"I was not planning on having a pet,” said Eleanor, “then a friend called with a sad tale about an eight-year-old, Maltese/Poodle, Cleo, whose parent was admitted into an Alzheimer’s care home. Voila - instant dog!
Cleo is cute, affectionate and loves everyone. She looks more
puppy-like than a senior dog. Her soft-white fur resembles downy feathers when blowing in the wind.
Cleo is entertaining as she hops around on her hind legs like a purr-fessional circus dog. She is adorable when she spontaneously sits up on her hind end holding her paws up.
She has amazing communication skills making it easy to tell what she wants.
When her water dish is empty she bangs on it.
When she wants to go outside, she scratches on the door.
She has no idea what to do with a ball, and even though she steals and ‘kills’ my socks, I love her to pieces.
Cleo’s car bed sits on the passenger floor and she goes everywhere with me. She never jumps up on the seat. In the summer, I adjusted my shopping hours to the evening, so she can safely go, and not over heat in the car.
Three years before
Cleo’s arrival, at Christmas, I was watching a holiday program when I heard a haunting-yowl on my back porch.
I looked out through the glow of the Christmas lights and saw a skittish, soaking-wet, skin and bones cat. He ran into the bushes when I opened the door.
I placed a cushion into a basket and put some tuna in a dish outside for him. He watched from a safe distance.
As soon as I closed the
door, he carefully came back on the porch, devoured the tuna, and then curled up in the dry bed.
My “Visitor” was gone in the morning, but the next night, I heard him cry again. This kept up for the entire winter.
He was painfully skittish, but by the end of the winter, he would let me watch him eat. I never saw him during the day.
When the weather turned warm, he returned to the woods.
The following winter, on the first cold night, Visitor was back!
This time, when I opened the door, he did not run away, so I gave him ‘his’ cushion back and he moved in for the winter.
By the end of the second year I could pat him, after the third year he was fat, happy, and affectionate -- then he went missing.
My neighbor, George, found Visitor nearly dead
in his yard after a coyote attack. He gently picked up the maimed cat and rushed him to the vet.
The feral cat did not have the energy to purr-test and by the time George nursed him back to health, Visitor now named “Buddy”, had been domesticated, neutered, and adopted after becoming best friends with George’s other cat.
Now, Visitor is devoted to George and follows him around his yard
snoopervising.
Every day, Visitor still comes by my home for treats. Cleo goes mad with excitement when she sees Visitor, because she is also “gifted” a treat.
Cleo won’t allow Visitor in our home any more after he came in and curled up in her bed! She still resents the incident, because she couldn’t roust the Maine Coon cat out of the bed. Visitor outweighs Cleo by ten pounds!
Visitor knows our
morning routine, so after his treat, he trails along behind Cleo and me on our walks. Sometimes, he runs in front of us waiting for us to catch up to him.
Popeye would be proud of Cleo. She loves her greens (green beans, broccoli, and sprouts) added into her food. Little pieces of apple are one of her treats. Veggies help keep her stools normal. She’s a sweet-happy dog and we are a blessing to each others
lives.”
