Minimus the Woodshed Kitten
Kitten in the Hedge
Rusty the Moosey dog is a hero. Rusty's wonderful dog-nose 'found' Minimus (a little wild grey kitten) in the woodshed, and saved her from the sad, scrappy life of a feral cat.
Three Wild Kittens
Minimus was one of a trio of wild kittens who suddenly turned up in the Moosey Pond Paddock. Dumped? Who knows. Wild - definitely. Rusty the dog had a tabby bailed up one tree, a little grey in another, and then flushed a third (all black) out of the compost on the fence-line.
What to do? I left food bowls in the tree forks and retired with my barking dog. The next day - no sign - I kept checking.
On the following day I decided to use Rusty's nose, and we pottered around the garden looking. And then Rusty showed me exactly where one of the little kittens was hiding.
Minimus the Kitten
At the back of the woodshed, Rusty suddenly became a statue - front paw raised, tail stretched straight out behind. He stared intently up into the rambling rose covering the woodshed roof. I couldn't see anything. But Rusty refused to move from his pointing pose. Finally I looked inside and deep in the top corner of the wood pile saw two tiny little grey triangles - ha! Kitten ears!
Meet Minimus
Minimus (for that was immediately the grey kitten's name, since she was such a tiny minipuss) was starving, and slowly came down to my hand to take some fresh meat. Three meals later she softened and relaxed, and I tickled gently behind her ear. Purr! Purr for the big person! My first small breakthrough - the first of many.
I'm writing this one week later and Minimus is thriving. She now has some of her meals on the Laundry Seat by the back door. She sleeps in a blanket bed on top of the logs in the woodshed. She smooches, she purrs, she follows me around and comes when I call. I could write pages and pages about her latest exploits, and how quickly she's learning...
Minimus is getting used to Rusty the dog. Fluff-Fluff, one of the large Moosey cats, has become a self-appointed nanny, and I can always find Minimus in the garden - I just look for her huge pale ginger fluffy friend.
Minimus the Kitten Shows the Tummy
I'm very sorry that I couldn't help the other two wild kittens. But Minimus, with a bit of luck and the good nose of my dog, has fallen on her little feet. Such a brave kitten, and oh so sensible! How your life changes when you purr for the big person - pretty easy, really!
Minimus the Kitten Resting
Thanks, Rusty the Dog
Thanks to Rusty who, though his incredible scenting ability, now has yet another feline to live with, and has thus dropped one more rung on the Moosey animal ladder. Dear dog!