Unexpected Friends, C & T
Once we had a female orange cat we named Marmalade (Marmie for short).
Orange cat, orange marmalade, marmalade cats, that was sort of how we
arrived at the name, though her coloring was more beige than orange and some
people referred to her as "that beige cat." She seems to have grown up
outside and was always more comfortable outdoors than inside.

She lived with us for about eight years and I was her person. She loved to
be held and would jump into my arms, lick my face, purring all the while.
Spending so much time outdoors she had a very heavy coat and fur always got
all over me. Her loss was a heavy personal blow because it was sudden and
unexpected, and this was the first time we had lost a kitty.

Some years later, in the spring of 2003, we were adopted by another orange
cat. This time a male, who first appeared in a neighbor's yard and a few
days later in our back yard. We have lots of wild life in our tiny patch of
woods and the little kitty was lying in the grass near our bird feeder,
intently watching the activity. A little later I saw it curled up asleep in
the grass.

The next day I got a fairly close look at the little orange cat, whose
coloring was more toward the red than orange. He appeared to be thin and a
bit dirty, as though he may not have been eating regularly and had been
sleeping rough. I thought it may have been hoping to catch a meal at the
feeder so I put out a can of cat food and a small dish of chow near where it
had been napping. The food soon disappeared and the little cat spent a long
time grooming itself before curling up and going to sleep in the grass.

Next morning, after taking my daughter to school, I put out a dish of cat
chow and a bowl of water and soon the little orange cat was enjoying a
hearty breakfast. Then it lay up under a bush and went to sleep. This became
a pattern and over the next couple of weeks I discovered that the little cat
was male, had been neutered and it seemed used to people. It would come when
I called but not let me get close, even when offered a can of food as a
bribe. It would sit down at a distance and wait till I moved away before
approaching the dish. It didn't seem afraid, just wary and it stayed in our
little woods, usually under a bush or sometimes curled up in the grass.

We had moved to this house a couple of years earlier and had kept our oldest
cat Tommy inside, even though he had once been an outdoor cat and liked to
be outdoors. By this time, however, he had begun asking to be let out again
and since we thought he could be counted on not to roam had begun to let
him.  In fact when I was outside he would often tag along to be company.

Of course Tom, as an equal opportunity eater (at this time we sometimes
referred to him as Tubby), quickly discovered the food dish. Soon after he
followed along as I went out to fill it for the orange cat, who was waiting
nearby. But then the most unexpected thing happened, I called to the kitty
who came out, but as soon as it saw Tommy, it meowed and headed straight for
Tom, who simply headed for the dish, intent on a snack.

As I filled the dish the orange cat circled around Tommy, still meowing
while he ate a few of bites then headed for the house. The little orange cat
followed still mewing and when Tom stopped to look at this insistent
stranger, the little cat promptly ducked his head and tried to rub it up
under Tom's chin.

The response to this was a light swat, as if to say "quit" and as I watched,
Tom continued towards the house, followed by the orange cat. I carried the
food dishes up to the deck and went in the house leaving the two guys
together to see what would happen. Tom lay down on the deck; the orange cat
ate breakfast and lay down nearby.

They stayed together on the deck for a while and later when I looked out
they were lying in the grass. Tom stayed out a long time and eventually,
when he came back inside, the orange cat came up on the deck.

Tommy Cat has always been good to our other cats, letting them climb over
him when they were kittens, acting as adoptive daddy and being pretty
accepting of strange cats. Seldom has he had a problem with another cat but
with what a difference this time! Tommy began to spend a large part of each
day outside with his new friend.

When Tom goes out, which he does almost first thing every morning, O.C.
runs up to greet his bigger friend with a head butt and a rub and he follows
wherever Tom goes. Sometimes they would just lie in the sun; other times
they would wrestle or chase bugs or explore the woods, just a couple of
friends hanging out doing kitty things, the orange cat acting for all the
world like a little kid with his adored big brother.

The little orange cat became a permanent resident of our deck, most mornings
he is waiting in the window for his breakfast and his adored buddy Tom to
come out. They really are the best of friends, I have never known two cats
who so obviously like each other. With regular meals O.C. has filled out,
actually becoming a bit rotund, though Tom has lost weight and is no longer
the tub he once was. O.C.'s coat is no longer dirty and in late evening sun
he looks very very red. Most days they can be found lying on the deck near
each other or on a couple of the chairs. In cool weather their favorite
place is on the sunny side of the house

Eventually we had to give him a name and settled on O.C. I put a cat bed
under the table on the deck, which he promptly moved into as though it had
always been his. A water fountain was provided for the boys and the deck
furniture and the cover over it became a shelter for bad weather. When the
weather turned cold I put out a small house with a heated pad, and arranged
the deck furniture to make a shelter from the rain and snow.

That winter, the only time we did not see O.C. was during a spell of bitter
cold when he seemed to have found a more secure shelter somewhere near by.
But he was right back within a day, looking for his usual breakfast and his
friend. O.C. still keeps his distance from me, but that distance has
diminished somewhat and on rare occasions he does allow some touching. He
seems to like to be talked to, purring and kneading with his paws in
apparent pleasure and his purr has a funny squeak. He gets along with our
four other cats, though except for Tom, he has only met them through the
screen of the family room window. Towards other cats he is very territorial
and runs them off, unfortunately getting badly bitten on a couple of
occasions. I have never persuaded him to come inside though my hope is that
eventually he will allow me to begin petting him and coming in during really
cold weather.

O.C. has now completed his third winter with us, an unexpected and most
welcome little friend. I will leave it to the reader to decide whether his
initials stand for Outside Cat, Orange Cat or Other Cat. Or maybe his name
is really just O.C.; or sometimes just C as Tommy is sometimes just T.