Throwback Cat: Tibby

Tibby is another cat from my childhood.  My family adopted Tibby when I was in fourth grade.  We got him because there was a family across the street that kind of hoarded cats; they never got them fixed or vaccinated, so there were always at least a dozen feral cats roaming around.  My parents were terrified of my brother and me getting bitten by a possibly-rabid cat, so they called the shelter to see what was available.  When they described a "big, nasty tomcat" my mom said that was the one we wanted.

Tibby actually was living right down the street from us when we adopted him; a family had been feeding this extra cat on their property, but didn't want to add him to their pet menagerie.  The first time we let Tibby outside he ran away back down to that house, but after we retrieved him he never ran away again.

Tibby was, indeed, big and nasty.  He hated everyone... except me.  Tibby and I really bonded, and I was the only one who was (sometimes) allowed to touch his chest without being bitten (although he never let me rub his belly).  Tibby slept on my bed, taking up most of the space, and would occasionally show my family his white spot on his underside, which was a big deal when it first happened.

The vet estimated that Tibby was eight years old when we first got him.  That means that by the time he died when I was 21 and spending a semester in Spain (very, very bad timing on his part), he was 20 years old.  I think Tibby can be credited with turning me into a genuine crazy cat lady.

I don't have much of a way of telling when these pictures are from, because most of them I labeled "Tibby!" or "Tibby!!!!" on the back of the photo.  This one my mom labeled, however, dating it 1995.  That means I don't have to feel so bad about the Strawberry Shortcake sheets, heart comforter, and creepy doll on my bed.

Not only did I have a big, creepy doll, I also had a pillow person, a pig, and a frog to sleep with.  Tibby looks right at home.

I put flowers on Tibby's rear end.  I was a strange child.

Finally, a slightly more recent picture.  This is Tibby celebrating my high school graduation.  I hope by then I had upgraded my sleeping situation to something less intense.