In 1990 we found a 6 week old kitten on a country road beside the 401,
a major Ontario highway.  It was just by chance because the flea market
we were going to wasn't open yet, so we were driving around, killing
time.

On the side of the road, a tiny black kitten appeared in the tall wet
grass, trying to make himself bigger to scare our car.  We tried to
catch him but he was afraid of us, so I wiggled a twig in the grass and
he couldn't help but pounce and I scooped him up.  We looked to see
where he came from but there were no houses for miles and a four lane
highway a few feet away.  So I wrapped him in an old sheet we keep in
the car (we seem to attract injured wildlife). As we drove off, I
noticed that his face was split open down the middle, but he seemed
otherwise ok.  We turned onto the highway and saw a sign that said
"Deek's Side Road".  My husband looked at him and said:  "Your name is
Deek".

Our cats Misty and Tuffy were puzzled by this little ball of fur and
kept sniffing and watching him. We hadn't planned on getting a 3rd cat,
but it was June and the shelters were bursting at the seams, so...
Our vet said he was 6 weeks old, in good health, but found a big tick
inside him, and fleas.  As for his split face, the skin seemed to be
sticking back in place, so he decided to wait and see.  In the end, it
did heal well and he ended up with a crooked lip with a bit missing
under the nose. It never stopped him from eating because he grew to 17
pounds, most of it solid muscle.

So Deek endured the hatred of our 2 other cats, who would whack him in
the face when he walked by. Tuffy, the male, would pin him down by the
neck and growl.  Deek would agree Tuffy was the boss and peace would
reign for a while.  Misty would simply ignore him, although he
desperately wanted to play with her.  Years went by and they still
barely tolerated his presence, but he knew he could come to us for
love.  I can barely remember the personalities of the many cats we''ve
owned, but Deek was unusual and very special:  part human, part dog,
intelligent, funny, loving, unlike other cats we've had. When he did
something funny, he didn't mind if we laughed, seeming to enjoy the
attention.  He made us chuckle when he came to us for lap time.  We'd
both tap our laps at the same time and then he was stumped.  You could
feel his brain thinking:  "which one, which one?" as he looked back and
forth at each lap for a minute or two.  He was the perfect cat - we
never had to tell him not to do something, he was good as gold.  Every
day when I came home from work I gave him his special cuddle, cradling
his head in my elbow just the way he liked, dreading the day I wouldn't
be able to.  And that day came too soon, 13 years after a lifetime of
perfect health he got stomach cancer and we let him go to the great
catnip patch in the sky.

All our cats were now gone and we decided to travel a bit.  However,
last fall we unexpectedly ended up with Sonny, a clever and very
affectionate 3 year old tuxedo cat, and our hearts have been captured
yet again.  When we don't see Sonny's white paws, he looks identical to
Deek and we often find ourselves calling him the wrong name before
catching ourselves.  So far, he hasn't minded.  The story of how Sonny
came to us is a most unusual tale, to be written later...