The Saga of Angel: A New Behavior and Torment by The Ghost Kitties

 

Angel stalking a lizard

Angel is being a bit of a pain today, but not as much as yesterday. This morning was something new. She climbed under the covers and went for my feet to wake me up. SERIOUSLY?? I got her out and loved her for what she considers the requisite 5 minutes in the morning, then she tried to bite me, so I let her out.

That's our routine in the morning, wake me up, demand 5 minutes of intense scratching and petting, then that's enough and she wants to go check out what's outside.

For everyone who thinks cats should not be let outside, you never had a cat like this. She would tear the door down if I didn't let her out, and claw my legs to pieces every time I walked by. She was a stray who was turned in to the animal shelter, so she's used to the outdoors. Still, some things scare her, so she'll come running to the door, begging to get back in. She never goes far, just in the front yard and maybe under the fence so she can climb the tree to get onto the top of the fence, but there is something over there that scares her now, so she doesn't do that much any more.

She stays inside most of the day and all night, and I make sure she is inside if I go anywhere. She's like a dog -- comes when I call, if only to say "Well, I'm here, but I don't want to go inside."

My original Angel slept all day and stayed out all night with her sidekick, Bitser, my other cat. When he died, she would just sit under the oak tree on his grave and wait for him to come play with her. She finally found another neighborhood cat to hang out with at night. She had a cat door that let her into the back porch and the garage. I couldn't have a cat door into the house, because we had raccoons and possums that would come in lured by the smell of cat food. We didn't have stray dogs in the neighborhood, and no intact male cats or ferals, plus plenty of trees for her to climb up to get away, so she was safe. When she got older, she didn't want to go outside at night much, and preferred to just snuggle up to me and sleep. 

 

So there are two ghost kitties now, and I believe it's the original Angel and Bitser, because they tend to show up together, and they like to torment little Angel. They will sit outside the bedroom window and make her try to claw at the glass to get at them. They will  hide all around the house, and make her try to get to them. It's the same games they used to play with each other. They will jump up on the bed just like they did before, with Ghost kitty Angel walking up the side of the bed and snuggling up next to me, and Ghost kitty Bitser sleeping down next to my feet. Sometimes when I turn over, I feel like I hit something next to my foot that is holding down the covers. Bitser used to love to do that, in fact, sometimes he would sleep between my legs so I couldn't roll over at all.

 

Maybe that's who Angel was chasing up under the covers this morning.

 

Boo came to visit yesterday, and I got Angel inside so I could give her love. She talked to me a bit, then growled like she was talking about Angel being mean to her. When Angel came back out, she started to go after Boo, but I stopped her, and I didn't hear any fighting. I left them sitting about three feet apart, but not growling, so progress. 

 

Boo is about 8 years old now, and I'm going to build her a step ladder on the fence so she can get down into the yard more easily. I've been wanting to do it for years, but she seemed to be very good at jumping down from the fence. Now she seems like it pains her, and I found some old lumber by the dumpster, so I'll get my friend Richard to help me build something. I really love her, and would like to let her back into the house, but I can't even imagine the fight that would ensue! I've gotten her as far as the front door, but she won't come in.

 

Anyway, things are always interesting here, especially since I brought little Angel home. I like to imagine them playing together, and sometimes, I catch a glimpse of something out of the corner of my eye, and I just know it's them. I don't know how many ghost kitties I actually have. I've had dozens of kitties over the years, but most have gone on across the rainbow bridge and never visit. These two have never seemed to want to leave, and that's fine with me.