[yetibone]

We just lost our 17 year old calico about 3 weeks ago. She had been with us for 16 years, and came as a free gift with the $300 hot tub I bought off my neighbor. That was her home, and when we moved her house, she came along too. Almost feral when she showed up, she made friends with our first cat, Junior, and eventually warmed up to Sue, and I. For many years, she was a very affectionate lap-cat, with a great matronly instinct. She loved to groom Squeaky, our second tom-cat, and the one that wandered up during an ice storm in 2001. She never swatted at offensively, or clawed another feline, or human in our house. We miss her.

<sniff>

So, five days after Sheba ascended to kitty heaven, I go out into the garage, and see something run away from the door, and go outside the garage as I walk up. I proceed out onto the driveway, and hear a kitten talking from under the travel trailer, and he's obviously asking me for something. I go back inside and get some food, and a bowl. I set it down, then back away to give the kitty some space, and he instantly commenced to eating all of what I put down in just a few seconds. I go back inside and get him some more, and a bowl of water. Without hesitation, he let me scratch his head, and then instantly turned into "Ram Kitty with Prairie Dog tendencies". My wife got home, and we spent a few hours with this 7 month old, 9 lb. marble-tabby with huge balls, and soon considered ourselves the caretakers of a 5 cat household once again.

Only other time something like that happened was a couple of weeks after my Dad passed away, and a full-blood, 110 lb Great Dane showed up. Mom told me that Dad always said that if reincarnation was real, he wanted to come back, and be a big dog in the next life. That dog was my Mother's shadow for a little over 9 years. After I moved out of the house, she didn't fear being alone out in the styx, so long as Loki was by her side. He was a very gentle dog, with an intimidating stature, sorta like a Rottweiler. If anybody drove up, he'd bark a few times, and greet them at their driver's side door. Only the strangers didn't know he only wanted to say hi, and try to solicit a 'lil scratch behind his ears.