[Vision2020] Caturday (January 22, 2011)

[Tom Hansen]

Courtesy of the Wisconsin State Journal (Madison, Wisconsin) at:

http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/article_b9330ace-242a-11e0-94c6-001cc4c03286.html

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Almond the cat never leaves his tree, but he has a true friend who watches
over him

In the hollow of a maple tree not far from the road, Ron Venden has made a
cozy dwelling for the 7-month-old cat he swears has never left its tree
home.

"It was a little feisty at first," said Venden, 66, a retired carpenter,
of the cat, which a neighbor has named Almond. "(But) now it's a pretty
big cat and it's just loving to see me."

How is Venden certain the cat never leaves? Mostly because there are never
any paw prints around the tree when it snows, Venden explains — something
a State Journal reporter confirmed Wednesday. Relatives corroborate the
story, saying they've never seen it anywhere other than in the tree.

Almond doesn't seem fazed by snow or single-digit temperatures. He sits
proudly in his roost, warm in a thick fur coat, surveying nearby Highway X
and Venden's driveway, about five miles south of Belleville in Green
County.

To Venden's knowledge, Almond has no other home outside his maple. The cat
was born there in June, and while the mother and the other kittens left,
Almond stuck around. Venden has been feeding it ever since.

So why does Almond stay?

"I think it's because I'm treating it too good," said Venden, who at least
twice a day climbs a ladder about 12 feet up to check on and feed Almond.
He's also made a protected straw bed for the cat in a hollow of the tree,
set up a dry cat food feeder and provides daily deliveries of fresh food,
which Wednesday morning included a bowl of salami, meatloaf and milk.

"I kind of enjoy it," Venden said of caring for Almond, although he
admits: "The neighbors think I'm goofy."

Patrick Comfert, Dane County's lead animal services officer, said Almond's
habits are unusual.

"We have all gotten our share of cat-in-a-tree calls, but we've never
known one to stay up there forever," he said.

Those concerned for Almond's welfare can rest assured: Because the cat is
grown, has a space where it can be protected from wind, and is fed
regularly, "it should be fine" even in frigid conditions, Comfert said.

And Almond doesn't seem keen to relinquish his tree-living tendencies.

"I've tried to bring it down a couple times and it starts scratching,"
Venden said.

Venden, who raises chickens on his hobby farm south of Belleville in Green
County, was never a big cat lover before Almond.

"In his younger days, I would have never, ever, ever pictured him getting
so attached (to a cat) in my life," said Tammy Sias, Venden's daughter,
who helps feed Almond when her parents are away.

"It's an amazing story," she said. "(The cat) actually has no desire to
come out of that tree."

Sias, who lives outside of Belleville in the town of Primrose, said the
tale of her dad and Almond is known throughout town, where people will
often ask, "How's your tree cat today?"

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Since it was born in this maple tree last June, Almond the cat has
apparently never left its arboreal home. Owner Ron Venden has made the
choice easier by providing a partially covered straw bed in a hollow of
the tree and feeding and watering the cat daily.

http://tinyurl.com/Almond-Tree-Cat

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Ron Venden, a retired carpenter who lives with his wife in the Green
County town of Exeter, pets Almond, the cat who for seven months has lived
in the hollow of a maple tree on his property. Venden climbs a ladder
about 12 feet at least twice a day to check on and feed Almond.

http://tinyurl.com/Ron-Venden

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Seeya round town, Moscow.

Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho

"The Pessimist complains about the wind, the Optimist expects it to change
and the Realist adjusts his sails."

- Unknown