Patches and Fred
This is Fred. A stupid name, I know, but he has been hanging around my yard the past couple of months and at first I was afraid of him, so I didn't spend a whole lot of time thinking up a name. For this first picture I chose one that makes him look scary, like a pissed off panther on his way to set something right.
After many many sessions of throwing him a bit of food a good ten feet away from me which he would skittishly pick up, five feet away then two and finally right at my feet, he will now come quite close to me. So of course, I couldn't resist trying to pet him. At first the merest brush of my fingertip would set him to hissing. Very scary again!
Today he let me brush his back a few times before he started hissing. We're getting there.
My main worry is for Patches, who has not gotten along very well with other cats. Here she is in her favorite spot, an unused ice cube container on my kitchen table.
When Patches first came to live with us we had an elderly cat named Esme. Esme had staked out her territory in the laundry room where her food and litter were, and she only left that room if I took her out myself which I did daily so she could get some exercise. She always went directly back to her territory. After Esme died, it took Patches a full year to enter the laundry room no matter what I did to try to entice her.
I tried to keep Patches an indoor cat, I really did, but we started having battles every single time I opened a door, going in or out, and I finally gave up. Patches and I are much better friends now that I let her go out. I worried that she would tangle with Fred, but they do seem to be friends of a sort.
So maybe I should get a couple of kittens.
(I need more pets to care for like I need a hole in the head. (apologies for the cliche @carolkean))
#Fred. "A stupid name, I know" - LOL! - my dad has called people "Fred" whenever they fall short of his idea of intelligence, so when he started calling me Winifred, I knew it wasn't a term of endearment. Just to haunt him, I once brought home a Hispanic (oooh) co-worker, Fernando, who went by the name of "Fred," but somehow Dad seemed to know I was out to cook his goose. Or he liked the M-16 rifle Fred brought along for fun (he was a Marine vet). Another co-worker came by for permission to go pheasant hunting and Dad wondered why I didn't wanna marry Hank. -_- Finally I brought home a Catholic.... and it took Dad 25+ years to get over it. (And that one wasn't a daughter's revenge.)
Patches, haunted by the Laundry Room cat for a year - that is the stuff of fiction!! Maybe you'll find a Freewrite prompt that inspires some #caturday stories, the way @GuyTMartland got his started right here at Steemit. (Alas, he left us.) http://www.guytmartland.co.uk/p/the-cats-page.html
I forgot about Guy! I did write a caturday post once, a finishthestory entry. It was really good (if you ask me), sci-fi, about a bit of computer code written today by a vengeful guy named Guy and cats take over the androids a century later cuz of Guy's code.
Ohhh yes, I remember!!! I love that story!!!!
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I like fred he has a unique look!
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Right? He's a looker alright, his fur is a solid blue, with faint stripes only on his tail. I am getting very attached to him.
Oh, the joys of cats! My brother had one named Fred, so I don't think it's a weird name. Ours are Annie, Clarence, and Ulysses, so I know all about odd cat names. I love the picture of Fred looking panther-like, and Patches in the ice cube tray. Cats do select the oddest places to take a nap!
The name fits him. Sometimes he looks like a gargoyle. When he is feeling very defensive he hunkers down and his ears go sideways and he looks downright evil.
Thanks for coming around!
Beautiful shots! Fred indeed does look like a panther in the first one!
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Why thank you for liking my shots! He was skinnier when I took the panther shot. Mama's hand-feeding him has done wonders. He looks quite well fed in the last shot, which is also the most recent. Nice of you to stop in!
Fed does look like a panther in the 1st photo. 😊 I like his fur color and Patches is a lovely calico. Fred knows a good thing and will hang around.
He misses days now and then and I find myself hoping someone has taken him in. I don't need another pet I really do not. But I can't resist him! He's playing very hard to get, a challenge.
And he's blue!!! A major plus in my cat book.
Love the ice cube tray bed. :))
We got a rescue 17 years ago. The only thing she did if you approached her or tried to pat her was growl. If you persisted, you got shredded. Now she's 18.5 years old and while she will never be a lap cat, she does sit next to us on the couch and will let you pat her, for a little while.
It was probably 10 years before we could pat her without getting shredded every time...
Oh dear! I don't think I could bear that for ten years! My dog harasses Fred and even though he wants to come in the house, I don't think I can let him in until he lets me touch him.
Pretty cat, yours. I've always wanted an orange cat, but I got the calico so she's close. And Fred is blue. Nice colors with my red dachshund. We'll see. Today Fred was less inclined to let me touch him than he was yesterday.
Hi @owasco,
Thanks so much for partaking in #dailypetphotography! Please follow @dpet for upcoming events.
Our discord channel is up and running, come on over and say hi, lots of avil pet owners are awaiting you there.
https://discord.gg/GYrnsNm
Your description of Fred's attitude in the first photos fits perfectly (and is funny).
Why thank you! nice to make your acquaintance too!