When I saw a mouse streak across the kitchen floor the first thought I had was we need a cat! I hesitated though because we were going to have a baby and I didn't want to mess with a cat, plus I was unsure of how Kloey would get a long with a cat. Dogs and cats have been arch enemies for ages. The last dog we had, Nacho, tried and nearly killed my mom's cat, Machie. The cat was so scared by his encounter with Nacho that he ran away and never came back. (Sorry about that, Mom.)
So we bought some mouse traps and a few horrifying snaps later we thought our problem had been taken care of. That was until one night when I saw another little bugger streak across our bedroom. I went livid as Kam grabbed the broom and chased the thing for an hour without any luck. "That's it! We have to get a cat." So the search began. I called on several KSL listings. "Is the cat good with dogs?" was my main questions. I finally found one that said she was good with dogs, kids, 100% litter trained. It sounded too good to be true, so being the cautious pet-investigator I asked the owner why she was getting rid of her cat. I was shocked when I heard the lady on the phone start to cry. She told me that she had ovarian cancer and the outlook wasn't very good. She was securing homes for all of her beloved pets before the cancer beat her. Suddenly, it wasn't about my mouse problem anymore. I felt like I had to help this poor lady.
We picked the cat up on Kam's day off of work. I was surprised to see that her owner looked like she could be my same age. She hurriedly told me all of the vaccines the cat had and when she was due for her next ones. Phoebe is a gray and white, long-haired cat. She'll be two in July (same age as Kloey, ironically enough). The cat new something was up. A small wail started in her throat and her claws protracted as she reluctantly passed from her mom's arms to mine. I saw tears begin to form in her eyes. "I will give her a good home," I said in effort to reassure the woman.
Driving back home, I had such a mixture of emotions. I felt rotten for taking a dying woman's cat. I felt happy for helping her find a good home. I felt anxious about how Kloey would take it. The cat cowered in the back corner of the car as I pondered all of these things. Then unexpectedly, she was on my lap and purring. "She's friendlier than I thought," I said to Kam. "Great," he replied sarcastically. Getting a cat wasn't his idea, but as in all things he was willing to support me.
When we got home we decided to let the cat explore sans Kloey for a bit. After awhile we got up the guts to release the hound dog. The cat quickly found refuge under our bed and Kloey was so preoccupied sniffing where the cat had been that she failed to find the actual cat.
The first few encounters got Kloey pretty excited. Her tail would wag a million miles an hour and the cat would usually end up under a table or bed where she could watch the pathetic dog from a safe distance. Kloey would whine and bark, but we reprimanded her with a loud, "No!" Then she would look at us with a perplexed face, "But, there's a cat under there!" As if we didn't know.
Slowly, but faster than I had imagined, the two warmed up to each other. Phoebe had obviously come from a very affectionate owner who probably held and pet her all day long. She wanted to be in my lap, but I have a young baby and as bad as I feel about it, I have to keep Hailey clean and away from the cat. Although she didn't like it at first, Kloey has become used to the sanitation boundaries that were put into place as soon as Hailey was born. Dad doesn't wrestle with her like he used to. Mom doesn't pet her as much. We are just preoccupied with the baby and if we used anymore hand sanitizer our skin would dry up and fall off. So it was that a lonely kitty and an attention-deprived basset hound came to be friends. At first I was shocked to see Kloey bathing Phoebe in drool, but even more shocked to see the cat wasn't running away. The two curl up on Kloey's bed together. At feeding time, Kloey waits politely to make sure Phoebe has her cat food before she eats her dog food. If Phoebe goes outside, Kloey will whine at the door until she comes back. I haven't seen a mouse since Phoebe came into our home. Kloey has the friend she has desperately needed since the baby was born. Phoebe has a new friend to ease the transition from one home to another. I have clean hands to hold Hailey. My anxiety is gone.
