For the past few months–it seemed to us to date roughly from the unexpected arrival of the youngster Midnight–we’ve been concerned about Ben, our mercurial black cat.
He licks and cleans himself obsessively and has rendered the back of his long wonderful legs almost furless.
Ben is a busy boy–
–on mole patrol this morning…
and when he’s not busy he can be perfectly still and seem to be meditating.
He can also be loving
appearing out of nowhere to curl himself round your neck as you lie in bed.
He comes into the kitchen at his customary fast trot–pit stop for fuel– looking shiny sleek from the front.
A black thoroughbred:
“…always on the move that man–never without ‘is passport.” *
Always in the moment.
He never demands food; he clocks what’s on offer and circles, letting his nose make the choice and when he likes the message it’s sending he settles back on his haunches, leans forward, head close to the bowl and starts to eat.
He has a penchant for sleeping black on black–disappearing into the material; you can walk past him and not notice he’s there.
But after the fluffy bundle arrived around midnight one night…
Midnight exhibiting a certain entitlement.
…Ben took umbrage and started to sleep in the garage. It seemed he couldn’t deal with the playfulness of the newcomer who just wanted to rumble.
I worried that he might be depressed. The traveling vet, who comes to the house, thought it might be anxiety and prescribed pills.
Big Beau just stood his ground and let the youngster bounce off him.
Beau “sitting his ground”!
Beau and Ben had bonded and I missed their wild chases over and under the furniture.
The mad leaps, the somersaults and the arched backed stand-offs.
By retreating, Ben had lost his playmate. His thunder had been stolen.
He protested all the way to the new vet–but now we know what the problem is.
It’s a wretched little mite called michrosporum canis (round worm).
I’m relieved to learn it’s not the wretched little fluffy mite I suspected.
We now wrap Ben in a towel, then TRY to syringe a tasteless liquid between his gritted teeth– which can cause a smidgen of spousal tension–of minor importance when the goal is to get the magical Ben back on top form…
ps; Things have calmed down down between Mr Midnight and our Ben…
*Mick’s speech from a favorite play: Harold Pinter’s The Caretaker.
“You remind me of my uncle’s brother. He was always on the move, that man. Never without his passport. Has an eye for the girls. Very much your build. Bit of an athlete. Long-jump specialist. He had a habit of demonstrating different run-ups in the drawing-room round about Christmas time…”
Robin Ellis 
Very nice story Robin. Puske puske my cat is also loosing sometimes hair she’s also a little eater and heart patient.Hoping it comes good with nice cat Ben, please watch out that the cats don’t eat garlic from the fields.Have a nice weekend Robin, Meredith & Cats hugs, Chantal xx.
What a nice story, and very good photography. We have experienced similar cat dynamics when a new one comes aboard. I always enjoy your cat posts (and food ones too). Thanks!
So happy that you can get Ben sorted..the photo of him with Meredith reminds me of our beautiful , gentle and wise old black cat Dennis..he breathed his last on December 22nd surrounded by the people he loved and who loved him…I miss him terribly and sometimes at night at that point where I hover between sleep and wakefulness, I can almost sense him draping himself across me with his nose buried in my neck..
Once Ben is better hopefully the balance will be restored between your beautiful cats !
You are a wonderful writer Robin. Happy that you’re Ben is on the mend.
A great story! Beautiful photos too! We had a chinchilla Persian cat named Pasha who lived 19 years. We used to call him a living objet d’art as his favorite pastime was posing.🐈🐈 Santé, Barbara Boling
Sent from my iPhone Barbara Boling
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I was pleased to read the story about Ben. How ironic it came today when I am at my wits end with my beautiful Himalayan April. This morning she came in, got on my bed and peed. She then jumped down and went on her way. Her litter is very clean. This is the fifth time. I am glad you found a cure for your beautiful Ben. He is lovely.
Courage–Virginia!
Who needs television when you have Live Theatre, acted out daily by your cats? As for the meds — ah, the things we do for our pets! I am glad that Ben’s problem is so easily handled, Robin.
