it's not life that matters but the journey...

I think I've written a bit about my mom's cat Nikki. He's at least part Russian Blue, and very playful. But also very very wild. My mom rescued him a little less than a year ago - her friend found Nikki on her doorstep all bloody and battered and took him to the vet to be patched up. My mom had recently lost her other little black cat, Buddy (who died of a blood clot), so she was already wanting to get another cat. Her friend knew this, so she asked my mom if she wanted to take Nikki in. Even though I had encouraged my mom to get a kitten and raise it to be a quiet, docile indoor cat, she decided to save Nikki. She's like that. And of course she loves Nikki. I love cats too. But this cat is really wild, and so hard to manage. He wants to play when we want to sleep, he wants to go outside at 3 a.m. He chases and kills wildlife, like birds and mice. In short, he's a typical outdoor cat.

Here's a couple recent pictures of Nikki:





A few weeks ago I noticed Nikki playing with a little mouse right near the kitchen. I thought at first it was one of those fake mice because it was tiny, and it wasn't moving. But then on close examination, I did see it move and realized that Nikki had brought in his prey! I woke up my brother and had him scoop up the mouse and take it outside, while of course leaving Nikki inside. I managed to get this little mouse to safety, and thankfully it hadn't been hurt or killed.

Score: Laura 1 - Nikki 0

So Monday I heard some blue jays up in the trees outside my window making a really loud racket. They were noticeably upset, which usually means that their babies are in danger. Most likely because of a cat. And of course as soon as I went outside I saw Nikki, a sheepish look on his face, sitting on the lawn next to a small black object. Immediately I knew it was a bird. I thought perhaps it was dead, but when I got closer, it started to crawl towards the nearby bushes for protection. Nikki went after it, and chased it into the bushes, and with the help of Masahiko we finally got Nikki away from the bird and locked him inside. Then we got a box and lined it with some paper towels and went back out to look for the bird. We couldn't find it. So we let Nikki out so he would lead us to the bird, which he did immediately. Masahiko found the little baby blue jay hiding under some branches, and after getting Nikki back inside, we picked up the bird and put it in the box, and brought it inside. The little thing wasn't moving much because it was so scared - probably in shock - and of course wouldn't eat the berries or nuts we offered. It was just a baby, so probably couldn't eat without help anyway. And couldn't fly yet either. We put holes in the lid, and closed it up so the little bird would feel safe and maybe relax a little. Then I called around and found a vet's office in Sequim (about 15 miles away) that takes care of wild and exotic pets and animals. They said I could bring in the bird and they would treat it and then release it into the care of a place called the Raptor Center, which shelters and treats wild birds.
As we were driving to Sequim, the bird actually started to chirp and sit up and move around, which was a very good sign. So we dropped it off at the vet's office and they assured us that it was in good hands!

Here's the little bird I saved: (the pic's a little blurry)



Score: Laura 2 - Nikki 0

So now I guess it's me versus the cat. I'm winning so far. But I've got to keep an eye on that cat and make sure he doesn't completely kill off the local wildlife population!

Well at least it's keeping me busy. That and pulling weeds. Until I can actually get on with my life.