Blackie

Blackie has always been one of the lovingest cats we have had. He would follow us around the yard and garden. If you reached down to weed the garden he would be under your hand before you could reach the weeds. The only thing was you had to be careful not to step on him.

A big old Black and White cat showed up here a few weeks back. He was very leery and would not come close to us. The woods seemed to be his home. We wondered if he would become a pet or not.

About two weeks ago I heard two cats fighting. I rushed out and the Black and White cat had jumped on Blackie. He was so much bigger than Blackie I was afraid he would hurt or kill our pet. I ran at them yelling to scare him off. He went in one direction and Blackie in another.

We had some cold weather and I did not go outside much for a few days. I did not see Blackie until the next day. He was on the steps. When I opened the door he ran off. Was he scared of me I wondered? Maybe when I scared the other cat off Blackie thought I was going to hurt him. I saw him come to eat that night, but did not go out. If he was afraid of me he might not continue eating.

Blackie disappeared. Often one of the male cats would leave for a day or two so I was not worried at first. After a few days I began to worry. Was he afraid of me? Was the Black and White cat hanging around so much Blackie ran off? Had the Black and White Cat killed him? What had happened to Blackie?

When he had been gone a week or so we thought Blackie was gone for good. We did not know if he had found another home or had been hurt or killed. We were so sad. We have had pets always. This last year was the worst we have had as far as losing pets. It hurt bad losing another one.

The day before yesterday Blackie had been gone about ten days. We had given up on him. I looked out and he was at the food pan eating. I did not know if he would be afraid of me or not. I eased the door open. He continued eating. I walked toward him slowly, holding my breath, not knowing if he would run off or not. He came up to me and rubbed against my feet and legs. When I petted him he purred. You would not believe how happy I was. He seemed as happy to see me as I was to see him.

Blackie has stayed here since. I'll never know where he was and why he left. Possibly he had gone looking for and found a female cat and stayed with her for a while. I'm just glad he is back.