Memory

          She was trapped under a house for almost two weeks.  Or so, this the story told by the neighbor.  Skillet, the outside cat that allowed us to touch her, came up missing.  With a stray, you may feed them one day and the next, never see them again.  We were convinced Skillet was gone.  But sitting on the front porch was my son.  Here came Skillet running.

          "Mama, come outside," said my son after opening the front door.

          Immediately I got up from my chair and went outside.  There Skillet was and as slender as any cat could be.  My son brought out food and water.  Unknowing to him a neighbor came to the edge of the yard and called out to him.

          "That your cat?"  He asked.

          And then; my son learned the story.  It seemed Skillet had been stuck in his air-conditioning for two weeks.  Finally another neighbor helped him get her out.  When released, she ran right to our house.  Her memory of where she was safe brought her running straight to our door.  Skillet had held on until a neighbor across the street rescued her.  The neighbor who had her stuck in his air-conditioning merely let her stay.  But he came to tell the story.

          Stray cats have an excellent memory.  They all seem to know when it is time to eat.  I feed in the morning.  I put out again in the afternoon.  When dark arrives, I go put up the pans to avoid raccoons eating at night.  But I cap it off with a spread out bag of treats.  Many cats are there.  But once inside and my door close, others come out of hiding.

          Can cats tell time?  It sure seems like that.  They gather around when feeding time arrives.

          It's amazing as I write stories about cats just how much more I want to learn.  As someone reading these stories, you too may want to learn more.  I now find from research that cats do have excellent memories.  Cats adapt to the environment that they are in easily because they can recall what they have learned in the past and adapt these memories to the current situation to protect themselves throughout their lives.  However, relationship with humans is the difference of intelligence and age may affect their memory.

          The cat's brain is almost 5 centimeters (2 inches) long and weighs 25-30 grams (0.9 to 1.1 ounces).  The cat's brain is more similar to a man's brain than that of a dog.

          In all reality, the cat has a human's routine down.  They recognize our car before it pulls in the driveway.  You ever wondered how they knew to meet you at the door.

          The day Skillet came running to our house was definitely memory.  Two weeks under a house in an air-conditioning vent did not cloud her memory.