I Trained My Cat to Love Me
This is a true story, I think. At least, it could have been a similar story to a number of you kind people out there that take in a kitty who is in the throes of a tragic existence.
There was this guy who adopted a cat who was doing poorly. She was about a year + and she had been living on the mean streets of Oakland from what he could tell. She was covered with mange, and her beautiful calico hair patterned in gold the color of a tigers eye, black from the noir of deepest depths of the sea, and mucky white, was matted and sticky with unknown substance. She smelled like she had lived in an auto shop and for that reason he called her Texaco, Tex for short.
When he found her, his life was in turmoil. He had just lost his job, and his girlfriend had left him, he felt like he was living in the lyrics of a sad, sappy country song. Really, life just sucked. So he poured all his love into Tex. Only, Tex was not having it. She ran away from him when he came near like he was her mortal enemy doomed to hatred and mistrust for eternity. She often hissed and tried to swat at him. He was distraught and didn’t know if he could handle one more rejection in his life.
However, he saw something in the green gold of her eyes. He saw what he thought was the need for love extruding itself from that thin sliver of black in her eye. So he persisted.
These were some of the things he did for his beloved kiki, Tex. He cleaned her up regardless of the fact that she acted like he was committing major torture of the magnitude that Amnesty International should step in. She had a lot of skin problems underneath the veneer of oil and gas debris. So he persisted in trying different kinds of food to test her food allergies once they were at the point that she knew he wasn’t a certifiable torturer. He settled on Hill's Prescription Diet z/d Dry Cat Food. Tex’s skin cleared up and she was now hissing and swiping less.
Once her allergy condition was remedied, he recognized that he was providing a rather unstable home since he had to move three times within a year. It terrified him since he lived in the formidable expense laden bay area, he could only imagine what it did to Tex. Each time he prepared for a move, he poured a huge amount of energy, and prescriptive treats to help her feel confident that she would not be left behind. In other words, he took her needs into consideration as well as her past history. He sprayed Feliway in each of the new places right away, he let her know where her toys, and bed, and super comfy places were. In fact, he created more creature comfort for his kitty than she could possibly need. It was a comfypalooza cat palace. And Tex was queen bee cat!
Once they had progressed to a state where Tex was no longer biting/scratching/hissing, he started to take more bold moves with her, like picking her up and giving her some close love. Of course, Tex thought that behavior was criminal! But on occasion, and I mean sparing occasion, a soft relaxing purr would escape from her the larynx (voice box) much to her chagrin. Another huge reward happened in the middle of the night when Tex, like a sly calico panther, crawled underneath the top layer of blanket when her person was taking forty winks. It was like heaven when he woke up and could feel the imprint of a formerly pulverized-by-life creature, knowing that she trusted him in sleep, as well as in an awaken state. This was true love.
When he settled into a home that felt more forever than never, he decided that he wanted Tex to be a mostly indoor kitty. But he wanted her to have the benefits of the outdoors without the worries (diseases, danger, etc). So he built her a fantastical, magical CATIO and honestly, Tex never had the need to go outside ever again!
So yes, I have taken liberties with this story as I sit here sipping kava from a coconut bowl, trying out my writing skills, imagining a world where all kitties were free from suffering. Humans too.
But the moral of the story is that it IS indeed possible to train cats! No matter what anyone says!
