Twisted Tails

Miss Boo

In July of 2004 I would never have thought we would end up being adopted by three stray cats before the summer’s end. When Boo, Ping and Jinx arrived at our doorstep we literally did not know what to do. Since they picked us, we felt we needed to provide a safe haven for them. Each of them has their own unique way of expressing themselves and as time as passed they have revealed themselves to us in surprising ways.
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As the weather changed the cats moved into the garage where they seemed quite content, until they discovered we went into the house and soon it became apparent they wanted to follow us inside. As winter grew closer we decided to try letting Boo in to see what would happen. She loved it and she settled in perfectly. Then we lost Ping (that is a long story) so we couldn’t leave Jinx alone out in the garage at night, so he came in. Again, he loved it and the two of them got along very well inside. (Ping returned and he subsequently moved into the house as well since he had bad penchance for wandering off.)

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Boo has always been one to stand back and watch and carefully assess a situation. She did not like to be touched . She is quiet and shy and ladylike in demeanor, I call her my southern belle. She barely makes any sounds. No loud histrionics from this girl.

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As time has moved on Boo held her ground. She still withheld her judgement, waiting to see what was going to happen. I surmise waiting to see when she was going to be abandoned again.She responded negatively to being touched or being held. She did the typical cat maneuvers when you tried to reach down and pet her or tried to pick her up. She was terrific at cat avoidance!

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Then after Abby came to live with us, it became apparent that Boo needed her own safe room. So, we beagn to put her in the master bedroom while we were at work. She loved it and thrived in 'her room'. She also started staying in our bedroom at night and it evolved into her room.

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I began to notice slow changes in her demeanor. She began to bond to me. She opened herself up and started 'talking' to me when we were alone in her room. She started rubbing up against me and curling her tail around my leg. Then she would fall onto the floor and rub her face against my foot asking for attention.

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Boo moves very deliberately and she saunters in and out of rooms. She always has a crook in her tail. I have finally come to see that she uses her tail as her means of self expression. And slowly it dawned on me what one particular tail maneuver truly meant.

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Boo wraps her tail around me; like a candy cane. When she lies next to me at night and before she and I fall asleep I always have to give my special girl the caresses she seeks. If I don’t she will demand that I do! She will head bonk me, or better yet she will stand on top of me and knead me with all four paws. As I pet her she twirls that tail, she twists and turns and wraps it around and around me.

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I believe that Boo has finally decided she can trust me; she no longer fears that what once happened to her back in the summer of 2004 will happen again. I feel she believes that I will not abandon her on the side of the road and drive off, leaving her and her two brothers alone to fend for themselves. When we are alone she speaks to me and I know that she is telling me her secrets and I feel she knows I listen to her and that I will protect her secrets. She knows that I love her and as she wraps her love tighter around me every time she twists that tail around by arm. It is such a great reward to have won her heart and trust.

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It's time again to join all the wonderful critters over at Friday's Ark and don't forget to drop by this weekend and check out the latest edition of the Carnival of the Cats being hosted this week by When Cats Attack.