Update on the Strabies

It's been about three weeks since Brindle (henceforth known as "Brin") decided to join his buddy, Bob, in campaigning to become the newest members of our family.

"Hi, I'm Brin, and I've decided these peeps are O.K."

 

Turns out he is a super sweetheart with a cool, ultra-laid-back personality. All of our cats are pretty nonchalant about his visits, which are beginning to happen while the sun is still up --- unlike Bob, who still has a healthy enough respect for the white devil dog to wait until after sunset to make his appearance (which is why there's no Bob photo yet).

Trying to get a picture of him at his height is almost impossible,
because as soon as I crouch down, he's heading over for pets.

 Brin really enjoys being petted and, despite his super thin frame, he will regularly stop eating to come over and get some scritches. There are times when it seems that the food is a secondary consideration to having a little people company. This is not the case with Bob, who seems to be under the impression that every meal may well be his last. We've toyed with changing Bob's name to "Dyson", but he seems happy enough with Bob the Cat.

"I dig this table. Safe and close to the water hole."

Brin spends some time on one of the outdoor tables nearly every night, just chilling out. It makes our heart happy that he finds it to be a safe place where he can rest for a bit. You'll rarely catch Bob up there, as it's entirely too far from where we drop the food.

We've taken to calling them "The Strabies", a nonsensical word I made up as a contraction of "stray babies". I have no idea how this will ultimately play out. My husband (who also has a nickname - the Sta-Puff Marshmallow Man, because of the softness of his critter-loving heart) has a serious infatuation with Brin and mentioned that we might need to figure out some type of shelter for the winter. A section of yard that is double-fenced allows the Strabies pretty easy access while keeping them safe from dogs (including the Doodlebug) and might be a good spot for a cat house. Fortunately, Southern California winters are a long way from unbearable, and a long time from now. Today, the weather is fine, the Strabies know the yard is all theirs once the sun goes down (with the exception of Darby potty outings, but they've figured out the signs and know how to disappear when they hear his tags jingling), and we're in their corner.