A Black Cat Crossed My Path

This morning I biked over to Lighthouse Field and started looking for kittens. I was hoping to find the mom and siblings of the kitten someone found and took to Companion Animal Hospital, and while I didn't end up finding them, it still was a successful day.

I know Lighthouse Field very well, since I went to school from Kindergarten to 8th grade at Gateway School, which is right across the street. I had a vague idea of where the cats would live, so I started my search by walking quietly along the edge of the field. I found some great potential kitty homes, and also figured out where they came for water. At one point, I was standing on a little foot bridge that crossed a little creek, and was looking for cat footprints in the mud, when I looked up and a cat had appeared in front of me. It was a male black longhair with an ear tip. The ear tip means that the cat had already been neutered, so although this cat didn't need to be trapped, I knew that I was in the right place. The cat and I stared at each other for a while, and then he got up and walked away. I followed him until he disappeared into the bushes, but I was glad to have seen him at all.

I also went around and knocked on doors to see if anyone was feeding cats or knew about the mommy cat and kittens, but no one was home. Then, finally, I talked to a very friendly neighbor who said she hadn't seen any kittens and that she knew all of her neighbors and only one feeds cats. She pointed the house out to me, and sure enough, there were a bunch of silver food bowls in the front yard. Unfortunately, no one was home, but at least I have a lead there.

I went back to where I had seen the black cat, and right where he had been sitting I discovered a small passage. It was partially overgrown, but I followed it through to an opening where I disturbed three crows who yelled at me for quite a while. The opening had two giant trees and a nice clear area where the creek ran through. By the creek I discovered lots of cat tracks. I decided to come back to this spot if I needed to watch for cats. I could easily climb a tree and wait for cats to come get a drink of water. It would also be a good spot to set up a feeding area and a trap, because it is not somewhere most people will go when walking through Lighthouse Field, and it is very out-of-sight.

I think it was a promising and successful first day working with the cats at Lighthouse Field, and hopefully I'll be able to find that mommy cat and her kittens!