Tommy Tomcat

Tommy Tomcat
There is no way to really tell Tommy's story, because I don't know it. He's a neighborhood stray. I can only guess how he lost his eye. Some fight with another tomcat? Some infection? The wound sure doesn't look like he was born that way. It seems to have healed without any help from a vet. So I don't know his age. There was a black and white feisty tomcat with one eye that I wrote about almost a year ago. Tommy Tomcat is certainly not feisty. But with two one eyed cats around, I'm leaning toward male fighting. Tommy is the only cat that our two aren't really afraid of. He's such a wimp. He started hanging around the deck a lot. He's always trying to gain our approval. Rubbing against our legs and sitting against the door so we can't get in or out without pushing him out of the way. He rolls around on his back showing us how cute he is. I had an awful time getting that picture because of his antics. I don't know just how or when it happened but Bear and I gradually stopped chasing him off the deck. And that was my downfall. When Diva and Baby refused something I fed them, I would just set it outside for 'that yellow and white tomcat.' Then somewhere along the way tomcat became Tommy and I was giving him more kitty leftovers and dry cat food too. Which created a big problem because that attracted those other darn neighborhood strays. Not to mention a possum. A big one that scared the bewhiskers out of me one evening. And a couple of raccoons along the way. So dog gone it, I found myself only feeding Tommy when he was there and not leaving it our for him. Then I found myself having to stay while he ate so the strays couldn't chase him away and eat it. But I've stuck to my guns about letting him inside the house. Two cats is enough and Tommy is not our cat. He just thinks he is when it comes to his meal. He also thinks he is when he sleeps in the little shelter we set up when I swore Diva and Baby were not coming inside. He thinks he's ours when he doesn't run when I shoot out of the house yelling at cats who sneak in and chase him away from his dish now that it's too cold for me to stand out there. Me.... the one who doesn't like cats. Worst of all is that I'm now naming those strays who come the most often to chase Tommy from his meal. There is that all yellow 'Sneaky' with the beady little eyes who I've run off when it chased Baby up a tree. Sneaky doesn't stay away when I chase it. It always sneaks back. I do not know if it's a male or female. It carries it's tail low and tucked tight when all the other cats tails are more straight out or up. Then there is a cat who looks like Tommy but with more white then yellow. (The picture shows Tommys white side, his back and other side are pretty much all yellow.) I started calling it Bro because he and Tommy could be litter mates. But now he has become Bully because he won't back down from me. When he shows up, I have to stay and actually push him away from Tommys dish. He's not aggressive to me, but he sure pushes back. Tommy won't stand up to him. Poor thing, is that how he lost his eye?

Somehow, to my total bewilderment, I find myself with two kitties who go in and out and another who stays out. Always. Forever. He's not my cat. He just stays a lot and I feed him. But only because he has one eye and I'm a great big pushover. (Here's a secret. Bear is too.)