It is clear how much you love your furry cat friends and how closely you pay attention to their lives and daily routines. I am the same with mine; we share deep and engaging bonds. I’m glad to learn the problem was mites and not anxiety, as the latter is much harder to cure! You had me hanging on every word of the story. Great photos, too!
Wonderful account of what’s been going on with Ben since Midnight’s arrival. (And this is a terrific picture of you and that handsome cat!) It’s good to know the vet was able to diagnose the problem, and good luck getting him to take the medicine!
I still wonder how anyone can even consider making a new “Poldark”, since there could never be anyone but YOU in that role! I’ve watched the DVD so many times I practically know every word by heart. I don’t know when I’ve enjoyed anything so much. However, I’ve loved your other roles too, “The Waterfall” is a great work.
LOVE all your posts, and your recipes are divine. It’s a real treat to eat food that not only tastes good, but is good FOR you – you have culinary talent as well as acting talent!
Thanks for keeping in touch with your ardent fans! We all love hearing from you!
Sincerely, Linda Horlbeck Albuquerque, New Mexico
Sent from my iPad
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Thanks Linda–you are very kind.
Your photos and story of the progress of your cat family are charming and helpful too! Our black cat, Dixie, similarly began losing her fur on the inside of her legs just after the loss of her beautiful sister, Pixie, on the Fourth of July. I thought that her fur loss owed to her sadness and our veterinarian could not identify the cause. But I just telephoned him with the news of Ben’s condition and he will take another look!
By the way, I saw a brief advert for the new POLDARK series last Sunday evening following DOWNTON ABBEY on PBS Masterpiece! I cannot wait to see it! And, we’re also looking forward to your new audio book!
Robin thank you for sharing this. So nice to see your family of pussy cats.
I can appreciate Meridith & her bedtime ritual. We have two Siamese (brother & sister) puuuurfect companions for each other & to us, but they rule the bed with a big PAW 🙂 sit on your chest, kneck, & wake me up pummling my tummy at 2 & 3 in morning. All makes for a puuurfect nights rest. You have two beauties Ben & Beau & our Champagne & Shiraz send their enquiry sniffs to them both :)) Do they like to eat any of your tastey dishes ? Ours have to sample every meal we eat & have their own mat & dish waiting for them by the table. :))
We ❤️ cats
Shawdiane 😻
I am relieved that the problem has been identified. Good luck with the medication sessions! Lucky kitties to have such loving owners. 🙂
Good morning Robin, it’s 3.30 am here in Brisbane across the pond. Love your blog, it’s so lovely being able to walk with you on little snippets of your lives. Beautiful cats, beautiful people, lovely country side. Thanks for your company this morning. Cheers Maggie
Evening, Maggie!–my, it’s remarkable these days how distances have shrunk.
My cat Venus sits and growls at the Christmas tree. I think she is sending me a message.. Glad your kitty will be okay.
Glad to hear he’s okay. I’m now without cats for the first time in 18 years after ours, Monty, passed in November. The house is quiet without him as he was always on the go, very vocal and extremely loving.
An appealing set of photos with a true story that has a happy ending for now. Thank you.
Great pictures and story. We had a little foundling kitten, abandoned in our garden and near death. Punkin lived to be 23 years old, and was best buddy with our Golden Retrievers – first Casey, then Gypsy. Punkin slept each night on Gypsy’s tail. But when Gypsy died, at the age of 14, Punkin soon followed. She died just one month to the day of Gypsy’s death. It was a real lesson in devotion. We miss them. Cats that are loved and cared for, as yours obviously are, are lucky, indeed. I look forward to seeing more POLDARK. What a marvelous production the first series was!
A lovely touching story–thank you Eileen.
Wonderful story! Love the photos! Giving Ben the meds took me back about 30 years to our first kitty, a small orange tom whom we adopted while in NYC. He developed “rodent ulcers” in his front paw, so we had to wrap him tightly in a towel 2 times a day and SOAK HIS PAW in baking soda and warm water for 15 minutes t a time. I think I still have a scar or two. 🙂
Your beautiful heartfelt cat stories always make me weeping as I wait for the sad/happy ending.
