The Early Bird... er, Cats... Herd Squirrels?

This morning was very interesting - I turned my two kits out to run, and was working on the family tree on-line, when I saw them back inside, behaving oddly (even for them). For some reason, Lovey and Banichi tag-team herded Gimpy, one of the regular squirrels into the bathtub.
They had herded him from outside (on the patio, I'd guess), through the living and dining area, down the hall, and through the dressing room to get to the bathroom and the tub. Why? Did it amuse them? Did they think I needed to look at Gimpy from a close-up point of view? He sat at the back of the tub and chattered at them, and they didn't try to get any closer. I left, the kits went back outside, and a few minutes later, Gimpy hopped on out and grabbed a peanut from the patio.

Gimpy? I originally called him "the Nose" because the fur on the bridge of his nose stands almost upright - like he has a bunch of crazy cowlicks right there, or his nose was injured and the fur grew back in an odd pattern. At the beginning of this spring, he showed up one afternoon with a large strip of fur and skin missing from his side and left hindleg. It has healed, but not very well, and he has a distinctive limp, so he is now Gimpy. Gimpy is a squirrel who is low on the totem pole - if any other squirrels appear, he gives way - unless it's one of the new babies.

I spent 2 and a half hours with DeJa today. His owner can see that he's in declining health, and she cried today while talking to me about him . He really is a sweet dog - loves attention and loves right back. It's devastating to lose a pet that you've had for many years - I said good-bye to Booger after 18 years, to WhoDat after 21 years, and my husband and I to Houston after he had had her for 15 years. We decided that our animals were no longer enjoying the quality of life they deserved, that we were prolonging their life for our own happiness, and that, in the wild, each one of them would have been long gone to their final resting place. It's never easy.

It's silly, I know, but I believe that all cats, when they die, go to a huge outdoor area where there's plenty of birds and creatures to chase (but never catch), plenty of sunshine and shade, plenty of food and water, and lots of catnip. I picture a similar place for each type of animal on this earth - dogs, horses, hamsters, goats, cows, elephants - you name it, they each have their own little corner of heaven. - It's people that I'm not too sure of.