We have two cats, Samson and Delilah -- named after that famous, or infamous, couple in the Bible -- and they are Maine Coon mix, which means that they are both long-haired and big. Samson is entirely black, while Delilah is a typical Maine Coon color -- striped with an M between her eyes. At one piont in his life, when Samson was confined to his apartment and wasn't able to run outside, he weighed almost 23 pounds. He was one BIG cat! He's still big, but probably weighs close to 15 pounds now, while Delilah has maintained her weight at 15 pounds or so, even though she is smaller in size than Samson.
When my husband and I purchased our current home, it became obvious to us that Samson needed a cat door; the litter pan wasn't to his liking. What was needed has now become an entry point for all sorts of critters that Samson, the great hunter, brings in to show us. Mice and voles are a given; there's an endless supply in the wilds behind our property, but other interesting things have shown up through that door -- and one of the most exciting was the rat!
When Sammy brings something inside, he immediately starts talking -- in cat language, of course -- by meowing and howling while holding his catch in his mouth! This speech has a distinct sound, and I immediately know that Sammy is presenting us with his latest trophy. The night the rat came to visit, Bob was the one who saw it first. He called out to me, "Barbara, I don't know what it is, but it's BIG!" I hurried to the kitchen, where the cat door is located in one of the sliding glass doors, and immediately saw this HUGE rat that Sammy had let loose in the house. Mind you, Sammy was quite proud that he had hauled such a huge critter up the hill, onto the deck, and through that cat door, and the grin on his face was unmistakable! Upon release, the rat, which was only slightly injured, began to run around the kitchen and small office attached to it, sending Bob and I into a whirl of activity, shouting at each other as to what in the world to do, but Sammy's grin never changed as he watched the circus. He was having the time of his life!
Bob was on a chair while I was running around closing doors to contain our unwelcome visitor as it scurried through all of the wires under the computer desk. Sammy simply watched, grin never fading. Bob began moving furniture and shouted, "Go get the hammer!" "You've got to be kidding! You aren't going to kill it with the hammer, are you?" "What else to you want me to do?" "It will be a mess, especially if you hit him when he's in all those wires!" Sammy must have been annoyed that the rat was where he was, so he chased him down and carried him toward the sliding glass door, only to drop him again. I then had an idea. I hurried to the kitchen cabinet and pulled out the biggest plastic container I had and handed it to Bob, still atop the chair. "Here, slap this down on top of him!" "Then what?" "Then I'll get some cardboard for you to slide underneath it so we can take him outside." "Sounds like a plan!" Hopping down from the chair, which gave me time to hop up onto one, Bob somehow managed to corral that poor injured terrified rat into the corner of the room and was able to slap that plastic container on top of it! Mission accomplished! I hurried off to find some cardboard, and when I returned, Bob was gingerly pushing the plastic container to the floor -- that rat was rather strong and definitely wanted out. Carefully sliding the cardboard under the container, Bob was able to lift both as he clamped down to hold the aparatus together. Sammy continued to watch in sheer amazement.
We maneuvered our way to the car. I drove while Bob held that rat trapped in the plastic/cardboard container, and we drove a short way from home where we practiced the catch-and-release program. I don't know who was more relieved that the event was over -- the rat or us!
There are other escapades of Samson's hunting expeditions that I've detailed in a book entitled "A Cat's Tale." However, this event isn't in it because it happened after I published the book. I'm going to update the book to include this story as well as other memorable events, including one involving baby oppossums. I'll let you know when the updated version of the book is ready, but in the meantime, you can view it at www.createspace.com/3369283. Happy reading!
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