Mama of Malek, Simon, Trouble, Fluffy,
Zodi & Snaggle

Moonpie is one of our most Fabulous Feral Success Stories. She was spotted at a reststop on I-95 when we were en route to the Turnpike reststop. The poor thing was scavenging scraps & getting by on fries & bits of who knows what. She approached Mike as he was leaving the building, with a "got anything I could eat?" look. So we had the impression she might be tame. We set our humane traps & waited about an hour but no luck. We couldn't stay any longer but we returned 2 months later. We were so glad she was still there & even happier when we trapped her within 20 minutes.

It turned out this scrawny little girl was not tame at all, but quite feral. None of 3 different crates would hold her. I let her stay loose in the quarantine/new cat/kitten room, even though she missed her vet appointment, & she stayed out of sight. When anyone entered the room, she'd scamper up to the rafters & cling to a thin ledge. She was very timid & would react badly when we'd try to get her in a carrier. Until a few weeks later, when she had kittens.

There was mewling coming from a deep long hiding box set there for Moon. Sure enough, 6 little black kittens had joined us. "Oh nO!", was my first thought. But it only takes .0003 sec. for kittens to win one over. I'd had only 1 kitten since I was a kid, preferring to adopt adult cats who were harder to re-home.

Moonpie gradually came out in the open more & took loving care of her kittens. She got more used to people, since the little ones got plenty of visitors. As the kittens grew up, gradually Moonpie ventured out of the kitten room & to the upstairs, where she now spends most of her time.

You would not recognize Moonpie today as the same hissing, spitting, slashing bundle of fear she was a year ago. She's become so friendly & with very little effort on our part, just a lot of patience. She actually likes attention! She likes to be petted & loves chasing strings. At mealtime she'll squeak her soft, high-pitched one-note squeak & head-butt your arm with force. She likes to sleep on the bed, even if there's a person in it. She's 90% over her issues with Max, the dog. Sometimes, she'll reach out & gently bap you as you walk by. An other way for her to show she's happy & relaxed.