So here I am, a working woman on her own, and three kittens who were definitely acting out: pooping and worse — PEEING on the bed precisely where I would sit and speak sweetly to them, offering them treats and head scratches. *sigh* A few days, and a few loads of laundry later, and the mattress was UNDER the bed, safe below some thick plastic, and the kitties were easily prevented from hiding. UNDER! Whoever heard of a mattress UNDER a bed?

Whatever. Little by little, two of the three began coming out of their shells, letting me pet them, playing, being curious and mischievous, and generally loving life. Within perhaps three weeks, these two little darlings were not feral in the least. They were, in fact, at between four and five months old, ready to be sterilized and given their shots, and shortly thereafter, they were ready to be adopted!

Unfortunately, one of the kitties simply would not be domesticated. While he couldn’t hide, ‘Fraidy, as I had been calling him, effectively avoided me by running to the far side of the bed, and as it is a queen size bed, I couldn’t reach him. He would watch his siblings get scratches and loads of lovings, but he wanted none of it. The only time I could get to him was if he was in the kennel and I crawled in after him. Which I did for a week or so, then I gave him a week without doing that, and he became even more afraid. So I would crawl into the kennel and pick him up gently by the scruff and hold him for a few minutes. He was still fearful.

By now Christmas break was approaching and I had an airline ticket to the US for a week; I was worried. I didn’t know what I would do while I was gone, especially if brother and sister were adopted before then. I had to keep trying. I told my friend, the one who trapped them with me, that he needed a new name, one that wasn’t a self-fulfilling prophecy. “Oscar,” she suggested. “Gideon,” I replied.  Then I continued,  “Clint Eastwood, cuz he ain’t afraid of nothin’.” She responded, “Leo. Leo the Lion!” “Oh, that’s good!” I said, but before I could get used to it she said, “no, Sampson. Tough guy.” And so Sampson he became.

The other two kitties couldn’t get enough attention and I had a family ready to take both of  them within a week of posting the ad. They said they’d be ready to take them home within a couple of days. Sampson, on the other hand, continued to be afraid of everything remotely related to humans. He wouldn’t scratch me, though. He even stopped stiffening up when I reached into the kennel for him and pulled him out. And he’d be very quiet and docile while I held him and talked to him, scratching his little head. Sometimes he’d even purr a little. I remained hopeful.

The future family of the two tame kitties offered to take all three while I was out of town. I would take Sampson back as soon as I returned. So I held back tears as they drove away with all three kitties, and hoped for the best.

When I returned I contacted the adoptive family immediately via text. “I’ll be there to get Sampson this afternoon.” The wife said, “Okay…” then she continued, “We’re considering letting you take both the males home with you.” I was taken aback, but I would happily take them all back if it wasn’t working out. “What is going on?” I asked. She explained that the longer I was gone, the more anti-social ALL the kittens had become. The only one remotely friendly was the female, whom they’d named Pepper, and even she had reverted to some of her feral behaviors. I said, “You know I told you that if they don’t work out, they can come right back home with me; don’t fret. I’ll be there this afternoon and pick up any or all of them, whatever is best for you and the kitties.” And I headed upstairs to put fresh litter in the catbox and fresh water in the bowl.

I arrived to get Sampson, and I figured I’d probably be bringing Stormy, whose name references the wildly popular series, Dr. Who, home, too. Jay and Yvonne welcomed me in and we stood chatting for a few minutes. Finally, Yvonne looked at me and said, “We’ve decided we want to try to keep Pepper AND Stormy.” The couple exchanged a look. “We want to give them a week without Sampson.” I said, “Okay, that’s a great idea. It’s likely Sampson’s fear has had a negative effect on the other two.” They took me up to the room where the cats were staying, and only Pepper was visible. “Where are the boys?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” answered Jay. We looked around for them but only saw Pepper, sitting quietly atop a box. “Uh oh,” I thought, “they’ve managed to escape!”

To be continued…