Attack cat is a reformed character

Talullah likes to sit on your knee and have a cuddle – but that wasn’t how it used to be.  She’d been living as a stray down by the canal.  People were wary of approaching her because although she liked them to feed her, she was unpredictable in her behaviour.  Tallulah didn’t just scratch if you tried to pick her up, she was prone to going on the attack, teeth and claws, for no reason.   To have this large Maine Coon come flying at you was terrifying.

When she was first brought in we soon discovered that we wouldn’t be able to lift her out of the basket and give her a cuddle.  (We were told that she was lured into the basket with food).  She was left to come out when she was ready but that wasn’t the end of it.  Going in to her room was a dangerous thing to do.   Sometimes she’d sit there and stare at you, other days she’d fly straight at you.  Even if you ignored and edged around her to feed and clean she would swipe at you with her sharp claws.  A private room with heated pad?  N0 way.  We moved her into the barn where she could have more freedom.

She settled down a bit but going near her was still scary.  She was unpredictable and could fly at us at any time.  Some cats can be bribed with food but not Tallulah.  No matter how succulent the morsels we offered her she would not be friends.   Eventually we gave her complete freedom, opened the door and let her out.   She loved it, wandering about, keeping her distance and coming back for food and biscuits.   When she discovered the fields she was in heaven.  Tallulah likes to hunt and there are plenty of field mice and voles for her to catch.

When we went round to feed the horses Talullah decided to come with us.  It was great to have her following behind and taking an interest in what we were doing.  Then she began to jump on the tractor and have a ride up the lane, she never attempted to swipe at us during this time, although we didn’t fuss her, we were taking no chances.   Going up the fiels, meant coming back down on the tractor and so she was back in the barn again.   She hung around for a while, enjoyed the food but not the company of the other cats.

She’d been watching us go into the house for a while and one day she sauntered in after us.   That was the breakthrough and eventually Talullah, the wild thing, became a house cat.  It was on her terms to begin with and we weren’t to touch her if she didn’t want us to.  She would still swipe those dagger claws if we walked past her a bit too close but Tallulah has learned her manners now.   She says hello and please and can I go out or come in, with grace and politeness.   Although she is still the ‘boss’ she is a charmer.

Talullah has been coming to sit on our knees for quite a while now and never a sign of her former bad behaviour.  She even spent a night at the bottom of the bed on one occasion.   She’s a massive cat, as big as a small dog and although she’s good with us we wouldn’t recommend anyone she didn’t know to approach her.  She’s straight out of the Just So stories, the cat who came in from the cold – we feel as though we have tamed a tiger!