When I was a little girl, my dad and I used to go for walks down the road, exploring. I was about three in this picture. If you squint, to the left ahead of us you can see the faint outline of a small dark house that was no longer there when I was older, It either fell in, or someone took it down.
I actually remember this day, we had gone for a walk beyond that house and over the brow of the hill, to see some loggers working. They were using oxen to drag the huge trees out of the woods, and the logging road was a pure mess of mud. It was a noisy, smelly, scary experience, and I never forgot it.
What amuses me about this photo: notice the trailing cats behind us. It always amuses me how they choose to follow, rather than lead. You look back, and if you have five cats, you have five cats behind you, patiently plodding along. And if you decide to turn around and come home, so do they.
That was also the year my dad decided to lose some weight: children can be sooo damned observant.
I've had cats who accompanied us on walks. Always behind, you're right. I think they worry about us and feel the need to protect us. I really do.
ReplyDeleteWe are either their bosses or their kittens. Have you ever had a female bring you a yummy half dead snack?
ReplyDeleteCats take on roles just the way dogs do; some are guard cats, some are mother cats and they fuss over us, and some just like to playyyy. I love the Greeter Cats. They're always so glad to see you when you come back!
Andy's cat used to follow us on walks. For a while. She didn't like to go far, and at some point she'd turn and go home again, and we'd find her waiting to get in when we arrived back.
ReplyDeleteDid your mom take the pic?
I suspect she did. She was the one with the camera, most times.
ReplyDeleteOne thing about female cats who follow. I learned this a long time ago, and it explains why your female cat when home alone: territory.
A female cat who had kittens or been spayed has a territory that is sometimes unbreakable. It has to do with needing to be within earshot of her kittens (real or nonexistent) at all times.
If you have a fenale confined-to-the-house cat that has been neutered or had kittens, if she gets out of the house she may not be able to get back in without help. You might even have to physically carry her back.
It can be an extremely powerful barrier.
My first cat up here, a female, I took with me for every walk I ever had, until she was spayed. She had a range of probably a mile in any direction, and I think it saved her life. She disappeared one day, and was gone for about two weeks, and I was sure she'd been taken by a fisher. One morning she sailed in, sat down, and had breakfast. =) Somehow she got chased into the woods, and surfaced at someone else's house, where she spent two weeks being called Tiger or some such.
I have also had female cats that had such small territories that they can barely get off the porch. If they do, you have to bring them in physically.
I also had one that was a greeter cat; she'd not go with me, but when she saw me coming back from my walk she'd come tearing out of the house and gallop down the driveway to meet me. I loved that...
my cat Philly (Ophelia) must be missing the "follow" gene, because she tends to predict where i am about to step, and maneuvers into said spot half a second before my foot. i sometimes pick her up and carry her in my arms, just so i can move around without constant fear of either stepping on or tripping over a cat. she is a pain, but i love her so much.
ReplyDeletethose photos are beautiful. the first one looks like a vintage postcard. it would make for an especially challenging puzzle.
I think follow is more an outdoor thing. If you walk, they join in the parade. Inside it's every cat for themselves.
ReplyDeletewell, you know, that picture IS fairly old. I was about three, so it was probably taken in the winter of (wait for it) 1948. I know what you mean, all that white. All that black. So many choices.
I've got a lot of photos like that, some b/w and some in color that would make insanely tricky puzzles; what would really be fun, glue it to a stiff cardboard backing, and then take jigsaw and cut out everything in 2" squares...