The Lesson of the Feral Cat

Meg Herriot found that just like the lost sheep, the feral cat has a special place in our Lord’s world as well. 

We moved into our house over a year ago. Off and on, we thought we might have a racoon problem. A couple of times a month, we’d find animal food knocked over and a mess in our garage. My husband and I were happy with the single cat we had. When we moved into our house, we found out two outdoor cats came with the house. We didn’t really want to increase our feline responsibility, but found these two cats to be pleasant and helpful at keeping pests out of the yard and garden. 

Catching a feral cat  

Eventually, we discovered that the culprit was not a raccoon, but another cat. We did not want a fourth cat. We tried to find if anyone owned this cat. No neighbor would claim it. Eventually, being the veterinarian I am, I didn’t want a cat with diseases near my other pets, and as much as I love kittens, I didn’t want to discover we went from 3 cats to 12.   

I decided I would trap the cat, neuter it ,and vaccinate it as well as test for diseases that it could give to our other cats. What followed was a comedy of errors (including catching a racoon). “Indy,” named because he was previously known as “intruder cat,” was taken care of. I was pretty confident that after he recognized me as the person who vaccinated and neutered him, he might never want to step foot on our property again.   

He initially escaped and took off running, even high on pain medication. I caught him to let him recover for a little bit and when I released him, he looked back at me, almost like he was thinking, “that wasn’t too bad.” I trapped him again so I could booster his vaccines. Again, a mad chase around our garage and a hissing cat.   

Just as I was about ready to give up on his vaccine booster, he calmly sat on my doorstep, let me put my hands on him and waited for my husband to bring me his shots. I poked him three times giving him the best immunity against things I thought I could as I didn’t think he’d be coming back soon.   

He stayed. He became super friendly. He is now the friendliest cat in our household. He wants to come inside and be snuggled. He's the easiest cat to do a nail trim on. What had been a wild and crazy cat who lived under a woodpile now wants nothing more than to spend time with my family (including the 70-pound obnoxious Labrador retriever). 

The cat who reminded me of a lost sheep  

I commented to a colleague, “I’ve never seen a feral cat become tame like this.”   

Her response: “Maybe you were the first human who ever gave a care about him, and he knows that’s the best he can ever get.” The story of the lost sheep and how Jesus will go after His lost sheep reminded me of this. Every creature, no matter how grouchy, cranky or difficult to work with, deserves to be cared for.  

It also reminded me of someone I know who had a child who they were told would never be able to go to a regular school. The school their child went to kept trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. It didn’t work well.   

That family moved, sent the child to a different Catholic school, and the child bloomed. The parent was appreciative when speaking with the vice principal and said, “Thank you- instead of trying to fit my child into a round hole, you made a new mold he could fit into.”   

The vice principal said, “Yes, and if a triangle shape or any other shaped kid comes to our school, we will make a new mold for them, because that is what Christ tell us to do.”  

We are responsible for showing Christ’s love. Whether it’s a difficult animal, child or adult, may we all answer the call to see, hear, and care when no one else seems to. 

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Copyright 2024 Meg Herriot
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