Resa’s Pieces

July 7, 2023

That’s with one “p.” Removing your clothes or paint has two “p’s.” At least, I got your attention.

Striper is my cat who has, as you might guess, black stripes on basically white fur. Mark Twain had lots of quotations about cats. His daughter Susie said, “Mama loves morals and Papa loves cats.” Twain himself said, “If man could be crossed with the cat, it would improve man, but it would deteriorate the cat.”

We’ve had a number of critters in our years of country living. At one point we had three horses and a pony; six dogs and too many cats to recollect. We only actually purchased two horses, one had a colt, the rest of the menagerie just showed up. They knew a good place to adopt some people.

Striper is the last “man” standing. He’s 21 years old; soon to be 22 if he makes it to September. It looks like he will. We’ve joked we should change our wills as he may outlive us!

Most cats last between 13-17 years. There was a cat, Crème Puff, who was said to be 38 years old, or so the internet says. We all know how reliable that can be.

Stripe was born in our barn, so we know how old he is. His sister, Gracie, didn’t make it to one year. Her name came from her gray color, not from the two Graces who came into our lives years later. One Grace is our 19-year-old neighbor, a lovely young woman. The other is our 10-year-old great, great niece who is growing into a lovely, young woman.

The mother of Stripe and Gracie was Oprah. Yes, she was black, but she also had a personality of intelligence and strength. I don’t think Oprah Winfrey would mind. We had another cat named Ronnie after Ronnie Wood of the Rolling Stones, and he hasn’t complained.

Stripe is a survivor to say the least. He survived Bobcat Fever, cytauxzoon felis twice! The name comes from ticks (one of nature’s curses) who feasted on wild bobcats. The ticks fell off the bobcats and then get on cats. Now there are precautions and treatments for it. It was fairly unknown when one of those ticks got Striper. Most cats had to be euthanized in the early years of this disease. Stripe’s vet put him into a study which helped him and other cats. His second bout was lighter, and he has lived another 15 years!

As cats get older, their world gets smaller. Stripe once patrolled the barn keeping the horses safe from mice. When he moved to the house, which was his idea, he made sure no chipmunks or raccoons terrorized his property. He would get a determined look, leave the porch, and come home with a mouse. You didn’t dare try to it take it away from him! As he aged, he no longer scouted the woods, but circled the house when he wasn’t napping. His next move—into the house. Now he comes to the kitchen to eat, drink, use the facilities, his litter box. He’s even given up sleeping on the bed to spending most of his time behind the living room recliner. Retirement has benefits.

We can say the same about people. The best advice my husband’s Uncle Dick gave us was to make yourself, “Get out there! Travel, meet people, see new places! Don’t sit at home!” Stripe is the last pet. As you get older, it is easier to play the cat and take to the recliner and watch Netflix.

You gotta get out there. Maybe even start a blog.