Sources of aid for those who need it, 3rd edition » « Running the Gauntlet: COVID-19, Climate Change, and the Future

Creature Feature: The Great Outdoors

Last time I told the story of His Holiness, Saint Ray the Cat, and how he came to be in our lives. Today I present the senior non-human member of the household, Raksha. Waaay back in 2007, I had just graduated from college and was working as property manager for my school’s biology department. I was living with my then-girlfriend in Richmond, IN, and we had decided that we absolutely could not afford a dog. My Significant Other was volunteering at an animal shelter. It was the standard affair, full of stressed cats and loud dogs, and when I went to pick her up one day, there was this scrawny little puppy with great big ears who was the only one in the whole shelter that wasn’t barking. We re-assessed our finances, and brought Raksha home not long after. Raksha was timid, but very eager to please, and easy to train.

She found most things terrifying, and when confronted with other dogs, she would hide under the nearest table, car, or bush. Because she had a vaguely wolfy look, and I grew up reading Rudyard Kipling, I named her after the she-wolf who adopted Mowgli in The Jungle Book. At the time, I thought Raksha meant “demon” in Hindi (obviously with different connotations from the Christian usage of the term), and it wasn’t until some time later that I was corrected. It turns out that demon is actually “rakshas”, and my vicious hound was, in reality, named “defense” in Hindi, or “protect” in Bengali.

In time, she grew into her ears, learned how to get along with other dogs, and even overcame her intense separation anxiety and stopped howling every time I left the apartment. She kept her quiet habits, and only barks when someone knocks on the door. She has shared her home with cats at various points in time, and after the first one, quickly learned not to chase them. The first cat I had with Tegan, a tragically short-lived tiger cat named Erwin, fixated on her to a possibly unhealthy degree, to the point where he would have a meltdown every time we took her for a walk. At first the two of them would cuddle – Erwin would curl up between her front paws and fall asleep. In time, however, Erwin ruined that. He would start cleaning her ears, and then move from that to biting them. Raksha lost her trust, and ended up slinking away any time Erwin got too cuddly. Erwin, alas, had a heart condition that took him from us after just a couple years. His Holiness joined us a little under a year after Erwin’s death.

His Holiness was afraid of Raksha in the beginning, like any semi-intelligent street cat, but he was too sick to actually run away. Raksha continued not eating him, so he got over his fear, and they now maintain an amicable co-existence, usually at an arm’s length. Both of them have thrived in Scotland, enjoying the cool climate, and the great big window in the living room. Their favorite part of the day is when we open the window, and they can stick their heads out, watch passers-by, and sniff the breeze.

 

His Holiness, Saint Ray the Cat is a solidly built cat with brindled black and gray-gold fur on his back, sides, tail, and the top of his head. His legs, belly, throat, and some of his face are snowy white, and very, very soft. In this picture he's perched on the window sill of our open front window, which is basically double glass doors. There's a balcony railing , but no screen. He is hunched over, looking down at the street below, with his tail curled below the rim of the window sill behind him. Sun is coming in from the lefthand side of the picture, lighting up his fur, and some of the floor behind him. The floor is wood veneer, under a black rug with sweeping gray patterns on it. Across the street is a tree and an old limestone building with gray shutters under carved arches and some windows.

His Holiness, Saint Ray the Cat observes the world from his sun-washed balcony.

Raksha is mostly black. She's a medium-sized dog (around 50lbs), with black fur on her back, neck, tail, and head. Her legs are golden-brown, her face has light tan and white brows , black around the eyes and in a stripe down the top of her snout, and white-tan on the chin, sides of the snout, and cheeks. She has very, very thick, white underfur that's usually hidden by the black outer layer. His Holiness, Saint Ray the Cat is a solidly built cat with brindled black and gray-gold fur on his back, sides, tail, and the top of his head. His legs, belly, throat, and some of his face are snowy white, and very, very soft. In this picture the dog is standing at the window with her back to the viewer, looking out as she sniffs. The cat is next to her, his head turned to look at her, as she has just arrived to look out the window. He (the cat) is perched on the window sill of our open front window, which is basically double glass doors. There's a balcony railing , but no screen. Sun is coming in from the lefthand side of the picture, lighting up their fur, and some of the floor. The floor is wood veneer, under a black rug with sweeping gray patterns on it. Across the street is a tree and an old limestone building with gray shutters under carved arches and some windows.

His Holiness turns to observe Raksha’s approach to the grand balcony.

