A dose of Suga

Not that I am a cat lady, but sometimes holding that little ball of fluff is just the the dose of Suga that I need for the moment. So if a dose of sugar helps the medicine go down, as it did for Mary Poppins, then a moment of fingered fur helps the day go by for me too.

My husband is allergic. My daughters are allergic. My son-in-law- is allergic too. So on our acreage all the cats are “mousers.” That means they really only have one job. Keep me from ever discovering one of those awful mice creatures, and I will feed you scraps and kibbles daily. Most of the them haven’t even caught one.

Why Suga? Well, her mama cat’s name was Mooch. Mooch would never catch anything but a boot tip. She was always in the way while we walked. Mooch also lived up to the name. She took from all the others, cats and dogs, whatever she pleased as long as she could. Towards the end she began to be “clingy” towards people. She got into cars, delivery vehicles, vans, and pickups. If the door was open she was going to see if there was food or drink for the taking. Or maybe just a heated seat. She disappeared after her two kittens were old enough to wean. That’s when the little black furry started seeking my attention.l

While we had just adopted Honey into our lives, there wasn’t a cat on the place that I could even catch. Most of them are all black so there ability to hunt and be spooked easily seems appropriate. Honey decided to give this little girl her attention also, so I had to come up with a name for the one kitten that I could catch. Holding Honey on one side of the bench and the kitten on the other, the only name that I could come up with was Sugar. Since the cat is all black excepting the white star, I actually named that lump of Sugar on her chest. So Suga it is.

Since the family is all allergic, we have decided not to ever have a house cat. Confinement for cats requires so very much cleaning and is often not very healthy for the cat. It’s just my belief that a cat needs more freedom than a house offers. Others I know have a completely different feeling that this. But I live in the country with many outbuildings that are old and not tight. A cat is the best plan to keep other critters at bay.

My grandmother loved cats and always had many farm cats on her place. I do remember there being at least one pet cat that was allowed into the house. She often let that one winter in the cellar to keep the mice out of the stores. I remember sitting on the floor in front of the hot stove petting one of these cats or kittens. Sad to say it, but I am allergic also.

All that said, Suga is my favorite right now. She is now annoying like her mother. She will be picked up if I want to but otherwise keeps a bit of distance will all others. The only thing that annoys me is the relationship with the dog. Because they curl up together outside, Honey’s fur is not entirely “allergy-free.” Cuddly with the cat is another reason for figuring out how in the world I am going to bathe this six month old doodle.

A dose of Suga. A lump of Suga. I’ll drink black coffee if there’s a really sweet treat with it, but a little cream or a little sugar sure helps the black stuff go down. I’ll continue to enjoy my coffee with a little something in it. And I’ll smile when the cat jumps up on the grill outside the kitchen window, to keep me company while I do dishes, or cook a meal. Thankful for the little bundle of black fur and the little dose of Suga in my day.