The tale of the flat eyed cat

As mentioned before, I have 4 cats - T, B, BB and P. You've met T in an earlier blog. Today I'm going to tell you about B. B is being a pain in the neck at the moment, so this blog is also serving as a reminder to me that she is actually a sweet little thing, not the terrorising bully that she is being at the moment.

B is 2 years old and has been a member of our family for a year and a half. She is a rescue cat, from the RSPCA. I'd seen her picture on the website, but to be honest she looked weird so I was not interested. I'd made an enquiry about another cat, but received a phone call saying that she had been rehoused, but they had another if we were interested - it was the cat from the website. Out of politeness, we agreed to go and see her, but we had no intentions of adopting her.

The reason we were going to get another cat, was because of a dream that I had had. In my dream, it was Christmas, the tree lights were on, we were all in the living room watching something on the telly and T was sitting on our big wooden trunk watching a smaller, younger cat scampering around the room. In the dream there was a lovely warm feeling that was almost overwhelming. It had been a tricky few months, so that dream had an even greater affect on me. The cat in the dream was called B. That's why we had to find the right cat for that dream to come true.

And so, hubby and I pull up outside a really grotty house. The cat we were going to see was currently living with a foster carer. We were greeted by an overly cheerful lady in a house that can only be described as chaotic. There were animals everywhere. The lady bent down to pick up a cat that I hadn't seen. She turned around and there in her arms was Penelope. Who calls a cat Penelope? I mean seriously, how could that ever be a good name for a cat?! Her photo had not done her justice. She was six months old, black and white and had just the sweetest little face. The lady told us that she had been born at an RSPCA centre as her mum had been abandoned there. B herself had not been subjected to any kind of cruelty or anything like that, she just needed a loving home.

She liked us right from the off. Hubby fell for her in an instant. As I held her, she nuzzled into me and showed no signs that she was willing to leave me. Hubby had cuddles too and there began a deep love that still endures today. We made arrangements to adopt her on the understanding that we would be changing her name to B.

The following day, the RSPCA lady dropped her off. She sniffed around her new surroundings and quickly identified her spot and made herself at home. It became very clear early on that B had a distinctive personality very different to that of T's. B was very sociable and friendly. She was also the weirdest of our 4 cats. She is obsessed with water and sinks. Even now, her favourite spot to curl up and sleep is the bathroom sink. Her best quality though is her flat eyes. If she not so impressed with something she gives a withering look that makes you feel very small and insignificant.

B cost us a fortune in vet bills. She was riddled with fleas and had worms too. Not what you would expect from the RSPCA. It took our vets a while to get her completely back to full health. The adoption fee included the cost of her neutering at the RSPCA vet surgery. I took her there and immediately didn't like it. The male vet was horrible. He had no beside manner about him and he kept sniffing. I hated leaving her there. I collected her as soon as possible and vowed never to go back. Her aftercare was provided by my vet and because they knew the story about B, they didn't charge me. A good vet is like a good hairdresser and mechanic - if you find one, never ever let them go.

T was understandably less than thrilled with the arrival of B. She avoided B wherever possible. They hissed at one another for about a week or so and then they gradually became friends. After a couple of weeks we caught them both asleep on your bed holding paws. Their friendship had been sealed! As B got older and was allowed to venture out into the garden, T would sit on the garden table watching over her ever move, making sure she didn't get into any trouble or danger. It was very sweet to watch.

When we brought home the two boys last year, B took them under her wing. She washed them, taught them how to kill bugs and kept them in check if their play fights got too rough. BB and P are black and white too and if you didn't know better, you would think that B was their mum.

B is now 2 and that is clearly the stroppy teenager phase in cats. Lately she has been swiping at the other 3 and generally being very surly and grumpy. We've tried to get to the bottom of why she is suddenly behaving like this - is it because she is now the smallest cat in the house? Has she had a run in with one of our other cats? Is she ill? We have eliminated all of that and our vet says that she is just at that grumpy age. This is why she is being a pain in the neck. We seem to spend a lot of time telling her off for attacking one of the others, but at the same time, we are having to make a special fuss of her so she knows that she is and always will be our gorgeous little weirdo flat eyed girl.

Aww I feel all misty eyed about my tiny B now. I think I'll go and give her a cuddle and a treat!

Oh and by the way, that dream? It came true!