 

Raksha is mostly black. She's a medium-sized dog (around 50lbs), with black fur on her back, neck, tail, and head. Her legs are golden-brown, her face has light tan and white brows , black around the eyes and in a stripe down the top of her snout, and white-tan on the chin, sides of the snout, and cheeks. She has very, very thick, white underfur that's usually hidden by the black outer layer. His Holiness, Saint Ray the Cat is a solidly built cat with brindled black and gray-gold fur on his back, sides, tail, and the top of his head. His legs, belly, throat, and some of his face are snowy white, and very, very soft. In this picture the dog is standing at the window with her back to the viewer, looking out as she sniffs. The cat is next to he. Both are looking a bit to the right, their faces and ears pointed in the same direction. He (the cat) is perched on the window sill of our open front window, which is basically double glass doors. There's a balcony railing , but no screen. Sun is coming in from the lefthand side of the picture, lighting up their fur, and some of the floor. The floor is wood veneer, under a black rug with sweeping gray patterns on it. Across the street is a tree and an old limestone building with gray shutters under carved arches and some windows.

The two noble beasts observe the landscape from their lofty vantage point. The cool breeze carries fascinating scents to them, the sun warms their fur, and the people and birds are fascinating to watch.

Raksha is mostly black. She's a medium-sized dog (around 50lbs), with black fur on her back, neck, tail, and head. Her legs are golden-brown, her face has light tan and white brows , black around the eyes and in a stripe down the top of her snout, and white-tan on the chin, sides of the snout, and cheeks. She has very, very thick, white underfur that's usually hidden by the black outer layer. His Holiness, Saint Ray the Cat is a solidly built cat with brindled black and gray-gold fur on his back, sides, tail, and the top of his head. His legs, belly, throat, and some of his face are snowy white, and very, very soft. In this picture the dog is standing at the window with her back to the viewer, looking out as she sniffs. The cat is next to he. Both are looking across the street, their faces and ears pointed in the same direction. He (the cat) is perched on the window sill of our open front window, which is basically double glass doors. There's a balcony railing , but no screen. Sun is coming in from the lefthand side of the picture, lighting up their fur, and some of the floor. The floor is wood veneer, under a black rug with sweeping gray patterns on it. Across the street is a tree and an old limestone building with gray shutters under carved arches and some windows.

The alley and its breezes provide regular entertainment.

Raksha is mostly black. She's a medium-sized dog (around 50lbs), with black fur on her back, neck, tail, and head. Her legs are golden-brown, her face has light tan and white brows , black around the eyes and in a stripe down the top of her snout, and white-tan on the chin, sides of the snout, and cheeks. She has very, very thick, white underfur that's usually hidden by the black outer layer. His Holiness, Saint Ray the Cat is a solidly built cat with brindled black and gray-gold fur on his back, sides, tail, and the top of his head. His legs, belly, throat, and some of his face are snowy white, and very, very soft. In this picture the dog is standing at the window with her back to the viewer, looking out as she sniffs. The cat is next to he. The two of them are looking at each other, their faces about an inch apart. He (the cat) is perched on the window sill of our open front window, which is basically double glass doors. There's a balcony railing , but no screen. Sun is coming in from the lefthand side of the picture, lighting up their fur, and some of the floor. The floor is wood veneer, under a black rug with sweeping gray patterns on it. Across the street is a tree and an old limestone building with gray shutters under carved arches and some windows.

His Holiness and Raksha examine each other. His Holiness is realizing that perhaps his personal space has been invaded more than he’d like.

Raksha is mostly black. She's a medium-sized dog (around 50lbs), with black fur on her back, neck, tail, and head. Her legs are golden-brown, her face has light tan and white brows , black around the eyes and in a stripe down the top of her snout, and white-tan on the chin, sides of the snout, and cheeks. She has very, very thick, white underfur that's usually hidden by the black outer layer. His Holiness, Saint Ray the Cat is a solidly built cat with brindled black and gray-gold fur on his back, sides, tail, and the top of his head. His legs, belly, throat, and some of his face are snowy white, and very, very soft. In this picture the dog is standing at the window with her back to the viewer, looking out as she sniffs. The cat is next to her. The cat is turning toward the dog, moving his face away from her big, annoying nose as he moves to leave the windowsill. He (the cat) is perched on the window sill of our open front window, which is basically double glass doors. There's a balcony railing , but no screen. Sun is coming in from the lefthand side of the picture, lighting up their fur, and some of the floor. The floor is wood veneer, under a black rug with sweeping gray patterns on it. Across the street is a tree and an old limestone building with gray shutters under carved arches and some windows.

