Return of the Magnificent Seven

There, just when you thought it was going to be about a silly spaghetti western, I throw you a picture of a cat. Well, there you are, I guess you should never assume anything about me.

The cat in the picture is indeed named Seven and he has mysteriously reappeared again. When we moved here he was still semi feral, we had only just managed to entice him into the house. He sort of moved in on us at the other place, I already had 6 cats and didn't want another one, but this fluffy 6 month old silver tabby just wouldn't go away. We trapped him and tried to get one of the animal charities to take him but none would, their policy was to neuter and release in the area from which he was trapped. As we lived on a main road and I wasn't prepared to come home from work and find him dead on the road, we kept him and because we couldn't think of any suitable name, decided we would call him Seven as we already had the other 6. Ah well, I always have been a sucker.

When we moved here, Seven came along with us and the others but we quickly realised that he was a cat apart. When we finally let everybody out after a week or so he wandered off and we didn't see him for a month. I knew he was around because he whinges a lot, particularly if it is time to be fed but he wouldn't come in the house again for a while. That first winter he came in occasionally, we could tell the weather was going to be bad if Seven came in. The first summer we only saw him sporadically, a fleeting glimpse here and there. It became a bit of a "Where's Wally?" type of challenge for everybody that came, spot Seven if you can.

I think the longest he was ever AWOL was about 6 weeks one summer. It got to the point where I assumed that he had met with some accident and was no more. I was just beginning to get used to the idea when he appeared across the yard and then as quick as wink was gone again. When we did manage to get hold of him, we checked him over and he seemed to be well fed, sleek and despite the long coat, not a single matt on him. We came to the conclusion that he had found a little old lady's knee to sit on and that he only condescended to visit us on Bingo night. And so it stayed up until just recently.

Friday evening the cat flap went and there was the familiar whinging. Most strange as it is prime hunting time for cats up here, rats, mice and other small creatures abound and we didn't expect to see anything of him for several weeks yet. In fact, that very day I had wondered where he was so I must be a bit telepathic. But Seven was there, as large as life yet on close inspection, wasn't as fat as he has been, he has a few matts and his general condition wasn't as good as I have seen even in the worst of the winter. What is even more surprising is that he shows no inclination to disappear again. Most unlike him. I am beginning to wonder what his angle is or if the little old lady whose knee he has been cuddled up on has gone to a more permanent type of bingo game, if you get my drift. Something isn't right.

But never mind, I am the type of person who likes to know where my animals are, I never cared for his wandering off for weeks at a time though Adrian says that is what some cats do. Not my cats thank you. I would much rather have him drooling all over my knee than somebody else's so that I know he is alright.

So welcome home Seven.