The difference between cats and dogs

A dog says: These people feed me, they pet me, they play with me, they take care of me, they must be gods.

A cat says: These people feed me, they pet me, they play with me, they take care of me, I must be a god.

After we lost Mr. Mouse and his mom, Coweeta, we thought about being "empty nesters" so we could travel more freely. Well, that lasted about as long as it took Liz to find Mocha at the local animal shelter.

Mocha was a victim of the Las Vegas mortgage meltdown in late 2008. When her family, who lived in our neighborhood, was foreclosed upon, Mocha was left behind to fend for herself. Someone eventually took her in, but Mocha didn't get along with the current cat residents, so she was relegated to the garage. After some time, Mocha was taken to a local animal shelter where Liz visits.

Liz wanted to bring Mocha home, but resisted at first. When she finally gave in and went to pick up Mocha, she found an "Adopted" sign instead. Liz was disappointed, but sometimes things were just meant to be.

Mocha's new family took her to the vet for something we don't know, but then refused to pay the vet's bill, so the vet refused to give the cat back to them. Instead, Mocha ended up back at the animal shelter. When Liz went in one day in February, she was surprised to see Mocha back in her cage, and the rest is history.

Mocha must have had a hard start because she wasn't very friendly and did a lot of batting with claws and biting with teeth when we first brought her home. She's realized quickly, however, that this isn't a bad place to live, and during the first month or so with us refused to go outside. She goes outside now, but continues to show no interest in going in the garage. After a few months, she has calmed down and plays roughly, but holds her claws back and only fake bites. She's even started to realize that petting can be nice and purrs a little.

The saga will continue...