Ross was a hard nut to crack; no one will disagree with that statement. When MEOW rescued him off the streets, he was borderline feral, severely frostbitten and dangerously underweight. This little guy had a rough go of it and he really mistrusted humans and other animals. He lived in the MEOW shelter for over 6 months as he had a propensity to bite people, which for some reason made him less attractive to adopt!
But thanks to some coercion to ‘foster’ Ross, he became a permanent part of my home and grew to be a loving, albeit feisty and goofy character. It was a long slow process of trust that took Ross almost a year to physically get from the hallway to the bed (he did it in stages, an inch or two closer every day for months – literally!) He was always my cat sitter’s ‘favourite’ which always surprised me, but I understood too. He was the James Dean of cats, tough exterior but truly just a kid who wanted to be loved unconditionally!
Ross was a perpetual kitten underneath this street-tough-cat that tried to stay angry, but really only wanted the simple pleasures of warmth, food, shelter and to have a loving family. I was blessed to give him that for the 6 years that I had him, and my heart aches right now not having him here. I miss his bunny hop, his mind controls stare, his impatience and wanting to drink out of the tub after I showered, his little tiny meow that was so quiet and rare, his ability to force me to put all my clothes away otherwise he slept on them on my dresser, and the way he laid in my lap with one paw extended looking content.
I was sent the poem on Rainbow Heaven and I know he’s there, having fun, bunny-hoping his way around. I’m thankful MEOW rescued him, and eventually gave him to me, I was blessed to have him in my life, and they do say that pets and their owners often are quite alike, which is perhaps why deep down I understood him so well.