Last night Ivy brought me a little gift. She stuffed it down in the toe of my shoe. I don’t know when she put it there, because I thought she was on the couch the whole time I was watching Homeland.
I put the shoe on and felt something in the toe region. So I took it off, tipped it over, and one of Ivy’s favorite toys fell out on the floor. It was one of her “swirly” toys she so loves.
Ivy’s Favorite Toys:
Ivy has lots of toys, but by far she prefers these toys that are swirly plastic that she pushes and chases all over the apartment.
She also brings them to me so I’ll throw the swirly toy and she can run fetch it. Ivy loves to play fetch. I didn’t teach her. She taught me.
Below is what they look like. I make sure to have quite a few on hand to give her when she loses them somewhere in the apartment.
Shop Swirly Cat Toy
I smiled when it fell to the floor. It was Ivy’s gift to me. For those of you who might not remember, Ivy brought me a gift the first night she came home with me.
A Surprise In The Night:
It was the middle of the night and I slipped my house shoes on next to my bed to go to the bathroom. Something crunched under my toes in an “icky” manner.
It was October, and she had captured a cricket and stuffed it into the toe of my shoe. Yuck.
I got rid of it, but I believe Ivy thought it was a great gift to me for giving her a home. She had not been with me for more than 8 hours when this happened.
I found Ivy at a very nice rescue place by the way. She was not in a cage or anything.
Shop For The Book “Understanding Cat Behavior“
She was at an animal rescue where there were just a handful of cats and they had their own room. They had their own beds and cat towers and everything.
The cats were very socialized because they were in one of the rooms in the thrift shop. This thrift shop is where they make the money to keep this rescue going.
Bringing Ivy Home:
When I brought Ivy home, she was not afraid. Curious, but not afraid. She took over the place as soon as she got in the door that day in October 2018.
Here is a photo of Charlie and Ivy early on when she first came to live with us. She was five months old and smaller than Charlie then.
But she grew to be bigger pretty quickly.
She is a real treasure. Ivy Lou is helping me with my grief over losing Charlie.
She brings me gifts. But Ivy is my gift.
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Ivy is such a beautiful cat. That photo at the top of this post really shows how lovely she is. A pretty girl.
We used to have a cat who brought me gifts all the time. Our washer dryer was off the car port and one day when I was out there moving clothes he came in and started purring very loud and rubbing on my leg…when I looked down there was a dead snake draped across my shoe. I did not realize I could jump that high or that fast!
She is a gift. And she is letting you know she understands about Charlie. Animals are so amazing.
Awww, I remember when you brought Ivy home. What a blessing she’s turned out to be. Your sweet and loving companion. Her little swirly toy reminds me of a slightly stretched out slinky. I can just picture her running to get it when you throw it for her, and I love how she brings it back to you to throw again. How cute is that?! Do you have one of those red laser pointers? Cats love chasing the red dot too.
They do love to bring us gifts! My rescue kitty, now almost 6 years old, many times during the night brings her favorite red mouse toy (that we gave her as a kitten) to our bedroom door, which is closed. We find it there in the morning. sometimes we find it up in the chair by where our other resuce male cat (now 5) sleeps! I think it is their comfort and security and they bring it to us to tell us hi.. and they love us. Many cats like to bring “gifts” of mice or birds they killed, to our door (or into the house!). Ours do that now and then. I think they are proud and want to show us! Our cats’ fave play things are plain old pipe cleaners. We make them into a circle and wind the end closed, so it’s a ring.. sometimes we put 3 together and they spend much time playing with them, throwing them in the air, pushing them under things (for us to get out)… and my female, Maddie (rescue kitty) loves to pull them out of the jar where my hubby puts the clean ones. I am glad your Ivy is there with you to keep you company and keep you entertained! Marilyn
She is a gift. And such a pretty girl. I’m glad you have her.
A swirly toy is a lovely gift. My cats were indoor/ outdoor friends and the gifts they brought me were a lot less…um…sweet? I can’t tell you how many small feathered and furry presents I received over the years. Some were still alive which made for interesting afternoons. Certainly fills the house with joy!! Enjoy her!
Sweet Ivy! Cats are so intuitive and know when we need their comfort and love. You are blessed with a beautiful fur baby.
She has such personality. I love her back story. I wonder if she adapted so well because she was raised in a room with other cats and she was used to freedom rather than being in a cage.
That is a precious picture of Charlie and Ivy when she was young. I am so glad you have her to help fill the void of losing Charlie 💞
This is so very sweet. I get tears, and a smile, because I know, Ivy knows you have been so sad, and this is her way of making you feel better and she knows how to do that. A very precious gift!
This is so sweet. Ivy probably is missing sweet Charlie too and now you two have each other to get through this loss.
Yes absolutely, Ivy is missing Charlie. Pets grieve & have tender feeling. I believe Ivy is wondering everyday where her brother is.
We’ve gone through it many times. A must to give your pet extra attention & love.
They’ll appreciate it ❤
Hope you are doing okay Brenda.
Pets tune into their owners more than the owners realize. Ivy loves you and wants to share her best with you. She knows you miss Charlie and she misses him, too. She is trying to bring you comfort in the way she knows how.
saying it in the only way she can… “I LOVE YOU Mom!”
Oh Brenda I’ve got tears in my eyes! I remember when you brought Ivy home to be with you and Charlie. You two definitely love each other unconditionally. There’s a wonderful bond.
Ivy loves you, just like you love her.