The Boneless Cat

Four and a half months since spotting a mother cat and her three young kittens on our back porch, the three-ring kitten circus has dispersed.  (See the three immediately preceding posts, but one.)

The mother cat was quickly adopted out.

The two TNRed cats are spotted infrequently.  At the height of the recent storms, we put out food and water.  Someone else in the neighborhood is feeding, for the food wasn't devoured as we expected.

Pictures of two of the three kittens sat on the Charles River Alley Cats website until late January, when their listing disappeared.  We haven't heard back from our CRAC helpers in time of need, but we presume the kittens got better socialization than we could provide and were successfully adopted.

The remaining kitten now has the form and gait of a mature cat, retaining the lunatic playfulness of a kitten.  Boneless cat used to be just words to us, but this kitten sleeps upside down, four legs akimbo, belly exposed, utterly secure of her place in the world.  It is gratifying to have made our small contribution to her charming character.  It was a privilege to have provided aid to six neighborhood cats, helping to find home for four of them.

The original resident cat is still grumpy about the interloper, but she deigned to play briefly with the kitten last week.  The two of them, just now, are content to sit on the same hot radiator, dozing and peering out the window.