beetle

we've got this orange cat...we call him beetle.  he's a wild bastard [which i love] and a great mouser [which i love].  he started out in life as cecil because of where he came from - cecil county, maryland - but quickly became beetle - why, i don't know.  anyway, he's - in my experience and i've had some - very leopard-like.  singular, aloof and not very friendly.  his owners warned us his father was feral and he carries that trait rather well but he sits in my lap contentedly and lets me - allows me to - scratch his ears.  the other night - prowling - he got hit by a great horned owl.  the fight was loud, intense, and brief, but he managed to escape...in part because he's so big - 20 pounds or more.  god only knows what the owl was thinking.  i saw the owl the next morning, sitting on the peak of our neighbor's roof.  he seemed none the worse for wear.  to finish with beetle's adventures for the moment - we live in a small neighborhood.  there are several dogs.  they all, except for our puppy, give beetle a wide berth.  they are wise.