The moment all indoor-pet owners dread happened on Saturday....NoNo got outside. Matt had been issuing me my "instructions" ("Wear your seatbelt. Drive carefully. If there's a lot of traffic, drive on the highway, not on the freeway.") in the doorway as I drove away, and he didn't shut the door all the way. It swung back open, and NoNo, who had been lurking nearby (as she has been lately) wandered outside. When Jim came upstairs, he saw the open door. Finding we were missing a pet, he grabbed shoes and ran outside. And there was NoNo. She came right back in. Phew.
She's been out three times in the past 14 years. Each time was not this easily resolved. When NoNo gets outside, she goes all Jungle Cat. Her pupils dilate to the size of quarters, her fur gets all bristly and she growls. She forgets she ever knew humans and that she ever lived inside. She goes looking for gazelles at the watering hole. The sick baby elephant. The condor that fell out of its nest. If you've watched ANY wildlife shows, you know small wild cats are hard to catch. She may have a small brain, but she's got quick feet. And a nasty scratch when you wrangle her to bring her back in. The minute she gets in, she looks around with an expression of "Hey, cool! Do I know you?" and wanders away. Serif knows there is nothing outside worth seeing, and merely looks disappointed that The Other Cat returned.
