the furry ones put on a show for me. Each night I clean litter boxes one last time, make sure water bowls are full, check the heaters, give attention to all the cats who will allow it, then turn out the cat room lights. This night, the little clowns were not tired, but very wound up and ready for fun. Around here we call that the "cat crazies". I checked food bowls and found one almost empty and filled it. Big Tig, Kelly, and Roxie began to eat and soon Rusty joined them. He apparently wasn't happy sharing the bowl with others and took a step back from the bowl and just watched them for a bit. I stopped what I was doing and observed Rusty. I can usually tell when one of the cats is up to something. He reached a big furry paw over to the food bowl and pulled it completely away from the three and close to him, leaving the others standing there wondering what had happened. Rusty was oblivious to the icy stares he was receiving and started eating as if nothing had occured. Priceless.

I went back to the tasks for the night and as I leaned over to clean a litter box, Casey jumped on my back and lay down. He rode there as I made the rounds. While Casey was reclining on my back, I heard some commotion and looked around in time to see Big Tig chasing Roxie around the room then up one of the barn beams. She went to the very top and looked down at Tig as if to say, "Catch me if you can", but I think she knew he couldn't. He's declawed and didn't attempt to climb the beam. Tig had already been neutered and declawed by the time I found him, so declawing wasn't my doing. Sometimes Tig can be a real grump, but tonight he was playing nicely with the other cats. When he couldn't reach Roxie, he started chasing one of the other girls who turned around and whapped him on the head, then found a bed and curled up for the night. The look on Tig's face was comical.

As if that wasn't enough entertainment for the evening, when I went to the smaller cat room I observed Baxter and Bailey standing on top of the set of shelves batting at something flying near the ceiling. All at once, they stopped batting and began concentrating on something one of them had knocked from its flight. There on the shelf was a poor little ladybug that I simply couldn't allow to be harmed by the cats. I liberated their prey and turned the little bug loose in the larger part of the barn where the boys could not catch her. I don't know how she'll fare in the cold, but at least she wasn't a night time snack for one of the cats.

I feel at peace having the furry ones tucked into their warm cat rooms and wonder what adventures tomorrow will bring.