The "Cat"astrophe!

  Ok, so I am definitely used to Bayou Cats and not "city-slicker" cats. Not that I have anything against sweet house kitties.  They are delightful but I am more accustomed to cats that can take care of themselves against all odds.  I am used to Ms. Put, the feisty, fickle feline that has resided at the Little Bayou House for the past seventeen years or so.   I am not used to Nycto, the new cat, with her posh ways.  Ms. Put is evidently not used to such a pampered cat either as she and Nycto do not seem to get along too well.  They keep their distance from each other and merely abide one another.  They are definitely NOT friends. 

Nycto on one of her peaceful days.

   Late this evening, I saw a black cat wandering about the hillside. There is nothing unusual about this as both of my cats are black.  Ms. Put is what is called a Tuxedo Cat with the elegant white collar and white paws while Nycto is solid black. Like I said, I did not think much about seeing a black cat slinking about the Bayou or at least not until I saw Ms. Put race across the yard and attack the critter.  Uh oh!  An all out cat fight was in the works!  I had better put a stop to this right now.  I hurried down the hill to fuss at the two cats.  As I neared the duo, one jumped to its feet and turned to stare at me.  Ummm..this was not Nycto. This was not Ms. Put.  This was a huge cat!  Alrighty then.  At that very moment, little Ms. Put pounced on the large, unknown cat!  She snarled and hissed and let the claws fly!  My little dynamo was tearing this thing to pieces!  The large mystery cat tore around the side of the yard behind the persimmon tree and Ms. Put collapsed on the sand beneath the old oak tree.  My kitty!  My poor little kitty!  I ran to check on her.  Whew!  I was relieved to find that she was ok..exhausted but ok.  She stood up and meowed.  Not a loud, menacing meow but rather a soft, cooing meow.  Hmmm?  That seemed odd as did the fact that she stood staring up.  

Tiny Ms. Put getting a well-deserved meal after fending off the huge, menacing stray cat.  

   I followed her gaze up the nearby pine tree to see Nycto high up in the tree.  She had obviously been attacked by the intruding cat and sought refuge in the tall tree.  Oh, no.  Now what?  That cat had no idea how to get back down out of the tree!  She was stuck!  And stuck on a limb about thirty feet up the tree!  Ms. Put had come to the rescue of the very cat that irritated her daily but how in the world was I to come to the rescue of Nycto now?  It was growing darker by the minute and the cat would not come down out of that tree!  I did the only thing that I knew might work.  I called to my son.  He has a way with critters especially cats.  After about an hour, he was able to coax Nycto down the tree.  It was not a pretty descent by any means but at least she came down on her own.  Now comes the problem of what to do about the accosting cat. Trying to corral two outdoor cats that are not congenial in one house overnight might not seem like a big deal but add one terrorizing cat on the outside of the house and it proves to be a predicament.  The snarling, hissing, howling and growling becomes incessant as two cats pace inside the house and one nasty, foul-tempered beast prowls about the yard.

Poor Nycto!  She became stranded in a tall pine tree after being attacked by a marauding stray cat.  Don't worry!  Michael rescued her and all is well now!

  This whole episode comes on the heels of a news story of a cat defending a little boy against an attack by a large dog.  Cats can, and will, take on any critter that they deem a threat.  Usually, the cat wins.  Ms. Put came to the aid of Nycto when she was attacked by the large, intruding cat.  What makes this amazing to me is Nycto is quite large compared to Ms. Put and the intruder was larger still.  Ms. Put is a tiny thing that weighs in about six pounds when she is at her optimum weight.  Nycto is a good nine pounds.  The intruder was nigh on twice the size of Ms. Put but she did not let that faze her one bit.  She stood her ground and fought. Ms. Put was also concerned about her (non) friend, Nycto, after the battle.  She is one tough, little cat!  She is my hero for the day!  Love this kitty!