A wanderer finds a new hotel
Has soi cat Thep found a new place for dinner?
I THINK I’ve lost a cat – Thep, the soi cat who considers my house his own personal cat hotel.
At one time, he’d drop by for breakfast, and after a short nap, disappear over the gate to guard the soi from unwelcome cats. In the evening, he’d drop by for a late meal, take a nap for an hour or two, and then return to the soi.
If it was raining, he’d even stay inside, curling up near me on my bed. Then he’d stay for breakfast before making that climb over the gate.
All that has changed. I still see him for breakfast, but it’s a quick meal, and then he dashes outside again. I seldom see him in the evenings.
No longer does he enjoy a long, lingering meal and then a restful nap. He takes a few mouthfuls and then begins pacing, heading for the door to the patio.
If the door is closed and he can’t get out to the patio, he yells urgently. He is not a relaxed cat.
At first, I worried. Was the boy eating enough? Was he suffering from some injury or illness that prevented him from eating properly?
I watched the other members of the mini-zoo, but they didn’t seem concerned. If he had been suffering from bad health, my poodle-pup Wan-Wan would have inspected him carefully, especially the areas on his body that might require care.
There was no such reaction. When he showed up, Wan greeted him happily as usual, rubbing against him and even touching noses.
Now, when I pick him up just to check, he purrs away, happy to sit on my lap for a few minutes – but it is such a short time, compared to what it used to be.
I’m not really happy about Thep’s changing routine. The longer he stays inside my house, the safer he is. He’s quite an intelligent animal, but the soi is narrow and the population of cars, motorcycles and even trucks has been growing.
There are times that – even though I don’t own any form of private transportation –I still have difficulty manoeuvring around all the vehicles parked on the soi.
What chance does a small cat have in such a situation?
Dogs and unkind people also live on the soi, not to mention other cats willing to fight to defend their territory.
When I talk about my concerns, people laugh at me. “Cats can take care of themselves,” they say. “If a dog attacks, the cat can always escape by climbing a tree.”
It’s nevertheless true that a cat or dog living on the soi doesn’t live as long as an animal living inside a house. Male cats and dogs especially have a much shorter lifespan, because of territorial fights.
This morning, when Thep comes into the house, I pick him up and give him a good feel. He doesn’t seem to have lost any weight.
Perhaps, because his best friend Thong, another soi cat, was actually living in my house before he died last year, Thep no longer feels so close to my household as he once did. Perhaps the number of male cats wandering the soi has grown, and his work guarding the soi has increased.
Most likely, he’s found another house where people feed him. One morning, in fact, he doesn’t even come in. Instead, he sits outside the gate grooming himself, as if he’s already enjoyed a very fine, five-star cat meal.
Yes, he’s found another cat hotel.
This house obviously doesn’t even try to keep him inside. It’s the custom, after all, for cats to stay outside and dogs inside at night.
I suppose Thep isn’t so concerned about safety as he is about free food.
