If you’ve been following regularly, you know about the feral kittens I adopted.  They were intended to be adopted out, but it hasn’t worked that way.  The four run the spectrum of socialization from Floyd who is simply a hoot and rolls with whatever comes his way.  To Delta, who’s pretty laid back.  Then there’s Ruby Mae who is a high strung laid back — if that makes any sense.  She can be a sweetie one minute and fighting you to get away as if she thinks you’re going to eat her the next.  Then we have Rossie.

Rossie is an adventure.  The other three carry their tails high and proudly.  Rossie carries hers low. She’s jumpy.  She comes around us, but she won’t come within reach most of the time.  When she does come within reach, it’s close enough to sniff an outstretched hand, or, if we’re lucky to accept a rub from an outstretched hand, but she’s cautious not to allow us to come close enough to pick her up.  She doesn’t like that.

She’s a good cat in the house.  She uses the litter box.  She eats, drinks, sleeps, plays, and scratches in appropriate places.  She’s a perfect house cat.  Except, she doesn’t want to be handled by humans.  With her having the run of the house, she’s becoming more distant from us.  Other than our personal disappointment at not having a snugly kitty, this works out okay.  Except when we need to take her to the vet or to transition to or from San Antonio. We have the overarching question, “Will we be able to catch her?”  So far, we have always been able to do so.

I brought a couple of carriers in from the closet the other night.  Rossie, like the other cats, was inspecting them.  I said to her, “Rossie, we have to go to San Antonio tomorrow, and we’ll need you to get in a carrier for the trip.”  Her eyes widened, and she bolted into the entry hall.  Tell me that cat doesn’t understand English.  I dare you.

Other than the capturing dilemma, I’m left to wonder what is the right thing to do for her?  Do I let her continue in this vein?  Do I try to confine her to a smaller space, spend time with her, and entice her to be near me?  Do I insist upon holding her and handling her in hopes of her getting used to it and welcoming it?  Are any of these approaches irreversibly wrong?  How do I know what is right for her? Is there another, better approach we should try?

I’m reminded of Kitty, a cat I adopted from atop a water heater who preferred to keep her distance.  As she aged, she became more affectionate.  Then there’s Natasha, but she was always approachable even though she was pretty firm about what she would and would not tolerate from us.  After eight years together, we have a pretty good understanding between us.  I’m inclined to respect Rossie’s space as much as we can reasonably do, but is that the right thing to do?