Domino, Former Feral Cat

Before I can tell the story of my adopted feral cat, Domino, I need to give a little background of how he came to my apartment complex.

Domino's birth mother, herself, is a feral cat who has been living on the grounds of my apartment complex for the past 5 or 6 years. She had given birth to two litters in 2006. Domino was one of six of her babies from the first litter of that year. My neighbor was taking care of his mother and the entire litter from the time the babies were born. When my neighbor found out we wanted a cat, she brought all six of the babies to our apartment and gave us our choice. There were three Siamese, one orange striped kitten, one solid white kitten and one Tortoise Shell kitten, which is the same breed as the mother. We chose one of the Siamese kittens.

My husband and I adopted Domino when he was five weeks old. His name was derived from a personal tragedy that occurred near the time of his birth and subsequent adoption by my husband and myself. My father-in-law had passed away from Lymphoma cancer a few days before Domino's litter was actually born. My father-in-law loved to play the game of dominoes, therefore, to honor his memory and since Domino was half Siamese with the traditional Siamese white with black markings, we decided the appropriate name for our new addition would be "Domino".

It was discovered shortly after acquiring our new pet that he had a severe case of ringworm. I carried him to my neighbor, not to give him back, but to show her his sores so that she might check the remaining babies for ringworm. She discovered that every kitten left had the ringworm, some worse than others. We immediately took our new arrival for proper medical treatment. There were several medications given to us for his problem which was resolved when he was about twelve weeks old. His hair started growing back when he was four months old. He has never had a problem with ringworm since the first occurrence.

Domino is a completely indoor cat. He doesn't want to go outside at all. He has been neutered to prevent spraying. He has not been declawed. His favorite activities include looking out the window, eating his treats, biting and clawing when he plays and sleeping. His least favorite things include the vacuum cleaner, plastic bags, or having his tail or paws touched. He doesn't really mind riding in a car as long as his carrier is pointed toward the car window so he view his surroundings.

Domino is a very intelligent animal as well. He knows his name. He knows what certain words mean such as "treat", "down," "sack" and "bite". Sometimes, I think he can read because whenever we order a pizza for delivery, he tends to think that since the box has his name on it, he's entitled to a bite.

Feral cats do make loving additions to any petless home which can save them from an almost certain premature death.

© 2010 Tammy L