Some Days Jybow needs more attention than other days

 

Yesterday I spent a good part of the day with Jimmy's cat Jybow.  She was crying out very loud again for me to come outside and spend some time with her.  It's not a loud meow, but cat screams like she's in danger, so I go right out.  

She's a people cat, and that's because she spent so much time with Jimmy.  She followed him around like a dog and never left his side when he was home.  She was such a loyal and devoted cat and Jimmy showered her with love and affection every chance he got.  

In those days when Jimmy was alive Jybow spent her days inside and outside wherever Jimmy was, but now she's strictly an outdoor cat.

She still waits for Jimmy by the front door, waiting for him to come outside, but of course Jimmy won't be coming out anymore, so I go out and sit with her until she falls asleep.  She's hard of hearing and can't see so well so she doesn't see me leave, but when she wakes up, we do it all over again.   Jybow is 17 years old. 

Sometimes Jybow and I take a walk into the backyard and we look for her buddy Squeak.  

Squeak and Jybow sleep together every night in a heated cathouse on the front porch but, Squeak goes into the backyard and hides out for most of the day.  Since it's been so hot out, and the temps reaching into the 80 degree mark I've unplugged their house.  

Squeak mostly only comes out at night.  Squeak has always been afraid of daylight and being outside, so she hides for most of the day.  Sometimes we see her out and lately she has been curious about the two white ducks that wander in our yard, so she ventures out from under a building and sits on top of a trashcan to watch the ducks.  The ducks belong to one of our neighbors, but you know the saying, "The grass always looks greener on the other side of the fence," so the ducks spend most of their day in our backyard along with the neighbors chickens........ and Squeak is afraid of big birds.

Squeak and Jybow were orphaned very early in their little lives and didn't have a mother cat to teach them how to hunt, so they are not hunters and things like birds scare them.  They won't even look at a baby bird because one time a BlueJay got after them when they approached a baby BlueJay out of curiosity.  They weren't going to hurt it, they just wanted to look at it.  Now they avoid baby birds at all costs, therefore we have plenty of birds in our yard of all kinds.

Here's another picture of Jybow.  I sometimes fear that she won't be with us much longer, so I try to spend as much time spoiling her with special food and attention as much as I can.

This is a much younger picture of Jybow when she was allowed indoors and Jimmy was still alive.  She doesn't mind spending her days and nights outside now.  She doesn't even try to come inside when the door is left open while we carry groceries inside or for some other reason.  Squeak doesn't try to enter the house either.  They have both been outside cats since Rick came to live here in 2016, and now they don't mind it at all........except when the mean cat from next door comes over and tries to beat them up and eat their food. 

Here is a January 2014 picture that I found of Jybow when Jimmy was still with us.

ONE FRIEND by Dan Seals