Written By: Blue’s Mom.
Blue is the nicest and Best cat I could have ever imagined. I have had many cats throughout my life, all of which were special but Blue is just a bit more special.
Blue had been a stray and had been on our property for at least a year and a half. I would catch fleeting glimpses of him running away whenever he saw me and I felt sorry for this poor creature particularly during the very cold winter we experienced that year. I left food outside twice a 
day and if I looked through the window I would see him cautiously approach the food bowl, eat and disappear again. There were mornings in early spring when I took my dog out for a pee that I would see him curled up near a tree and I would wonder if he had survived the night. I vowed that this would be his last winter outside.
It would take several months to habituate this cat into accepting me. I would look for him throughout the day and talk to him and try to get as close as I could before he would run off. It was very slow going and as the end of the summer approached I knew that I had to try even harder to speed things up and catch him. Since I put food out at the same time twice a day in exactly the same place he would often be waiting nearby, I decided to feed the smelliest wet food I could think of and try standing only a few feet away from the food dish. This worked and he overcame his fear and ate ravenously. Within a couple of days I stayed next to his food and he accepted that nervously…eventually I left food on my fingers…and he licked my fingers.
The next challenge was to get him into a kennel and be able to close the door with him in it. Again a process…cover the kennel and leave the door open with the wet food near the door but not in the kennel…then the food in the kennel…then accept me standing near the kennel with the food in the kennel. By this time it was the first week of September and the nights were already getting colder and the cat needed to be caught. I was fortunate that my veterinarian and vet tech were very supportive in helping rescue a stray but I had to get him there and it had to be on a Wednesday when my vet did surgery and would neuter this cat. I knew that I probably had one try to get that door closed with the cat on the right side of the door and if somehow it failed and he escaped, I was not sure he would be caught at all. That morning the cat was waiting for me to feed him but when I opened the door to the kennel and put the food inside he hesitated and did not go in…I held my breath…then he walked in and as quickly as I could I closed the door with him inside and off to the vet we went.
I made arrangements that I would pick up the cat the next day and take him to a rehab. I did not know if he was social or litter trained and I did not think I wanted another cat. Less than a year earlier I lost a cat I had had for 17 1/2 years and I could not imagine ever loving another cat again and going through that pain and sorrow in the end. However, when I arrived at the clinic he was not in a carrier like I expected but was brought into the exam room and put on the table. I had not petted him before then and to my great delight and surprise he came immediately over to me…purred and rubbed against me and head butted….he decided for me that he would be my new furever feline companion…so…I adopted him and named him Blue.
It is now over a year that Blue came into my life. Blue is a big part of our family, much loved and well looked after. It breaks my heart to think what he must have endured previously having to experience being frozen and hungry and to suffer in pain with broken teeth (which were discovered and removed when the vet gave him the medical attention he needed). To have been outside for so long having to survive best he could and being alone and afraid is really sad.
I believe the bond that is made with a rescued animal is special and Blue is very special. He is the nicest and most affectionate cat and I am sure he is grateful and thankful for his new life and knows that I saved him. He not only gives me unconditional love but he has taught me that I have more love to give and can love again.
As I write this story Blue is curled up on the sofa across from me content and asleep.
- Blue’s Mom