Hello Rosemary–hope all is well up there in the Loiret!
I’m glad you discovered the problem and hope Ben is well soon. Your story reminded me of the night my little poodle ate a motrin. I had to dose her with charcoal several times. It was a “magical” experience :-). Good luck, and thanks for the pics of your beautiful cats.
I thought a motrin was a small fury animal for a moment, Kate!
Nice to get an update on the kitties, Robin. What a handsome boy, that Ben! Glad to hear it’s just roundworm–though mole patrol is perhaps part of the problem–and it may take a few treatments to totally get rid of all the cycles of eggs…
Our Sassy also does (did) the licking on her legs until you could see her pink skin! No worms, though. In her case, it was due to anxiety when another cat had joined the fold…But eventually everyone settled down & all was well. She’s had a few other brief bouts of it at times in her life. For some reason, it seems to happen in the fall (when it does), if memory serves right. Not sure what stressors might be bothering her then, but she’s always OK with extra playtime & TLC.
Oh, we also occasionally use the spray or plug-in “Feliway” or “Comfort Zone” to calm everyone down, especially in the spring, when the windows are open & new smells waft in. It’s a pheromone for cats–it takes the edge off a bit.
Give Ben an extra hug from me! 🙂
Cheers & Hugs to all!
PS: Your post reminded me it was time for my cats to get hairball remedy tonight! My “boys” like it, but Sassy, of course, hates it.
Meredith, there’s a un-ladylike maneuver that might “make the medicine go down.” If you crouch/kneel on the floor behind the cat & sort of straddle him, you can pull him back towards you and he cannot wiggle away from you. Then one hand will be free to gently TILT his head back until his mouth opens a bit, and the other hand can squirt the meds in. And the faster you can do it, the less stress on the cat AND the marriage!
My vet always told me to place my thumb & finger over the cat’s head (like a bonnet), then press on the gums near the back of the mouth. And, like a bit or bridle does to a horse, the mouth will pop open. But my hand is too small to get around the cat’s head! (I think it’s easier with a man’s hand! Robin??)
But the straddling gives you control over the cat’s body while leaving your hands free to deal with dispensing the meds.
Gene is snickering nearby… Never thought I’d be telling “Ross Poldark” or his wife how to straddle a cat!! Haha!!
Good luck!
Straddle–I like the word. We’ll go a-straddling today, Dianne–thank you!
Still laughing! How’d it go??
Straddling is second nature now!
It went down better–he is calmer.
Robin, when I had to give my cat medicine by oral syringe, I found the best way was to grasp her at the nape of the neck and just shoot the stuff down her throat. Seems she couldn’t close her mouth in that position and did not struggle so much. After a couple doses, she seemed to realize the medicine was making her feel better and just accepted the inevitable. Hope this helps, and best wishes to you, Meredith and your felines.
I’ll try that today–thank you, Nancy.
I’m glad you figured out the problem. And they are all very lucky kitties to be taken care of so well.
Loved the story made me blobber. Our Patches just lost 2 teeth recently I was sick the whole visit and overnight at the Vet’s. Patches is on the mend now, I always say they own us, we don’t own them, and I wouldn’t have it any other way Robin.
My heart sank when I saw your heading. I thought it was Ben’s obituary. I am so relieved that he has something treatable and hope he is back on top form again soon. Beautiful cats, all of them!
I love the stories about your kitties. I have tried everything to give my kitty medicine, including hiding pills in treats, wrapping kitty in a towel and alligator-wrestling kitty to pry his mouth open (as he would run when he saw me get out the towel). I’ve found if you gently stroke kitty’s throat after you get the medicine in, it makes him swallow (I learned this after I found a pile of pills under my bed!!!)
Our black cat, Jackson, was “overgrooming”, a form of psychosomatic alopecia. The vet said he was stressed…ha! anyhow, he is now on a daily dose of Reconcile, or as we call it, pussy prozac! He no longer over grooms, but is still a wild man, the 3 hours he is not sleeping….I want cows too!
Best,
Reminds me–where’s Ben!