Morton hears a “Who?”

Cats have been members of our households for at least 3,600 years, according to depictions in Egyptian paintings, but their relationships with people date back even farther.

DNA research has traced domestic cats to the Fertile Crescent 10,000 years ago. Why cats? Unlike dogs who seem willing, even eager to be our best buds, cats are more enigmatic. Moody. Self-serving. It is said we didn’t domesticate the independent feline.

Au contraire.

These cuddly carnivores allowed themselves to become domesticated because it suited them. Depending on your reference material, there are as many as 16 feline personality types. For indoor cats, most fit into three categories.

The first is content to never set a paw outdoors. Been there, done that. Just, no.

The second group is opportunistic if the right situation presents itself. As for the third — it’s not a question of “if” but “when.” Yet even among those with wandering eyes, many don’t go far and soon reappear, wondering why you haven’t let them in yet.

And then there was Morton.

Perhaps he was a No. 2 disguised as a No. 1. Or maybe he was a No. 1 driven out of his comfort zone by love.

Found in the Maricopa Walmart parking lot as a kitten, Claire brought the scrawny tuxedo kitty home, fed him and posted his picture online. When no one claimed him, she decided to keep the little guy with a growing personality. Loud, whiny and frequently gluttonous, when Mr. Mort wasn’t patrolling the house for snacks, he was looking for his favorite person — to stare adoringly at her from her lap.

Years passed and Morton — known to jiggle doorknobs at mealtime and devour entire loaves of bread left on the kitchen counter — showed no desire to venture from his bourgeois bubble. It was a shock, then, when the pet-sitter hired to keep an eye on the family’s Jack Russell terrier, and to a lesser degree — the cat — reported there was no sign of Morton.

Away on a business trip, Claire wasn’t overly concerned at first, although it was unusual for his food to go untouched. The next day came, and no Morton. Now she was worried — this was a house cat, after all.

Claire posted his picture again — this time a lost cat — and her mother hung signs throughout Rancho El Dorado. There were several sightings, one just a few blocks away. Coming home from work late at night, Jessica Smith’s headlights picked up a large black-and-white cat lounging in the middle of her street. She thought it strange the animal didn’t even try to run to safety.

Two days later, a neighbor named Robert was driving south on John Wayne Parkway. On his way back, he spotted something on the overpass that wasn’t there a half-hour earlier. A cat lover, Robert pulled his car off the road and took a closer look.

There was a red collar and a tag. He knew he had to make the call.

You might say it was a miracle the tuxedo cat was found at all or that someone cared enough to call. While these things exceed normal expectations, without the tag and phone number, there would have been no closure for Claire. Fortunately, she was reunited with her four-legged friend.

It’s a dire prospect when a pet cat becomes lost. Some will return on their own, but others like Morton have different ideas. When a cat wanders, there’s no way to tell if it’s an outdoor cat roaming its home turf or an indoor cat that has escaped. A microchip does nothing unless it’s scanned at a veterinarian’s office or by animal control.

While it’s helpful to know your pet’s personality, it’s best to be proactive. Follow these three tips:

• Keep your cat indoors. Most will enjoy longer and healthier lives but be sure he or she is mentally stimulated and has the opportunity for physical exercise. Towers to climb and windows to look through are ways to accomplish this.
• Spay and neuter your pets. This will help curb the roaming instinct as well as prevent unwanted litters.
• Collar and tag your indoor cat. Choose a brightly-colored tag (yellow or a fluorescent shade if possible) and the words “INDOOR CAT” with your phone number.
• Know your pets but be careful not to pigeonhole their personalities. Expect the unexpected. It’s a jungle out there.

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