Feral Cat Fridays: A Young Turk Arrives

Turk is not really a feral, but he deserves a spot in this series because he was the last of the cats who wandered onto our property and into our lives. We found him on our deck before dawn one morning as we left for a medical appointment. We decided that if he was still there when we got back he could join the colony.

He was still there that afternoon, happily fitting in with the other cats and exploring his new world. He was particularly fond of Stoney, as you can see. Stoney was one of the old hands in the colony and was always happy to welcome new members.

Very young when he arrived, Turk was happy with the ferals but his comfort with us proved he had some human interaction in his past. When we took him to be neutered he recovered inside our house and his loud purring, his interest in playing “chase the feather” and his love of lap time claimed a special spot in our affections. We introduced him to our two inside cats and he moved in. He’s shown no interest in going outside since that day.

Turk has two quirks that set him apart. First, he’s a big boy with the tiniest squeaky voice we’ve ever heard in a cat. When we first heard him meow we looked around for the source of the noise because we couldn’t believe it came out of him. Second, he loves the smell of bleach. We assume his litter must have been near a laundry room or cleaning supply storage and he associates those smells with happy days of kittenhood, but that’s just a guess.

Turk is coming up on 5 years old now and his pure white coat has faded to a smoky gray-brown. He’s found his place in the house hierarchy and enjoys his games of king-of-the-box. I think if you asked him he’d say that morning he wandered out of the woods onto our deck worked out pretty well.

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