Zorro the Ragdoll Cat Meets a Roadrunner
My name is Zorro, and I'm a five-year-old Ragdoll breed cat. Never heard of us? You wouldn't be alone, yet we are one of the most popular breeds in the U.S. They call us the cats that are most like a dog. (Sheesh! What an insult.) So what if I do like to follow my mom around and even wait by the door until she returns. Why not? I have the time. It's not as though I'm not making an intelligent choice, unlike a stupid dog that gets all pouty just because he's been left alone for ten minutes.
Mostly, I suck up as much attention as my inflated ego can handle. Humans describe a Ragdoll's personality as laid-back, but we can be feisty, too! I'll protect my turf against any invading species. Read on and you'll see what I mean. (Disney is negotiating with my mom over the rights to my story.)
Let's start at the beginning...
My mom was in the kitchen doing whatever it is she does there that does not involve preparing my food dish. We had only been in our new home for a couple of weeks. I was starting to feel right at home and pretty much approved of the change. I loved the big glass doors where I could lay comfortably and look out over the patio while watching noisy birds gather all day in the desert willow tree fighting over sips at the hummingbird feeder.
My tummy was full and I was relaxed in my favorite belly exposed position, legs up in the air. I'm rarely very far from mom. (Don't ask me why, it's a Ragdoll 'thing.') I was dozing off when I opened one eye and saw her sneaking towards the glass doors. Humans often behave in strange and mysterious ways, so her behavior didn't seem overly odd.
It was only when I heard her pick-up the phone to call dad that I knew something was up. "Honey, guess what I saw on the patio this morning?" I heard her say. "A roadrunner! I heard a tap-tap-tap on the window, and when I glanced over, there it was looking in the window at me."
Pecking on the glass ? Really, wasn't that a bit low class?
"It sounded like he was trying to say hello and welcome to the neighborhood!" she continued to gush. My mom gets really excited over nature sightings, and I had to forgive her temporary insanity. Normally she would be totally focused on me.
The next morning, I continued the ritual of trying to sleep off my breakfast. This time mom actually raised her voice. "Zorro, come! Zorro, come! Zorro, come!" Like I didn't hear her the first time?
I scurried my furry butt in a Ragdoll style trot, stopping right beside her legs. I thought my blue eyes were paying tricks on me. What was that thing on the patio? I'm long and lean and weigh about 13 lbs., but that bird...I think it was a bird...might have been slightly bigger than me!
"Zorro," Mom asked, "What do you think of that guy?" I wasn't sure what to think, so I sat down and tilted my head in the way cats do that makes humans think we are curious. "Look, Z, he's just as curious about us as we are about him." She knelt down beside me and put her hand on my shoulder. "Isn't he handsome with those brown and black strips, and that red marking on his chest. Look at the size of his beak! I bet he's looking for lizards."
Well now, that sort of hissed me off! I also like to lay in the sun by the door and watch the lizards scurry across the patio floor. I don't try to eat them. I didn't like the idea of this big bruiser of an ugly bird scaring away my entertainment. "Oh, too bad," mom observed with a frown. "There he goes looking for breakfast." I can't say that I shared her disappointment.
I bet you know what happened the next day.
"Zorro, come!" There came my command again. I had already decided that if it was that stupid roadrunner again, I was going into full feline, alpha male action. I started to run as fast as I could. Since I don't normally run so fast, I sort of overcompensated a little too much and smacked right into the glass door! The glass door where the fierce looking, predator roadrunner jumped back, surprised, on the other side.
He looked at me. I looked at him. And the dance began! "Stop chasing my lizards, you creep," I meowed as I jumped at the glass hoping to chase him away. "Like a pampered fur ball is going to tell me what to do!" He squawked his answer as he jumped back at me from his side of the glass.
I jumped, he jumped...there was a lot of jumping going on. Finally, I was pooped, and he decided to insult me by turning his long feathered butt in my direction before jumping on the table. He sat there for a long time, his beady black eyes catching every movement on the golf course. Even though I was sure that I had won the skirmish, I had to admire his style.
"My big, brave boy," mom gushed and drew me close. I tried not to look freaked-out and began to calm down with each head stroke. "Don't worry, mom", my eyes spoke to her. "I'll protect you."
I'm not sure who is going to play me in the movie, but I heard mom say that there are some up-and-coming action cats in Hollywood who are already calling their agents. Mom thinks her part should go to Meryl Streep.
By the way, we named our roadrunner Rocky. He came almost every day for many months before he disappeared. Mom thinks that the golf course removed his habitat so he had to move to another area. Funny, but I kind of miss him.