I would like your thoughts please, long story though…
We are lucky enough to own a holiday home in Greece where we spend about three months of the year, in short spells, mostly during the summer season. The house is outside of a village, only a couple of other houses nearby.
Over the last fifteen years or so we have been adopted by various stray cats who we feed, neuter, pay for vet visits if necessary, etc.
Up to last year we had a family of three who had been kicked out by their owner. We lost mother and son, so only daughter left (who hasn’t been blessed with good looks or a friendly disposition).
At the beginning of this year a large tom started hanging around. Filthy, starving, generally hissing and swiping at us and the remaining cat. We tried to chase him away but he just hung around and hoovered up whatever food he could. We gave in, started feeding him and managed to get him to the vets for the chop in the summer (getting him the cat trap is a whole other story!).
When we returned in September we were greeted by a sleek, clean, purring, very vocal and sociable cat. He has become the master of getting in the house (we did have a no cats indoors policy) so he can lie on the sofa or any lap that will have him. We spend a lot of time working in the garden and he follows us around or is on our laps whenever we sit down. He appears to really crave human company and he seems have made peace with the existing cat, they will lie close to each other on the patio without a problem. He will go for our neighbour’s cat though.
The question is whether we should bring him back to the UK as we are here more than in Greece and there is usually somebody around.
However, we also have a cat in the UK. She is very shy and a touch moody and has a chequered history with other cats. She was very close to another non litter mate kitten when she was young but we lost him to HCM at seven months. We got another kitten but he was just too bouncy and, frankly, too aggressive in his play. He was fatally hit by a car earlier this year and since then she has come out of her shell, very much still her own cat but apparently way less stressed and much more affectionate. I believe she is happiest as a single cat.
I was devastated when we lost our boy (he was very much my boy and I got some fantastic support on here). I struggle with the thought of ‘replacing’ him but my main concern is how Greek boy and UK girl would get on. He is massive (5.8kg when neutered and he has put on weight since then) and she is tiny. She hates our neighbours’ cats and he hates our Greek neighbour’s cat.
It’s not going to work is it?
Thank you if you managed to get this far, thoughts much appreciated.