Off-Grid in West Virginia

Wednesday

Linda

Minnie Pearl has finally excepted Moby as a friend. They play together and Minnie Pearl has coaxed him out of the barn and into the wild and exciting world of the woods.   They don’t travel far, they tend to stay in the brush and woods closest to the barn. I imagine as they mature they will wander further out to hunt.

The Dynamic Duo

Shiner has discovered their hiding place and the other day I caught him rooting around in the brush. I called him away and since he was a bad boy he was promptly put back into the house with a sharp reprimand.  I went back out to check on the kittens and as I got closer I could here one of them crying. I called them as the terrified mews continued.  Minnie Pearl cautiously made her way out of the brush constantly on guard, sniffing and watching for the brindle bully dog.  I could here Moby, but I couldn’t tell where he was. Was he hurt or caught in the brush somewhere?

I was starting to get worried. The cries were so faint. Then I looked up. There he was near the top of a tall walnut tree. The top of the tree swayed back and forth as a strong breeze blew through it. A large limb stuck out where Moby sat. I called to him and he started to crawl out on the limb. That would be a catastrophe.  I knew I would have to go to the base of the tree, but to do that I would have to go around to the path that heads up the hill and then get down into the ditch. I wasn’t going to attempt that wearing clogs. There could be slithery, creepy crawlies down in that brush and I needed some traction as well.

As I ran back to the house to get my wellys I was trying to figure out what to do if I couldn’t get him down. Now everyone likes to say that a cat will find their way down a tree when they get hungry enough. That is an old wives tale. More than one cat has been caught up in a tree for days and Moby was definitely too small to know exactly how to maneuver down not to mention he was terrified.  There is no way I could leave him up there.  If I couldn’t get him I decided I would get a ladder from cousin. I wasn’t going to let him stay up there all night.

With my wellys on I carefully stepped down into the brush. There were piles of broken branches twisted up with tall grass and weeds. It was hard to tell how deep it was. I can tell you I got hung up more than once. Moby came to my side of the tree and I kept telling he him he could do it.  Sounds stupid I know, but he seemed to respond to it. The poor little thing had no clue how to get down. He started by climbing down head first, then sideways and backwards franticly meowing the whole time.  I continued to cheer him on. About halfway down he got stuck on a bent limb. He was confused on how to get straightened out. I don’t know if he lost his grip, was a dare devil and jumped or was just too tired to hang on, but down he came ending in a thump.  My heart jumped into my throat. I hoped the brush had broken his fall and prayed he wasn’t hurt.

After a second to recover from the shock he came out to me.  I picked him up and held him close, soothing and stroking his fur. He was soon purring after his heart rate leveled out. I gave both cats equal attention and checked them over for any injuries.  A handful of kitty food thrown into their bowls and they were back to normal.  I’m not really sure who was more of a wreck after all was said and done.  Me or the cats. I’m sure you all can figure out where which one to lay that bet on!

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