SoCal A'blaze

The cross-eyed monster

Week one of the new TNR (Trap-Neuter-Release) season at the Albright household started off well- I caught the orange tabby tom-cat that has been terrorizing the neighborhood from my front lawn to the little church at the end of the street. He has also been littering around the neighborhood, and this obviously needs to stop. His midnight escapades with the ladies is also a little disturbing for those of us who value city silence while sleeping.

He is a true bad ass; He struts around the block with his scruffy fur and marred face. He has won many a fights. And his stare makes you shrink in fright, then you notice that he is cross-eyed and you laugh while asking him what he is staring at, really!

I got up early to stalk my prey on Tuesday, carefully preparing the night before by asking neighbors to remove tasty after dinner snacks from their stairwells. The cats were very hungry in the morning. I left a small trail of wet food leading to the live trap and went inside to wait. It has been a while since I went through this routine, so I forgot to cover the trap. My first potential customer turned her nose up at the whole shebang- she wouldn't go inside because she could see the food from the outside. After the mom left, I went back outside and put in smelly tuna to allure my next willing participant into the cage AND I covered it so they could not see it from the outside. I thought for sure I had lost my opportunity and I would shortly have to run off to work, but as I was getting ready, I head the SNAP! RATTLE RATTLE! of the cage. I bagged the prize bull!



So now my little orange "pumpkin" is no longer the heavy weight champion of the hood; there will be less fights and litters! (As long as I catch the other cats he created.) Wish me luck!