Our Cat - astrophy

This is Hobbes. We "adopted" him and his sister Sassy last summer (This photo is from last August). Although I've always experienced bad karma when it comes to male cats, this one has been possibly the most loving feline that I've ever owned. He jumps in your lap to reach up and bump noses with you; he'll follow me down the stairs side by side in complete sync, stopping if I stop and moving once more when I do, like an extra appendage.

That all being what it was, I had to make a tough call several weeks ago. Long story short, we also took in two other female cats last summer, haven't had the time or spare funds to spay or neuter anyone, and Hobbes was beginning to get amorous. So I decided to separate him from "the harem" by having him be at least a temporary "outside cat". We let him roam during the day, which he naturally took to, and the kids fixed him a bed in the garage to return to at night. This was working well for all, with the possible exception of the local squirrel population (Hobbes not only chased them, but followed them up the trees!), until this weekend.

When I called him Saturday night, I got no response from this cat who would always come running when I uttered his name. I tried several times before retiring for the night, to no avail. I left the garage door open the next morning, as I generally do when we are home, but no sign of him. Finally, in the late afternoon, I walked out into the garage and saw an unfamiliar cat laying behind my wife's truck. It took me a minute to realize that it was Hobbes - he was unrecognizable from the view I had, which was of his face and head. . .now swollen and unfamiliar.

He couldn't open either eye, his breathing would have made Darth Vader feel right at home, and I'm still not sure if part of his lip is missing or just terribly injured. His eyes are both open, the swelling has gone down and his breathing is more normal now. He's resting as comfortably as can be expected under the circumstances on his favorite sleeping spot, an ultra-soft blankie belonging to our kids.

I'll probably never know who or what he tangled with unless I learn to talk to the animals Dr.Doolittle style. Was it a dog? A cat? A tough squirrel? A close encounter with a sedan? It doesn't really matter. . .but this is one tomcat who's lost his roaming privvies, no matter what. Anybody looking for a new kitten in the near future?