The Rain in Spain is Falling Mainly on the Plain...

Update:  I did go over to 7th street yesterday during work hours after discovering that morning that my board was missing again.  I first saw Maria, the woman who has let me take her boards from her open garage to use as shelter for the cats in the empty lot sort of across from her rented house.  I told her about the theft of my board the previous day.  Maria didn't seem as enthused with helping me as she seemed when I first met her, but she did offer that I could take her last board she had.  She also told me she was moving again, by the end of this month.  I took a half board she had and told her I would take the full one but wanted to see how long the half board lasted over there.  I was fuming talking to her, and she pointed to a house next door where the man has known I've fed there for years, but didn't seem bothered.  He is the same man, the same house, that I called Humane Society about several years ago because I was told by Theresa who lived across the street at the time that he was trapping cats and feeding them to his dogs.  He also had a shed full of rabbits, and he now has several chickens and I am sure a rabbit or two.  Not sure what he does with them, but as long as I don't hear suffering or pain, I will not be climbing over his high fence to see.  I do know the police and humane society did go there after I had called.  I don't know the outcome.

Anyways, after Maria pointed out the house and told me an adult was carrying the board, but that he didn't live there, and that the man that did live there wasn't home, sure enough, I turned around and the man that did live there was walking toward a corner  parking lot at the corner to speak to another spanish speaking man.  I waltzed right over to the both of them and said 'excuse me...  you know who I am, I feed the cats, do you know who has been or have you been taking the boards?' and he said - in broken english - that 'no, he hadn't, but he had one that he would bring over.'  RIGHT.  OK.  I hugged him (ya gotta do it!), and said thank you.  Meanwhile, I met another man who lived across the street, and I yelled over if he had seen anyone walking away with a large board, and he walked toward me and said he used to not like what I was doing, but said he had a change of heart when all the rats and mice were not around anymore.  I shook his hand, introduced myself, he said they call him 'Bear', and I thanked him to keep any eye out as this was the cats only shelter covering for their food.  He said he would.  I felt good leaving.  This morning, the board from next door was not placed there, but the half board was still there.  I am miffed, but its pouring out all day today, so will go back tomorrow and knock on the Spanish guy's door to ask him where his board is he said he would give me!!

Today was Trap, Neuter, Return through Lollipop day, and Laura set up her spots on Short, Second and Third, and I set two traps at the last stop I make, on Parsells.  After several return trips, no one was biting.  I then went on the rest of my rounds, and it was getting time to get ready to head home to ready myself for work, and not wanting to disappoint, and waste spots at Lollipop, I went and got one of the traps I had set and went to another location where I sometimes feed three or more cats that are sitting by the road on Pennsylvania.  I set one there and decided I would go get Miss Kitty on Central Park, who I think might already by fixed, but isn't ear tipped, but I would place her in a carrier and we could transfer to a box trap that Laura had an extra one of in her van.  Anyways, Miss Kitty was hanging around that location after I fed her good, and I grabbed her by the scruff, placed her in the carrier, and brought her to Laura.  Lo and behold, after a short exam by Laura, Miss Kitty is a MR. Kitty.  How embarrasing.  I do know what boy cats feel like!  (mind you, I do most of my feeling in the dark these days).  I could have sworn I checked her/him and thought it was a girl!.  She said she would take him anyways and have him eartipped.  So, sadly, MR. Kitty, scared as he was, would be vaccinated and eartipped, and will be released, even though he is a very very sweet boy.  His picture is on my post from yesterday.  I then went back to the recently placed trap, waited a little bit, and none of these cats were around (again, it was raining steadily), so I gathered up the trap and went to the Parsells location and there in the second trap was a beautiful fluffy kitty inside, not happy at all!  I covered her (I think its a her) trap with a blanket and she calmed down.  Good catch if it was a girl!  I brought her to Laura.  I am anxious to know if Laura got any kitties.  I hope so!

I wanted to tell you about an interaction I had with someone over this past weekend at Tops, but am running out of time.  Stay tuned!