Gary and Morris Meet a Lynx

The weather had been up and down lately at the Hervey Foundation for Cats. Some days were warm and sunny, and others were cold and wet. Spring in Canada is always a little uncertain until the sun comes out and bakes the land in the summer.

Things had been pretty good. Earlier in the week, five days in a row were sunny and warm! Gary and Morris love being outside in the sun. For them, lying in the sun is like refilling your car with fuel.

Today, however, would be a little different. Marjorie was sitting in the kitchen reading the news on her tablet while Gary and Morris milled around. Morris was sitting on the kitchen table while Gary rubbed up against her legs – and the table's.

“Oh, my goodness,” she said, tilting her tablet towards the kitties. “Boys! Look at this!”

Marjorie knew the cats couldn’t read what was on the screen, but she knew they liked being included.

“It’s going to snow today… all day… and all night,” she said. “Oh, my goodness. It might snow all weekend!”

Gary and Morris looked at each other with a tired sigh.

“Again?” said Gary.

“I know…” Morris replied. “Why do we live here again?”

Gary laughed at the question.

“Things are pretty good beyond the weird weather,” he said.

Gary jumped up onto the kitchen table to join Morris and Marjorie. He stretched, as long as he could, and seemingly as slowly as he could, finishing it with a big yawn.

Morris, having just seen Gary yawn, then had to yawn as well, then break into a massive, slow stretch to match.

Marjorie picked up the phone to call the neighbours and make sure they were prepared for the snowstorm.

“Are you guys seeing the forecast?” she said. “I was planning on doing some gardening, but that’s certainly not going to happen now.”

Morris jumped down from the table and went over to the front window, where he saw tiny, gentle snowflakes start to fall.

“Gary!” he called over. “It’s starting!”

Gary jumped down and then ran over to the window to see for himself.

“Well, I guess we’re spending the day inside,” said Gary.

 Morris’ meowing also caught Marjorie’s attention, who, still on the phone, stood up and looked out the window.

“Here we go,” she said to the person on the other line. “It’s already starting here.”

It started out soft, with minimal snowflakes falling, then an hour went by, and it was coming down a lot faster.

Marjorie had moved from the kitchen to the living room and was watching a movie with a nice cup of tea and a warm blanket. The cats of the foundation were having a great old time cuddling up, watching TV, and staring out the window.

Gary and Morris were perched on their favourite windowsill, watching the backyard as the snow got thicker and thicker. Soon, they could hardly see anything out back!

“Shall we start mourning the summer now, or should we wait?” Gary asked Morris.

“I think it would be safe to start making preparations for such a thing,” Morris replied.

The two cats sighed and lay back down, staring out into the vast, white, static of the blizzard passing over their property.

They lay there for a few more hours until it started to get a bit darker outside. Marjorie had moved on to another project in the basement, and it was all cats upstairs!

Gary and Morris were still watching the storm, but now the back deck lights were on, and they could only see so far. Suddenly, in the distance, a dark shadow moved through the light from the back deck.

The two cats immediately stood up.

“What was that?” asked Gary.

“Looked big,” said Morris.

“Was it a bear?”

“I don’t know, maybe?”

“Might’ve just been a bush or something,” said Gary.

Then it crossed through the light again.

“That’s not a bush!” said Morris.

Then they heard the sound of a growling mountain cat. It gave them the chills.

“Whatever that is, it sounds crazy,” said Morris.

“It sounds like a cat,” said Gary.

“Yeah, a really big one,” Morris replied.

They heard the sound again, but this time it sounded a little more desperate.

“That doesn’t sound like an angry cat,” said Gary. “Maybe it needs help!”

“Maybe it’s trying to trick us into coming outside for its next meal!” said Morris.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” said Gary. “We both heard that. I’m going out there.”

Morris shook his head, and Gary jumped down to the floor.

“You coming?” he asked Morris.

“Fine,” he said reluctantly.

Marjorie was in the basement, so getting outside from the basement window would be tricky. They knew they needed a distraction, so they got one of the other cats at the foundation, named Winslow, to start meowing loudly.

“Thanks, Winslow!”  said Gary. “We’re just going to go make sure that thing outside is okay!”

“No problem, fellas. Rather you than me!” he replied.

Winslow started kicking up a huge fuss, and Marjorie came upstairs to see what all the commotion was about. When she did, Gary and Morris bolted downstairs and out their favourite exit.

Once outside, they immediately started to question their decision-making. The snow was blowing in all directions, the wind was overwhelming, and it was dark.

“Why did we do this again?” Morris asked.

“Because someone might need our help!” Gary replied.

Just then, they heard the desperate growl again.

