Tigger is...unique.  He was a hunter from day one, catching moths and spiders in the window sills.  When he got a little older, he graduated to bigger prey; mice, bats, birds, squirrels, even large katydids.  We decided that, despite the gruesome pasttime, he was built to do this, so we left him with his claws intact.  He roams both inside and out, and while he is such a "fearsome" hunter, he is also still just a pussy cat at heart!  Rub his ears for a few seconds and he just melts.  Sometimes I say that he is half dog, half cat, since he comes to his name, loves his belly rubbed, loves his ears rubbed, plus he likes to sit at your feet and watch TV.  Sometimes he ventures a little bit too far, however, since we've lost him now and then.  One time he was gone for a good six months, and we were almost to the point of going out to get a new cat!  But then, he showed up at our back door on Thanksgiving Day.  Needless to say, it gave us quite a gift to be thankful for! Another time he apparently followed us to school, since a woman called us from that neighborhood in response to our "Lost Cat" posters.  She said, "I think I've got your cat, but I don't want to give him up!  He's so friendly!"  But at least we did get him back.  Tigger's only downfall is that he gets a little too excited while playing sometimes and he takes a swipe at your hands, but that's okay just as long as it doesn't draw blood.  Once it does, out he goes.  He's our border defender, defending the house and yard from the wandering strays and from other people's pets,  so he is our "million dollar cat".  We've spent countless times in the vet with him, getting a leg stitched up or getting antibiotics for ripped ears!  This is when his alley cat side comes out, as he growls and hisses at the vets until they have to wrap him in a towel to avoid getting eyes scratched out!  He doesn't mind staying in the house to heal; that is, until he realizes that he doesn't have a choice in the matter.  Then he gets upset and yowls all night long, begging for his freedom! He's a pretty crazy guy, and you'd think that at 12 years of age he'd calm down.  Nope.  He is getting quite the pot-belly, and he does sleep a lot more, but he still comes home bleeding now and then, and he still loves his mice!  In the picture below he's showing his more playful side; look at the size of those paws!  I call him our lion.  And you can see his tattered ear and nose!  He's an alley cat, but he's OUR alley cat.

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