Ann and Friends - Harry

21. Harry

Maureen and I were driving to our brother, Paul's place in the country for a family gathering. Suddenly Maureen slammed on her brakes. She saw a cat lying in the road. Perhaps the cat was hurt or dead. Maureen jumped out of the truck to rescue the homeless cat. She doesn't like to see animals suffer. The cat looked bedraggled and hungry. Maureen thought he wouldn't live if he remained in the wild. Perhaps this cat perceived that Maureen was going to help him. Although he was probably afraid, the cat let Maureen scoop him up and pop him into a cardboard box. I held the lid down as we drove the rest of the way to Paul's house. We didn't want him to get out.

Since the cat was quite furry, she immediately named him Harry. First Maureen fed Harry a can of tuna fish. He was still hungry. Maureen gave him as much tuna fish as he wanted. He gobbled down everything Maureen gave him. He must have been starving for days.

Maureen decided to keep Harry. She took him to the vet the next morning. The vet examined him and gave Harry some shots. He thought Harry would survive. Maureen had Harry neutered, too. A week later, Maureen and Harry drove back to Reno where she lived. Harry meowed, and meowed, and meowed. His meowing was driving Maureen crazy. Maureen finally said, "Harry, if you don't stop meowing, I am going to dump you out of the truck and leave you here." Harry must have believed her, because he didn't make a sound the rest of the trip. It didn't take much time for Harry to settle in at Maureen's house.

Harry has been with Maureen for five years now. Most people think Harry behaves like a dog. He follows her up to the barn when she feeds the horses. He supervises her when she shovels manure from the horses' corrals. He likes sitting in the manure bucket. He enjoys playing with the "road apples" when they fall out of the bucket. He watches everything she does. He is such a character. Harry enjoys stalking birds, or mice, or baby bunnies, or lizards, or moles, or anything that moves. He is constantly bringing his prey into the house. Some of the animals are bigger than Harry. She wonders how he gets them through the cat door. Maureen tries to rescue them from the "serial killer cat". You can take the cat out of the wild, but you can't take the wild out of the cat. Maureen couldn't conceive of life without Harry. He is her most favorite cat of all. She has loved cats better than dogs since we were children. It will be a sad day if anything happens to Harry.

Harry Questions

1. Who is Harry?
   (Harry is Maureen's new cat.)
2. Where were Maureen and Ann going when the found Harry?
   (Paul's house)
3. How did Maureen help Harry?
   (She fed him tuna fish.)
4. What did the vet do with Harry besides examining him?
   (He neutered Harry.)
5. How might Maureen feel when the vet told her Harry would survive? Why?
   (She was happy because she loves animals and had grown to like Harry)
6. When does Harry "behave like a dog"?
   (He follows her around and watches her while she does her chores)
7. Why did Maureen threaten Harry on the trip home to Reno?
   (He was meowing constantly and was driving Maureen crazy)
8. Name three animals that are Harry's prey.
   (birds, mice, baby bunnies, lizards, moles)
9. How does Harry supervise Maureen?
   (He sits and watches her while she shovels manure from the horse stalls. He sits in the manure bucket.)
10. What does Maureen wonder?
    (She wonders how Harry can manage to fit his prey through the cat door.)
11. Why did Maureen name the cat Harry?
    (He was very furry.)
12. What is a prey?
    (An animal that is hunted by other animals for food)

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