“This way!” Gary shouted before darting off into the dark night. Morris followed right on Gary’s heels.

As the boys got closer to where they thought the sound came from, they started shouting out to see if anyone was out there.

“Hello? Is anyone there? Do you need help?”

The boys stopped moving and kept calling out. It seemed like they were out there all alone, but they knew they’d heard something… and then they heard a voice.

“Hello? Is someone there?”

Gary and Morris turned around to see a full-sized adult lynx moving towards them very slowly. At first, they were a bit scared, but then it spoke again.

“Help me, please. I am lost and so very hungry.”

The two little cats stared up at the massive mountain feline and wondered how a creature so big and powerful found itself hungry and lost on their property.

“My name is Gary, this is Morris. We live nearby, and we can help you!”

“That would mean so much,” said the Lynx. “My name is Turbo, and trust me, I am not used to being down in the valley.”

“What happened?” asked Morris.

“The strange weather made it harder to find something to eat, so I made my way further down the mountains than I usually do, and when this storm hit, I got so turned around I couldn’t tell where I was.”

The cats felt sympathy for Turbo.

“I was so hungry, too, that by the time the storm rolled in, I was having a hard time keeping track of things.”

“Follow us!” said Morris. “Head towards the light!”

The two little cats jumped through the snow dunes as Turbo followed behind them slowly. His massive paws left prints in the snow that would make even a full-sized dog nervous.

The destination was the garage. Marjorie always left backup food for any strays that might come by the property, and in addition to a meal for Turbo, the garage was warm and offered a break from the storm.

The cats got to the side door of the garage, and it was stuck open only a few inches because of the snow. Gary and Morris were trying their best to wrench it open, but they just weren’t strong enough.

Seeing the struggle they were having, Turbo mustered up his last bit of strength and pushed the door open like it was nothing. His giant body sauntered past the two boys, and he collapsed on the floor.

“Oh shoot, let’s get you something to eat!” said Gary.

The boys ran over to the extra supplies and brought a bag of dry food over for Turbo.

“Eat all you need, we are going to go get our mom. She will be able to help you!” said Morris.

The boys ran back to the house and back through the basement window. Marjorie was back down there and immediately noticed them.

“How long have you two been going through that window?” she asked.

Gary and Morris started kicking up what could only be described as a royal fuss. They were meowing, hissing, scratching and pulling at her clothes.

“What is the big deal, you two?” asked Marjorie.

They ran to the door upstairs, keeping up their attention-grabbing routine until Marjorie was clearly following them.

She followed them outside to the garage, where, much to her surprise, there was an exhausted, full-sized adult lynx lying on the floor, slowly eating dry food.

“Oh my gosh,” she said as she rushed over to the poor animal and cautiously read its body language.

“I’ll be right back!” she said as she ran out the door.

“Isn’t our mom great?” said Morris to Turbo.

Moments later, she returned with a giant bowl of water and a case of wet cat food. Her first move was to give the water to Turbo, then she got to work opening a couple of tins of wet food.

“You poor thing!” she said. “Here you go. Eat up, my boy!”

Gary and Morris lay down next to Turbo and watched him eat and drink, chatting with him here and there.

Once he was comfortable, he started to purr. The lynx is one of the few larger cat species that can purr, and it has a deep, bassy tone.

Marjorie took that as a cue that he was happy, and slowly approached him to pet his fur.

Turbo loved it. He had lived his entire life with people and other animals fleeing in terror from him, and for once, he felt cared for and loved.

“Thank you so much,” he said. “You might have saved my life.”

“It was all Gary,” said Morris. “I thought you were a bear, but he insisted we go out and make sure you were okay.”

Gary laughed.

“Boy, am I glad you did,” said Turbo.

“Well, I am glad too,” said Morris. “You weren’t a bear at all, and you seem like a nice guy to know!”

Gary laughed again.

Marjorie and the two cats spent the rest of the night in the garage with Turbo. She went and got him a nice big pet bed to lie down on and covered him with a blanket to stay warm.

When the sun started to come up, Marjorie went back to the house to catch up on some sleep, but not before letting Turbo know he was always welcome to visit the foundation if he ever found himself in the valley again.

Gary and Morris also let him know he had friends now and no longer had to live alone.

“We spend a lot of time with our woodland friends down in the forest, so if you even want to join us, you are more than welcome to!”

“That sounds very nice!” said Turbo.

“And if you are hungry like before, just come here before it gets to be too much!” said Gary. “We always have lots of good stuff to eat.”

“You two are good cats,” said Turbo. “Let’s get some rest.”

Gary and Morris snuggled up with Turbo, and the three felines lay under the blanket, safe, happy, fed, and as warm as can be.

It was a symphony of purring.