2/29/2012 Here, kitty, kitty...

The apartment / ohana / mother-in-law suite that I'm renting through the end of March doesn't allow pets.  I thought I'd be OK with that policy but I miss my two cats, Smitty and Indy, so much that I've been dreaming of them each night.  I made the mistake of stopping by the Kauai Humane Society the other day to get a 'kitty fix' and met Abigail / "Abby".

She's a stray from Kipu Ranch that was dropped off at the KHS with some major health problems; scars from fights and a few major infections.  She's been brought back to life by the amazing folks at KHS, but in spite of all their efforts, they were unable to save her damaged right eye and it had to be surgically removed.

Abby is the sweetest, most loving cat I've ever met. She loves people and indeed, upon our first meeting she crawled up on my lap and was quite content to be stroked and petted by a total stranger for as long as I could stay.

Yesterday afternoon, I attended the Humane Society's Volunteer Orientation program and I had intended to take a few photos of Abby. She was MIA and I thought maybe she had been adopted already, but they said she was "being treated".  It turns out that she was being dipped in a sulfur solution bath. When she was delivered back to her kitty condo, Abby was wet and the sulfur aroma wasn't very appealing either, so I chose not to get up close and personal with her.  I have to attend Part II of the orientation program tomorrow afternoon, so I'll see if I can take a few shots then. Wait until you see her... she is so darned adorable!

In lieu of spending some quality time with Abby, I spent some time cuddling and playing with these two little guys.  They were fun ~ cute, rambunctious and happy to be out of their kitty condo.  

Aren't we sweet? Please take us home with you....

Pam, the Volunteer Coordinator said that they don't have "very many" cats and kittens at the moment, but it sure seems like a lot to me.  It does sound like the adoption rate is fairly high, so I'm pleased to hear that news.

So, in lieu of being able to have any furry pets, I've 'adopted' a pair of Myna birds; quite by accident, though. 

Someone dropped a dime sized cracker crumb in my yard last week. A few days later, I happened to see a Myna bird trying to break it into smaller, more easily edible pieces by smashing it on the pavement. He wasn't having much luck, so I tried to assist by scaring him away and then breaking it up into smaller pieces for him.  Unfortunately, I scared him away and I didn't see him come back for the rest of the day.  Then, of course, I felt badly for taking away his catch of the day.

The best that I could do was make it up to him by giving him (now named Mike) an entire cracker, crumbled into bite sized pieces, when I saw him the next day. And, the next day, and the next day, and the next. Now, he and his girlfriend show up every day and call to me when it's time for lunch.  If I'm sitting outside reading a book, they swoop over and give me 'the look'.  I'm pretty well trained, because I immediately get up, go into the house and bring out a cracker for the two of them to share. 

See pics below.  He might look a little unhappy, but I think he is just 'intense'. He is on a mission to Get That Cracker. 

On a mission...

You can't see me, right?

Successful mission ~ outta here

Of course, I have to be careful that I'm only feeding Mike and Myrna Myna and not cockroaches, broods of wild chickens, and other miscellaneous critters, so I limit the daily treat to only 1 cracker and typically under my watchful eye. 

BTW, Myna birds are the ones who are able to mimic sounds. So, I'm thinking I might be able to teach them a few Hawaiian words.   Or, perhaps talking Mynas are different variety of Myna altogether?  Perhaps I will just succeed in causing my landlords and neighbors to think I'm crazy and unstable for talking to birds... 

http://explorebiodiversity.com/Hawaii/BIRDS/Birds/Common%20Myna.htm

Aloha for another day ~ K