Passing a cat’s test
Cats frighten me. I had this problem all my life. Maybe it's something about their eyes, and the way they cuddle against you at moment, yet all the while scheaming how to get the nuclear launch codes. I've often wondered what it would be like to be able to feel affection to cats. Im even working (sort of..) On a novel, where one of the main charaxhters is a street cat. Csts scare me, but you cant avoid being fascinated with what tbey do. At least i cant.
So here goes:
A long time ago i was a student, and the apartment building i lived in was very strange. It was built right into a mountain, for the first four stories you climbed up a normal stairwell, but for the fifth, you climbed the stairs up the mountain retaining wall, then crossed a bridge which led to directly to the shared entrance of the top apartment. My knees hurt just thinking about all those stairs i had to climb...
But it was pretty cool. It looked a bit like a drawbridge.
Now, when i moved in to good old 5A, i met the neighbors whom i shared that drawbridhe with. A young couple. ... and their cat.
A few days after moving in, i found a dead bird on my welcome mat. I dont remember the species. Something small and cute and free, that was mercilessly caught and placed on my mat. Just right in the middle even. It happened that the guy from 5B, just came out and he saw me in the midst of my confusion.
'That ' he informed, 'is a present from my cat. Sorry if it's a mess. He's just welcoming you' . i knew all about presents like that and carefully scooped it off. I really dont like blood..
All the while, the cat was watching this. He was sitting on that retaining wall, observing very intently what was going on.
No more presents for me...
The neighbors were nice. We never got very close, but they never complained about the noise i was making with the piano. And we were both interested in keeping some plants, beautifying that bridge...with cacti, and sage.
Then one day there was a big fight, the noise of which coming through the wall.
The cat ran away after that, and they couldnt find it. I even helped them look for a while (though i dont know what i could do if i found him).
Then one day my neighbors found a dead bird on their mat. I saw it happening. The bird was on the mat , and the cat was waiting, intently watching. Just as he did for me, it was sitting on that wall, waiting to see what was happening.
That's when i understood that the whole 'gifting' thing is a big lie. Total BS.
The cat has sharp, retractable claws, and very sharp instincts. This was nor some show of friendliness or supplication, BUT A TEST!!
All the cat cared abput is to evaluate the situation and figure out if there's a threat to him or not. The way to test that, was by dropping that dead animal on the mat. If you pick the animal up and get hostile, kitty knows to keep away. If you just get grossed out by the blood and stuff, you may be squimmish, and possibly not a cat lover , and no treats will come from your side, but at least you are 'safe' not a danger. When my neighbors had their fight, the cat felt threatened, so it left. It wanted to return, remembering all the caring it got from them but had to dirst ascertain if things changed as far as it was concerened. Were they dangerous now?
So it gave them the test.
Doing research for that novel, i came across the fact that most cats that leave their homes, do so because there was something wrong, some kind of change that scared them. Maybe a new rumba cleaner? Maybe a new member in the family? or maybe some kind of fight?