Bast The Cats Latest Behavior

Bast the Cats Latest Behavior

Joseph Parish

This is more of an observation rather than a rant, but here we go. Little did we realize that upon purchasing our home last year that the house come equipped with its own small, black feline. This one-year old cat was initially very timid and was cautious of us however before long she began to trust us completely. She now comes and goes as she pleases and she prefers to go outside to do her business which is totally fine with us as it eliminates the smelly cat litter. It has become more or less of a tradition that I speak to her the minute she crosses the door threshold and enters the house or she will cry continuously. We feed her on a daily basis giving her commercial cat food and some fresh milk. I give her my undivided attention when necessary and I often sit on the coach with her as we watch the television together. All in all, this feral cat likely enjoys its new life around us. I have even taken the liberty of renaming her to “Bast” in honor of the Ancient Egyptian Cat Goddess of protection. In the olden day, Bast would defend the Pharaoh and his family earning her a high place in Egyptian society. As a Goddess of statuette, she has been a member of the Egyptian deities for an unknown amount of time.

Bast fits her name sake very well, she is refined, respectful, and protective of those around her. She will occasionally offer a sacrifice for us as a display of her appreciation for our attention. Sometimes this thoughtful cat will bring us a small injured animal for us to destroy. When Bast does this she sits patiently close by with her tail wagging from side to side waiting to see what our reaction will be. She expects us to act excited and with a healthy measure of pleasure. She is like a friend who just stopped by with a surprise, McDonald’s happy meal in hand. She acts like she wants to train us in the fine art of the kill by saying:

“Here, your turn to kill this one, I’ve handicapped it for you.”

She doesn’t realize that we prefer to make our own breakfast in the morning. Perhaps it is not the most pleasant gesture when the cat brings us dead creatures in the form of a small rabbit, a mole or one of the birds that reside on our property, it does appear to be an act of love. She is truly an appreciative animal. This month I will be obtaining a cat bed for her and placing it in my study since my decor is to be Ancient Egyptian. She is likely to fit in perfectly. It will be like having my very own feline goddess.

We recently attended a family reunion in New Jersey and it was debatable as to whether we should spend the night there or if we should return to Delaware the same evening. Fortunately for Bast, my wife and I had decided to drive home the same night. In total we were gone from our home in Seaford approximately ten to twelve hours. When we were getting ready to leave home for the day it appeared that Bast was hiding from us so we saw no problems in allowing her to remain inside while we were gone. It was a short period of time and we could see no issues in our decision. We left and had a glorious time with the relatives, eating and sharing a few drinks. Pam made homemade Baggett bread to take with us along with a cheese ball and some fresh made Bruschetta. Others at the gathering supplied hot dogs, hamburgers, and various other treats.

We returned home at about 10:30 PM and I opened the door to enter. Bast greeted us with her usual cat sound greeting. I spoke to her for a few minutes and patted her head as I usually do, after which I retreated to the studio to catch up on some unfinished business. Within a few moments Bast appeared next to my chair meowing to be picked up. I never turn her down when she wants to be picked up and petted so I immediately stopped what I was doing and paid attention to her. Within only a few seconds she was up near my face laying down on me. I could feel her scooting around in an attempt to get as close to me as possible. She quickly closed her eyes and fell asleep. I am a patient person when it comes to her so I sat there in my chair and had forsaken all my other plans in order to hold her.

I figured this would be over shortly and I could successfully get on with the work at hand, but that was not to be the case. She simply would not leave me alone. Now, after my short absence the cat seemed obsessed with me. Everywhere I went she was at my heels. If I sat on the couch, she not only got on the furniture with me, but she needed to be physically atop me. These actions were repeated continuously until we fell asleep.

The following morning, I opened the front door to allow her in to eat. As she entered the house, I did the tradition hello greetings and patted her head. I expected as usual for her to head into the kitchen to eat her food but instead she stealthily trailed me from room to room and into the study waiting and crying to be picked up. Once again, we went through a similar routine as the previous night.

Now in the past, I had heard how cats can be attracted to their owners, but this is a very weird situation indeed. Granted Bast might be engaging in “Kitty Affection” but this is still a bit annoying when I need to get work done at the desk. I have always said that cats cannot live without people being around. They may not listen to us and they often tend to ignore us completely, but never-the-less they still like us around. Simply put cats love people. Have you ever noticed how a cat will spend a considerable amount of time merely staring at their owner’s face? They attempt to decipher every expression; we make in order to figure out what makes us tick.

I often notice that Bast will stare at me with her narrow eyes, trying to learn more about me. This little ball of fur must be pathetically fond of me. We have seen how Bast is a natural predator as verified by the number of gifts which she has left at our door in many cases some are still kicking. As a predator she has retained all of their primal instincts. She is extremely alert justifying her key for survival. Her ears perk up at all times ready to scan for strange sounds of her prey. The same can be said about her eyes, her wide eyes complimented with her dilated pupils completely indicating her alertness, aggression and her display of caution. With her narrow eyes you can sense her subdued signs of affection, relaxation and trust. I have concluded that when Bast narrows her eyes that she is lowering her defenses while conveying that she trusts me completely. She is displaying a period of vulnerability, which in this case is proof of the cat’s ultimate sign of love.

Since returning home Bast has exhibited tendencies to display head bonks and face rubbings. It can get annoying when this bundle of fur decides to smear her cheeks all over me. It seems almost of if this behavior is reminiscent of her being possessive and dominating. At first, I wondered if she was tagging me like one would tag their personal property. I eventually discovered that the check smear is her way of revealing that each part of our house is safe and familiar to her and that includes me as well. Bast goes to painstaking lengths to establish her territory. This is a form of neutralizing objects and people while rendering them as nonthreatening.

This is not the first cat that we have ever had, however, it is the first which we have found that enjoys having its belly rubbed. This is but another sign by the feeling that they trust me by revealing vulnerability this time to all her vital organs. In general, cats don’t like belly rubs. It is obvious that this cat wants to keep me clearly in her line of sight and wants to be around me. Having me close to her must ensure that she is feeling safe and comfortable.

I have no idea if this is merely a temporary situation or if it is the start of a long-term relationship. Either way Bast is certainly been acting somewhat strange since we came home from the family reunion. Oh well, I suppose I will continue to treat her with kindness and appreciate how she feels about me. She is a delightful feline who is pleased to see me at any time – who could ask for more from a pet?

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