GO BACK HOMEMom loves all animals but we had always only had dogs. (Dad wasn't a cat-person.) I wasn't suprised that the white cat took to her, but the level of bonding was amazing. This cat LOVED her. Once she convinced him to live inside I knew that he was going to be a full-time shop cat. We outfitted him with all the things a cat needs, and we named him Sydney. (Sid Viscious)
Syd really took to his new job as head of Public Relations. He greeted every customer and was always willing to accept a scratch on the head. His favorite sleeping place was on Mom's desk, or even better in her desk drawer. Syd was "odd eyed" (one blue eye and one green eye) and, as is often the case in blue eyed white cats, he was mostly deaf.
In late 1989 we aquired a second white shop cat, Snowy. Syd was very happy to have a companion. They got along well and were good company for each other. Snowy decided that she was the boss and Syd let her believe that. We became known as "that glass shop with the two white cats".
We noticed that Syd constantly had a runny nose. The vet diagnosed it as a chronic respiratory infection. He would just have to live with it, and take steroids for the rest of his life. It seemed to mostly affect one side of his head. His blue eye turned brown. If you didn't watch out he would sneeze on you.
In 1997 Snowy died from cancer. Syd missed her right away. I tried bringing Shadow to work with me. Sydney was happy to see his "cousin", but Shadow decided he was too old to begin a new career. He was a shop cat for one day. Mom told me to find her another white cat. I went to the local shelter and discovered Sugar, an eight year old, polydactyl, white cat. She had been adopted several times but the people kept returning her. When I met with her in the "common room" she jumped up on my shoulder and sat there for the entire visit. We adopted her that day. Syd was happy to have a new companion, but Sugar would rather not be bothered by other cats.
Sydney aged like cats do. He slept more and more. His kidneys started to fail. He had times when his infection would worsen. We gave him his medicine and took care of him the best we could. He was happy and content. On Easter morning 2000, I went down to the shop to feed the kitties. Sugar was waiting by the food bowl and Syd was asleep on the floor by the door. Except he wasn't really sleeping and he wouldn't be waking up. I had to call Mom with the bad news. Coming a little over a year after Shadow died, Syd's death hit me pretty hard. Mom was very upset. We laid him to rest in our ever-growing Pet Cemetary. (We have five cats out there now.)
Sugar didn't seem to mind being an only-cat. She still did her "parrot-cat" act and interacted with the customers. She had an incidence of skin cancer and had to have one ear removed but she did fine. In November 2000 we adopted a black feral cat that had been hanging out in the alley behind the shop. He lives indoors now. We named him Pepper. Sugar acted like she couldn't understand why we needed any cat besides her. Near the end of the month my brother picked up a white cat that needed a home. She was eight years old and was also named Sugar. So now we had Sugar Bear (first one) and Sugar Baby (new one). The girls lived in the office and had struck an uneasy truce. They didn't play but they didn't fight. Pepper lived in the shop area. He was the king of his domain. We planned to open things up and let the three mingle. Eventually.
SugarBear was still a sweetie but was a little more reserved. I don't think she ever forgave us for bringing new cats in to "her" shop. In May of 2001 she got out of the shop and never returned. We tried to keep up hope, but after two months we pretty much gave up. I like to think that she is out in California doing commercials. Maybe working as a stunt-cat or a tail-double. We really miss her alot.
We opened things up but SugarBaby still mostly lived in the office and Pepper mostly lived in the shop. They both began exploring the other's "territory". SugarBaby decided that she was in charge. (Sometimes I would swear that she is Snowy reincarnated.) Pepper is a joy. It was kind of sad, though. Pepper wanted to play but SugarBaby didn't want anything to do with him. So, drawing on previous experience with my cat at home, we got Pepper his own kitten. Salt (aka Salty or The Little Guy) is an amazing kitty. He loves everyone and everything. He never stops purring. He's totally fearless. He climbs anything and everything. Pepper has become an office cat. Like Sydney, he is totally devoted to Mom. Whenever she walks from the office back to the shop, he walks along with her. Now he's the one sleeping in her desk drawer.
In late 2001 a friend came to us with a problem. Her cat that lived out at her farm had come home with a serious injury. Her right eye was missing. We don't know for sure what happened to her. The friend asked if the cat (Rosie) could stay with us while recuperating. Of course we said yes. She came in and adjusted quickly. She improved steadily and soon was doing very well. Funny thing is, she never went back to the farm. She became a full time shop cat. Rosie was the first cat to greet customers when they come in the door. It seemed like another re-incarnation. For what ever reason, Rosie bonded with me. She even did her own parrot-cat act, riding around on my shoulder. When I would go out on service calls she would wait for me. When I worked in the shop, she would lay on the work table by me.
SugarBaby wasn't adjusting so well. She started spending most of her time up on a high shelf. We even had to feed her there. If any of the other cats got anywhere near her, she would hiss and growl. The others seemed to go out of their way to torment her. After a couple of minor, uh disagreements, we decided that she would be happier elsewhere. So Mom took her home. There were no other cats but there were two dogs and a parrot. Baby is the queen of the house. Things are much quieter at the shop also.
In the spring of 2004, the same people that we got Rosie from found a stray white cat. He had long fur and a cool gray stripe on his forehead. They asked if we wanted him. I said NO! They decided to make him a shop cat in their business across the street from ours. Then a funny thing started happening. This cat would escape from their shop, come across the street, and sit by our front door, looking in. I would take him back or they would come over and get him. After this happened a half dozen times, we decided that you can't fight fate and took him in. We named him Snowman.
Snowman is a real sweetheart. He is as laid back as can be. He likes to sleep with his head hanging off the edge of the desk. As he got older, his gray stripe went away. The only negative is that he and Salt don't always get along. They will just be sitting there and suddenly, one will attack the other. It's more noise than anything.
On July 4th, 2005 I was out of town visiting a friend. The friend that was taking care of the cats for me called with sad news. When he arrived that morning, Rosie was listless and unresponsive. He took her to the emergency clinic. They diagnosed her as diabetic and anemic and also dehydrated. There was really nothing they could do for her at that point, so he made the decision. I may never get over the guilt. I feel like I can't ever leave town again. She was an extraordinary kitty.
We are still known as "the glass shop with the cats". It's just that there are three now and they are numbers five and six and eight. They owe it all to an odd-eyed guy named Sydney, our first shop cat.
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