I noticed her at feeding time limping across the pasture. Her right front leg was held up high in front of her and my first thought was “Oh no, she went past the treeline and got hit on the road.”

I walked over to her slowly but she ducked into the barn. By the time I got inside the door, I saw her vanish through the cat door in the rear wall and figured she was going to duck under the barn and hide from me.

I hadn’t seen her in a few days and it soon became clear that she was hungry for she slowly climbed up the ramp as best she could to eat at the feral feeder. While her head was bent into the food tray, I snuck up and grabbed her by the scruff of the neck whereupon she tried to bite me. But I held fast to her and took her protesting all the way into the enclosure, depositing her into the Introduction Cage. I left her alone while I scooped boxes and fed the other cats, then I stepped inside the cage to see what had happened to her.

She growled once, but when I started petting her, she dropped the feral pretense and leaned into my hand, ducking her head so I would rub her neck and accepting all the pets she had missed while she was outside.

Working my hand down her chest, I put my hand just above her injured leg and was alarmed to feel intense heat radiating up into my palm. Her leg was swollen from the knee up and I located the puncture wound that had scabbed over. Because of the heat and the swelling, I broke open the scab and gently squeezed. She screamed once and lunged for me, so I scruffed her until I had debreeded the wound. Then I put neosporin on the spot and gave her Clinidrops.

So many nights of worry about her are now over. She had been outside over 5 months but except for the one leg wound, she looks good. Before I left, I looked over at her and told her that I hoped she had given as good as she got. She was snuggled deep into the cat cave at that point, but her look said it all- “Of course I did- I stand up for myself now.” My pariah kitty is back home inside where she is safe. I will keep her in the cage until she healed and hope that when I do let her back into general population- no one will mess with her.

Welcome Home Mercedes, you have been missed.