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| Dr. Laritson |
Spencer Stories
Many of you have heard some of these tales that I’ve shared
over the years about our newest cat, named Spencer, but at the urging of
several individuals, I agreed to put some on our blog. So, if these are repeats to some of you, bear
with me. Depending on how these are
received, this may be a regular segment of our blog, or perhaps a one time
rambling about a peculiar cat.
A little background about Spencer first. He is a foster failure. He came to our house because he needed his
wounds attended to post-op and had to have his antibiotics all weekend. That will be 3 years ago next month! Like a house guest that has overstayed his
visit, Spencer has remained. Now I’d
like to say I let him stay, but the truth of the matter, like many households,
is that my wife and kids wanted him to stay.
My opinion was that we should try to find him a home as soon as he was
back on his feet. However, during his recuperation
period, he was allowed to interact with our other cat, which was still young and
thought that a playmate was a great idea!
When time came to send Spencer away, our other cat now had a best friend
and I had to reluctantly agree to keep him.
I say reluctantly mainly due to his behavior. You see, while he was recuperating in our basement
“hospital,” he was very shy, didn’t want to be held or cuddled, didn’t play or
purr at all--a relatively easy decision in my mind as to whether or not to keep
him. There are so many other wonderful
cats in this world that need a home, why keep this one. Perhaps it is this reasoning that Spencer and
his behavior torments me the most!
Spencer is a Bengal cat or
at least that’s what was told to the shelter when he was dropped off. He looks like a Bengal
and hunts like one as well. He can be
very vocal and loves to eat. And it is
these last 2 traits that seem to get him into the most trouble.
Oh, I almost forgot to mention his other trait—he is very
smart! He has figured out not only how
to find a new home, but also how to get what wants. He is also very persistent. So all of these traits combined leads to a
unique cat. One that I didn’t appreciate
early on, but like mold, he is growing on me.
He loves food. He has
a butter fetish! I have caught him
chewing on the cardboard wrapper that the sticks of butter come in. Our butter has to remain in a cupboard, on
the second shelf, no less, or he will help himself. Recently he has acquired a “smash and grab”
style in sneaking butter. He waits until
a back is turned, then jumps up, grabs a mouthful of butter and runs away to
eat it. Now Bengals are big, agile
cats. And Spencer is both, with an
ability to jump and surf the counters with the stealth of a hunter. So when he grabs a mouthful of butter, it’s
about a quarter stick. Sometimes the
only way to know that he’s been up to no good is to find a chunk missing and
the grooves from his fangs in the remaining butter. He also loves anything that is made with
butter, from toast to bakery. He loves
donuts and cakes. One birthday cake
recently while cooling was found to have a large chunk missing from one edge
when we came back to ice it. A container
with donuts is also preferred hunting for Spencer. He pushes the box off the counter where it
opens up when it hits the floor, and he darts in to grab his prize. I’ve come running from the family room at the
sound of a crash only to see him running away with a whole donut in his
mouth. He is very reluctant to give up
his prize. We have to chase him around
the house, him growling the whole time and our family yelling out instructions
to each other trying to cut off his escape routes. Needless to say, now bakery also goes up in a
cupboard, and also on the second shelf!
He is a hunter. While
most normal cats may pounce on your feet under the covers when the move, it’s
usually just a playful game. Spencer
doesn’t really play. He hunts. So when he decides that there is something
moving under the sheets, he attacks. His
pounce and bite has drawn blood.
Blankets are a must on our bed now to try to prevent this. Like some cats, flying insects are also fair
game. His housemate loves to spend an
hour tracking and batting at a fly that has managed to get into our house. But Spencer, once he sees what the other cat
is doing, quickly and silently stalks the fly and attacks when in range. In a matter of a second he catches the fly
and eats it! All the while the other cat is watching and wondering what
happened to his toy.
Over the years, Spencer has become a member of our family
now. He is a unique cat, both in his
looks and behavior. He has many other
naughty habits, which will have to wait for the next installment (if there is
one), but we love him (most of the time).
