It has now been over a year since we last saw Mott, so I am posting this diary for all who have been missing his sweet face. Although we fear the worst, I hope that Mott has found a good forever home somewhere, where he is cared for and loved.
More pix and memories beneath the Fleur de Kos
It began when we started feeding a feral tabby cat that was hanging around our house, whom we named (with a complete lack of imagination) Stripey. Eventually, we gained his trust, and he pretty much moved onto our screen porch. We promptly abused his trust by live-trapping him and getting him neutered, but he forgave us in relatively short time, and has lived with us since, even moving into the house before this last brutal winter. A while later, another tabby showed up, and started eating from Stripey's bowls and moved onto our porch; we named him Mott (short for "Mottled Kitty").
Though they occasionally fought, he and Stripey actually got along pretty well, and we often wondered if they were related. I started posting pix of Mott here on teh GOS, and with his chubby cheeks and worried look, he quickly became an internet sensation.
During the warmer months, he and Stripey would lay out in the sun on our deck.
They even became our "Guard Lions" for the porch, reminding Kossacks of Patience & Fortitude, the lions guarding the New York Public Library.
A couple years ago we got them beds and heating pads to help them survive the winters in relative comfort.
Unfortunately, we were never able to gain his trust like we did with Stripey, and were unable to trap him to get him neutered. Even though he would come up to our patio door and demand that we come out to feed him, once the door opened, he would always retreat out of reach.
Last spring Mott disappeared for over a week, and we worried about him, but he returned, so when he disappeared again a bit later we did not worry so much at first, but when the weeks added up and turned into months, we feared that he was gone from us forever. Not a day goes by that I do not wonder if I could have done more, tried harder to trap and neuter him, so that he would have settled down and stayed with us.
I hope you all remember Mott with fondness, and that he is somewhere where he is as loved as he was here.