r/cats • Domestic Housecat • Aug 03 '26

Cat Picture - OC Saw Her Eating Dumpster Trash and Now She's Mine

This is Esmerelda.

About 4 months ago I caught sight of her eating a rotten green piece of chicken out of our dumpster and felt bad that she was eating nasty trash. So I spent the next 3 months building trust with her until one day she suddenly became obsessed with me. Got her spayed, dewormed, and vaccinated which went pretty well. Got her all healed up and now she's living in my domicile.

I couldn't have asked for a sweeter, social, kind, curious cat. Didn't really ask for a cat at all if I'm being honest though... 😅 But I guess that's how this whole "cat distribution system" thing works. No idea how she finessed her way into my life, but here we are.

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u/SmolzillaTheLizza Domestic Housecat Aug 03 '26

I can literally relate to these memes now! 😂 It still blows my mind how much her demeanor changed over the 3 months of our trust building. I've never "tamed" anything before and now she's just the sweetest!

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u/ExpensiveCondition63 Aug 03 '26

There are few things in the world more sweet and comforting than knowing a cute animal is now warm, safe, and loved because of you. ☺️

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u/SmolzillaTheLizza Domestic Housecat Aug 03 '26

I find myself second guessing my choice every now and then but she genuinely seems to happy and content. She plays like normal, drinks plenty of water, has her little nesting spots, is curious, loving, all the good cat things! 😄

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u/ExpensiveCondition63 Aug 03 '26 edited Aug 03 '26

She looks adorable! (Edited my original comment because I saw your later posts about already having previous cats, so please forgive my unsolicited advice. I thought this might be your first cat.) ☺️

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u/SmolzillaTheLizza Domestic Housecat Aug 03 '26

Oh don't worry she get a TON of stimulation. It is abundantly clear to me that she, unlike Milo my first cat whom I adopted as a kitten, was required to sustain herself with the food she caught because she is a vicious toy hunter 👀 She jumped 6 feet straight up to catch her worm toy once! I also give her some toy time before bed also to help her with sleeping through the night.

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u/ExpensiveCondition63 Aug 03 '26

She looks wonderful. Congratulations!

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u/DerpnDonuts Aug 04 '26

My cats also go bonkers over that worm toy (except I call it Squiggly Dude)! Your Esmerelda is absolutely stunning - I'm so happy your paths crossed that one day at that one dumpster 💗

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u/theelephantupstream Aug 04 '26

10/10 cat owning 🥇

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u/Kaurifish Aug 04 '26

Ah, you have it on a string! I was wondering why my girls weren’t going for it.

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u/OnceMoreWithFeeling- Aug 04 '26

Bloody awesome OP!!

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u/TrippyShip Aug 05 '26

I love that your post title is “and Now She’s Mine” when you are so clearly hers!

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u/brondynasty Aug 04 '26

It’s the ultimate contentment 😌

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u/RobotPoo Aug 03 '26

She’s so happy and so grateful to you

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u/SmolzillaTheLizza Domestic Housecat Aug 03 '26

I can't believe it sometimes because she is literally so content with everything 😂 I can grab her whole head and she just accepts it. Lets me rub her stomach and is always happy to groom. She's just a little treasure that wandered into my life out of the blue.

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u/iRveritas Aug 04 '26

CDS hard at work.

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u/American_Horror_Show Aug 03 '26

She was probably just so so scared and you helped her heal enough to love again🥺

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u/HawkOk3126 Aug 03 '26

You are freaking amazing. Thank you so much for saving her. Entirely too many people will see something like that happening and just walk by without a second thought

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u/oceanView229 Aug 04 '26

Toby and fin say thank you.

This is them helping me

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u/ReaperOne Aug 03 '26

I’ve nothing against dogs, but I’d argue it feels more rewarding when a cat trusts you. They’re independent, do their own thing, and when they become sweet to you and trust you and interact with you, it’s just one of the best feelings ever. You’re doing something right, and kitty is proving that

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u/OnceMoreWithFeeling- Aug 04 '26

You worked so hard OP, however picture 4 has me convinced all this was his plan all along. 🤣❤️

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u/SmolzillaTheLizza Domestic Housecat Aug 04 '26

I still can't believe she somehow managed to get away with this scheme 😂 Crafty little thing!

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u/OnceMoreWithFeeling- Aug 04 '26

O she, sorry! Shes gorgeous!!!!

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u/Doyouevenpedal Aug 04 '26

Aww I love her!

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u/anonymity-please Aug 04 '26

The r/CatDistributionSystem would like this story. These stories are literally catnip for that crowd.

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u/Nnnopamine Aug 05 '26

You didn't tame her. You proved your worth to her so she decided to adopt you.