Yes, it is time. His Holiness has concluded his business on the balcony, and wishes to put some distance between himself and the endlessly sniffing snoot of the dog.

Raksha is mostly black. She's a medium-sized dog (around 50lbs), with black fur on her back, neck, tail, and head. Her legs are golden-brown, her face has light tan and white brows , black around the eyes and in a stripe down the top of her snout, and white-tan on the chin, sides of the snout, and cheeks. She has very, very thick, white underfur that's usually hidden by the black outer layer. His Holiness, Saint Ray the Cat is a solidly built cat with brindled black and gray-gold fur on his back, sides, tail, and the top of his head. His legs, belly, throat, and some of his face are snowy white, and very, very soft. In this picture the dog is standing at the window with her back to the viewer, looking out as she sniffs. The cat's hind legs are still on the windowsill, and his tail is sticking up and to the right a bit. His front half has disappeared behind/underneath the dog. There's a balcony railing , but no screen. Sun is coming in from the lefthand side of the picture. The floor is wood veneer, under a black rug with sweeping gray patterns on it. Across the street is a tree and an old limestone building with gray shutters under carved arches and some windows.

Raksha resumes her inspection of the outside world, as His Holiness slowly recedes from the balcony, walking a little bit under his large, shaggy companion.

Raksha is mostly black. She's a medium-sized dog (around 50lbs), with black fur on her back, neck, tail, and head. Her legs are golden-brown, her face has light tan and white brows , black around the eyes and in a stripe down the top of her snout, and white-tan on the chin, sides of the snout, and cheeks. She has very, very thick, white underfur that's usually hidden by the black outer layer. His Holiness, Saint Ray the Cat is a solidly built cat with brindled black and gray-gold fur on his back, sides, tail, and the top of his head. His legs, belly, throat, and some of his face are snowy white, and very, very soft. In this picture the dog is standing at the window with her back to the viewer, looking out as she sniffs. The cat is stepping out from behind the dog, his side brushing along her hind leg as he walks toward the camera. There's a balcony railing , but no screen. Sun is coming in from the lefthand side of the picture. The floor is wood veneer, under a black rug with sweeping gray patterns on it. Across the street is a tree and an old limestone building with gray shutters under carved arches and some windows.

Raksha continues her vigil as His Holiness retreats into the interior of the apartment.

His Holiness, Saint Ray the Cat is a solidly built cat with brindled black and gray-gold fur on his back, sides, tail, and the top of his head. His legs, belly, throat, and some of his face are snowy white, and very, very soft. He is lounging on his side on the floor, with his head upright, and his eyes closed. Sunlight is coming in from the lefthand side of the picture, lighting up his fur, and some of the floor. The floor is wood veneer, under a black rug with sweeping gray patterns on it.

His Holiness basks in the sun coming through the now-closed window. The dog has left, leaving him in undisturbed tranquility.

 

His Holiness, Saint Ray the Cat is a solidly built cat with brindled black and gray-gold fur on his back, sides, tail, and the top of his head. His legs, belly, throat, and some of his face are snowy white, and very, very soft. He's in a nest of three cream-coloured pillows with brown plaid patterning. The couch itself is covered in a white, striped fleece blanket. The cat is curled on his side, with one front paw hugging himself, and his back paws just a little bit in the air.

His Holiness curled up on the couch

Image shows Raksha lying curled slightly on the rug, with her right hind leg sticking forward to her front paws. Her snoot is on the ground between her front paws, and she is looking up at the camera. Her fur is thick and black with the white underfur showing through in some places. Her paws are white, and the insides of her black, triangular ears are also white. Her eyebrows, and the sides of her face are white/white-tan, with a black stripe from her black nose to her eyes, and black running under her dark eyes. She's part husky, part German Shepard.

Raksha waiting for me to let her out. Life is hard for an old dog.

The image shows the author in his pandemic shopping outfit. He's wearing a dark navy blue wool jacket, a brown leather broadbrim hat, and a blue paisley bandanna covering his face below his eyes.

Bonus Picture! This is my pandemic shopping outfit. I went out today to pick up antidepressants and some groceries from the nearby Tesco.

Help us feed and medicate these noble animals! Sign up to be a patron at my Patreon page, so that we can afford rent, keep a roof over our heads, and keep the vicious beasts from eating us in our sleep!

Sources of aid for those who need it, 3rd edition » « Running the Gauntlet: COVID-19, Climate Change, and the Future

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