Once upon a time-a very Feral Cat came inside---

 This is our deck this morning--- and if this picture was enlarged, you could see "Coon Tracks"---  There must've been a Herd of coons -----We used to feed the birds where the coons  were walking but had to stop as the  Germans (as in dogs)_would chase the coons coming to the feeder--Sometimes I wish that we were still feeding birds--  

That is how I first saw  Sushi-the cat who came in from the cold---She was on the railing, eating peanuts---probably starving , to have to eat peanuts---The next time I saw her--maybe a month later, was when Himself fell and spilled all the bird seed, and Sushi was eating bird seed--  I had to stop and think, "Wait a minute--a cat eating bird seed?" --And --that is how Sushi began her journey into our lives-- She was Feral too--I had never dealt with a Feral cat--well, a kitten really--She was just about 6 mos old--tiny--

I began to put bowls of dog food out (We only had dogs)- She would come to the basement patio, but if I moved to touch her, she ran--She hung around however, looking for food-- meowing when I called her--and then coming to the door only if I stayed away---I called the "animals in distress " place, run by the city, hoping they would take her before it got even colder. Their response was, "Did you feed her?"----"Yes"---I said--""Then she is your cat!" they replied. 

So poor Sushi and I had a dilemma-It was now minus 30C outside----the water I put out for her froze very quickly---  I had a "small animal trap"--but, she had evaded it all the time--Mid December came, and one Sunday afternoon, with steak in the trap from Son#1's restaurant, I heard the trap close---  and there she was-------I carried the trap inside--with the cat in the trap---opened it, in a spare bedroom, and she ran under the bed--and---when I went down later, with a bowl of cat food, this stray cat--kitten really, hissed at me--No way was she going to allow me to pick her up! 

Lord love a Duck!- "How to Train a Feral Cat"----That's the site I went to on the internet----printed it out--and Sushi and I began a long process  of getting to know one another---  A Neighbour Lady helped me move her up to our room, and I put a litter box on Himself's side of our bed   (Bless Himself's heart eh-)---which we slowly inched its way out of our room---- Sushi lived under our bed however for 3 mos---One morning I walked into our bedroom and there she was , on our bed---

How many animals are just dumped along a roadside?- People think they can fend for themselves  in the bush. Most of them get eaten by larger wild animals. It still amazes Himself and I that she had survived the cold and the foxes etc---

I was going to blog about "Retirement"----especially in a Pandemic--- and whatever happened?-- Maybe another day eh?--- Retirement  is  a challenge--- Life is a challenge -----We are doing it day by day--- --surviving--

Now, I must hoof it up the road--hope there are no more stray cats along the way--