Alex's Tale (Or Is That "Tail"?)

I'd not seen the little furball in two weeks and was more that a little worried about him. Last Sunday Janel, my ex-wife, telephoned me. She had heard about my situation from our sons and wanted to help. Since she lives closer to my house than anyone else (except our son, Rob) she offered to check the mail and feed Alex.

On Tuesday Janel visited the house but couldn't find the cat. On Thursday we both went to my house. I was encouraged to find that all of the cat food had been eaten. That indicated that he had been in the house. As I walked toward the back door, I saw Alex out on the deck, sitting on top of my barbecue grill. Alex also saw me and jumped from the grill onto the railing of the deck. When I opened the door, he jumped from the railing into my arms, then to the floor, ran to the kitchen and, meowing all the way, leaped up onto his table and awaited packets of his favorite food.

I opened the first packet of food; Janel opened the second packet, which must have endeared her to Alex, who generally hides from strangers. He even allowed her to pick him up, which is a unique reaction to a stranger by Alex the furball. She must has found Alex as irresistible as others have, for Janel suggested that Alex stay at her house until he and I can be reunited permanently.

While Janel held the cat who owns me, I located his carrying case. Alex, to my complete surprise, allowed Janel to slide him into the carrier without one claw attack or any blood being shed. The trip to Janel's house was uneventful: Alex and the carrier were on my lap while he meowed pitifully and Janel and I assured him we were not taking him to visit the vet.

Janel told me that there is a neighborhood cat who adopts her each winter and moves into her house when the weather becomes cold. Thus, Janel already had cat supplies except for food, which we brought from my house.

When we arrived at the house, Alex was reluctant to come out of his carrier. Of course, he eventually did and explored the house to locate hiding places. He immediately found three: beneath a couch, a table, and (amazingly) under a credenza that has only a three inch space between its bottom and the floor. During this process, he walked around with his tail pointed down and dragging on the floor. I've never seen Alex evince that specific non-verbal.

However, by the time I left Alex at Janel's house, his tail was again waving in the air and he had located both his litter box and the food and water bowls. Most importantly, Alex is safe and secure!