Star Noir, Our Beautiful Black Halloween Cat

Just like people, animals have their own unique personalities. This is especially true of cats. Star Noir, our Halloween surprise, appeared as if by magic and has taken the roll of protector of little Blaze and mediator between Blaze and Dax. She is kind and loving and has beautiful golden eyes that seem to stare right through you. We are so happy that she found us so that we could rescue her and share our home with such a special kitty. We hope that you enjoy her story and that it may spur you to share your home with one of the many homeless pets.

Star Noir, our gorgeous, long-haired black cat with a white star under her chin appeared one day in October of 2007. We're not sure how she came to find us, but we suspect that she was abandoned when someone in a nearby subdivision moved away after one of the hurricanes.

She was an adult when we first saw her in the natural area of our yard. At first she would not approach us, but when the weather cooled off, she began to cry from the bushes. She was hungry, however when Al took some food out to her, she scooted off to hide and wouldn't come out until we went back into the house. Soon she was eating out of our hand and letting us pet her and pick her up.

At first we didn't think that we could keep her, so we began trying to find her a good home. The whole time we were trying to give her away, I kept thinking that she had come to us. I was a little relieved when we couldn't find someone to take her, but we still weren't sure that she would get along with the other members of our pack. We continued to feed her outside and made a place for her in one of the out buildings.

Everything came to a head one night in late October, when we heard blood curdling cat screams outside. I ran out to find her in a confrontation with a larger (we think male) cat. She was frightened and shaking, so I decided to bring her into the house for the night and keep her isolated from the other animals until we could take her to the vet.

All of our fears were for naught and in no time, Star Noir, was a house cat and part of the family. Dax became immediately smitten with her and would follow her around and watch her with much interest. Star Noir is almost as big as Dax and while she is mild mannered and loving, she spent enough time on her own outside to be able to take care of herself with Dax. She and Blaze get along well, too. They play chase and hide and go seek and little Blaze finally has a playmate who doesn't jump on her and use brute force to overpower her. Each night, Blaze and Star Noir sleep with us.

Star Noir is an extremely lovable cat. When she wants you to pet her, you can hear her muffled ma-wow as she looks for you while carrying her favorite toy in her mouth. She is always "helping" me when I use the computer. After she jumps into my lap, she kneads my arm until I scratch her neck in the correct manner, then she sits in my lap with her head on my wrist. We've worked out a deal. I am allowed to move my right arm as long as I scratch her neck when I am not typing.

The way she looks at you with her beautiful golden eyes brings to mind stories of witches' familiars and she often communicates with stares and little meows when her food dish is empty or if she needs something else. She understands some words, like stop and no, and actually listens and responds when you say them. She seems to want to please us most of the time.

Star is almost a perfect cat, with only one exception. She has issues using kitty litter that another cat has used. It's like she does not want to soil her lovely little paws. (We think she may have been a proper Victorian lady, who was used to having a lady's maid in another life.) If the litter is pristine she will use it, but even with the automatic litter boxes and special kitty litter, if another cat uses the litter, she will use it for #1, but will do #2 on the tile floor. We have considered letting her go outside in the morning, but we have birds and other wildlife that would suffer, so we play lady's maid and clean the floor behind her. It's actually sort of funny to watch her try to dig a hole in the tile and then cover it up with tiny bits of whatever the broom missed. We wish she wouldn't do this, but then no one is perfect. Maybe one day we will find the answer to this shortcoming of hers.

Update! New Screen Porch Makes Life Easier for All.

We extended and screened in our little back carport and also put an insulated pet door in the back door. Now almost every morning, Star goes out on her back porch and digs in the area of dirt that we left just for her. Dax also loves the new back porch and he uses the kitty litter pan out there. It is quite a nice arrangement for us all because we rarely find poop on the tile and Dax's smelly business is done out in the open air.

The cats also like to nap there and really enjoy watching the birds and animals. When the weather is mild, it's a great safe place for all of us to commune with nature in a mosquito free environment.

Star seems to enjoy posing for the camera. Someone once said she had a presence about her.

Star is always ready to be the center of attention. When I set up a still life to photograph, she thought it needed a touch of black. She calls it "Gazing Cat with Fruit".

Now that you have been introduced to lovely Star Noir, you may be interested in sharing your home with one of the many homeless animals that roam the cities and countrysides. We urge anyone who is looking for a feline companion to check the local shelters and vet offices to find an unwanted kitten or cat in need of a home.