Numero Uno

 In January, 2020 we embarked on an effort to spay and neuter as many cats as we could.  While trying to figure out who to start with, a new little face appeared among the crowd.

She was about 8-9 months old, had no problems with the other street cats and marched right into our enclosed courtyard one day when I opened the door for suppertime.  A pretty little tortoise shell kitty.  

Mamma Nera had had her litter about 8-9 months before and one of the kittens of that litter had been a tortie.  But we lost sight of that kitten and presumed that she had died.  Could someone have taken her in and then changed their minds?  It was hard to say, but her ease with all the street cats was odd, to say the least.  She had no fear of my dog, Harry, either.

She immediately began schmoozing ankles and wanting to have pets.  

Another "expedient" name was assigned, we called her T.S. because...Tortoise Shell.  I also liked that it reminded me of T.S. Elliot, the author.  T.S. got shortened to Tee often enough. 

I don't know why, but this girl broke the ice in my husband's heart.  Having had a houseful of ancient cats some years back, he was adamant about never, ever...ever, ever, ever....having another.  So, when he started talking about getting a cage ready for her and a pan, and  food bowl, I was nothing short of flabbergasted.

And she wanted in very badly.  

She was scooped up in arms and carried to the back room where we used Harry's large crate (that was used to transport him by airplane from the US to Italy) as her "shelter."  She seemed quite pleased with the arrangement.

Because of her age, I was getting concerned about her "going into heat" so an appointment with the vet was made as quickly as possible. 

Tee had one BIG problem, though.  Terrible, terrible liquid diarrhea.  The house would become consumed by such a dreadful smell.  Sometimes it happened in the wee small hours.  One of us would have to get up and change it immediately because the odor was so horrendous. Maybe that was why she was chucked back into the streets.

On our way to the vet for her appointment, we passed a store with friendly owners who love both cats and dogs.  The wife wanted to see who was in the carrier, and what was her name?  I said "Tee" and she said, "Oh, Titi!!"  Titi has stuck to this day, although she has many other names, as do they all. 

Besides getting spayed, I got her medicine for worms, the likely cause of the diarrhea.  It took two doses, two weeks apart, but things got slowly more tolerable.  She recovered from her surgery like a little champ, although she did NOT like having her tummy sprayed with cold antibiotic. And gradually, with more normal bowels, she was given more freedom within the house.

She became quite fond of stealing Harry's beds whenever he wasn't in one.

Besides the medicine for worms, I also found a type of food to "promote digestive health."  Between the two, within a couple of months, Missy Tee had normal poop and started growing and becoming the little Queen of the household. 

She explored every nook, every window, every chair....however, she continued to prefer to be in the safety of her kennel at night.  But her solitary cat days didn't last for long.