In the Blink of an Eye

Karen Chapman, Le jardinet (www.lejardinetdesigns.com), sent in this handsome cat's photo.

"He is one of four barn cats that we adopted earlier this year from a rescue center. They had been found in eastern Washington state and transported to the Seattle area for re-homing The plan was that they would tackle the exploding vole population in our 5-acre rural garden. Ha!

"When he arrived he looked really forlorn having just been given a highly embarrassing ‘lions mane’ haircut due to excessive matting. The fur has finally grown back although still rather ragged looking.

"We don’t name our barn cats generally, but we nicknamed this one 'Blink' as he seems to be constantly blinking at us! Of the four, he is the friendliest and will now approach us to within about 4’. He also follows us around the garden, perching nearby to see what is going on, but he still won’t let us touch him. All four are essentially feral, but I think Blink may eventually become more relaxed.

"Actually relaxation seems to be his ‘thing.’ He can usually be seen stretched out in a sunbeam, perched atop the pergola (as seen in the photo), or standing guard in the barn doorway. As for Chief Vole Catcher? Not so much. I swear all four are pacifists and vegetarian. In fairness, I have seen him playing with a dead mole – but I suspected it died laughing."