Remember the blind cat from the Helena shelter we picked up the same day that the Dachshunds Oliver and Twist came? Well, we named him Herbie -- a suggestion from one of our regular blog readers, Andrew in New Zealand. I had mentioned that this little yellow cat was a real "lovebug" -- and that brought to mind Herbie the VW bug from the 1960s movie of the same name. Needless to say, you need to be of a ... um, certain age to remember that film, and unfortunately I am.
(However ... having just said that ... in searching for a link to the movie to insert in this post, I just discovered that Lindsay Lohan did a Herbie flick in 2005. Somehow we missed that one. Did they actually let her get behind the wheel?)
So this morning in the cat house, Jodie was helping hold Herbie while I took the sutures out from his eye surgery. I had the camera with me, and after we got done removing sutures, I took these photos of Herbie and three-legged Honey Girl.
Our vet, Dr. Brenda Culver, and I had wondered how much vision Herbie had in his remaining left eye, which is shrunken and deep in the socket. After watching him in the cat house and doing various vision tests, the answer is: None. I can stand right in front of Herbie and he can't see me. He'll reach out with his paw, trying to find me, waving it back and forth in the air.
But that doesn't mean this affectionate tabby doesn't like to climb up on the shelves in the cat house! He'll go all the way up to the one Honey Girl is sitting on. He knew Honey Girl was right above him ... she was purring up a storm, and I had been petting her a moment earlier. Thus here he is reaching up to see if he can find her:
And here she is, reaching down as if she were going to give him a kiss:
Wrong! She was only lining up to swat him, and she did! Bad Honey Girl! I was so focused on capturing the angelic scene that I missed getting the swat on camera, it happened so fast. But I did get the moment after the swat in this next photo ... note Herbie's body language ... poor guy! And notice Miss Scamp's right front paw there, just pulled back after the strike. (No animals were injured in the making of these photos.) I think she just wanted to play, but when you're blind, it's a little hard to tell!
Herbie is adorable and you can see the peace and playful spirit in his face.
Thank you and God bless you for the love you provide for these precious souls. I love to send you whatever $ I can. It makes me happy.
Thank you again.
Posted by: Deloris Horn | February 22, 2008 at 11:17 PM
I loved this story. Herbie is so cute I wish I could just cuddle him and Honey Girl. Thank you again for making my day.
Posted by: Jerrie Jurczyk | February 08, 2008 at 10:19 AM
Thanks once again for putting a smile on my face before I hit the sack!
Posted by: Shirley & James, Portland, OR | January 19, 2008 at 01:51 AM
Poor Herbie! To extend the paw of friendship, only to be swatted in the face. Still, seems like no real harm was done. Honey Girl is such a tease! :)
Posted by: Kristen D. | January 14, 2008 at 11:16 PM
What precious characters!!!! I love reading about the antics of the cats!
Posted by: Nina | January 14, 2008 at 08:51 PM
Bad Honey Girl is right. Poor Herbie. I bet he wondered what was going on. So glad he is ok and that you ended up calling him Herbie. I know a lot of people voted for that name.
Posted by: Sonya Brooks | January 14, 2008 at 07:43 PM
Ahhh, Steve, you are such an innocent.............can't you tell that this is the pre-cursor to rough sex? :)
I hope you keep an 'eagle' eye on these two..they are neutered, right? :0
( Never a dull moment at RDR ! ! )
Posted by: Bibi | January 14, 2008 at 06:44 PM
I guess Honey Girl was having a Horseradish moment. Swat! Oh well, they will soon figure out their boundaries with each other. That loud purr that Herbie heard from her really mislead him! Sounds like she was sending mixed signals. It's good to see that he's fearless, even without vision.
Big hugs all around,
ginger, Tobias & Tlingit
Posted by: ginger & Tobias (the greythound) | January 14, 2008 at 02:37 PM
Just surfed in from Blogger's choice awards, LOVE what you're doing. My hat's off to you, cause I know what it takes to care for older and disabled pets.
Keep up the good work! We all support you. If there's anything I can give you a hand with, holler. If you ever need to place an animal in a warmer climate, we can help with that too.
Posted by: Mikey in AZ | January 14, 2008 at 11:08 AM
It was fun to see the progression of kitty play and just when the love bug thought he might get a kitty kiss; he got a kitty swat. Awwww....
I think Honey Girl wants to be queen of the perch!
Posted by: Boundforglory | January 14, 2008 at 09:07 AM
Caption for the last picture. Herbie: "Is that the best you can do!? I smirk in your general direction."
Posted by: Andrew | January 14, 2008 at 04:49 AM