The Cuthbert Catwatch Society - Mama Kittie’s Secret

“Mama Kitty’s Secret”

A Cuthbert Catwatch Society Mystery

The mist was just beginning to lift over Lokey Lake when Nosey burst into the old garden behind Boo’s house, skidding across wet pine straw and scattering startled squirrels.

“She’s got another one!” Nosey exclaimed, her voice high and breathless. “Another puppy!”

Boo raised one brow, calmly grooming a paw. “Start from the beginning.”

“Lake Drive,” Nosey panted. “The big white cat. Mama Kitty. She’s been showing up every morning with a puppy. First one. Then another. Now there’s five!”

Boo’s ears twitched. “That cat’s part of Jay’s group. He watches over the Lake Drive cats. Something’s not right.”

Midnight appeared from a patch of shade, his voice low. “Jay’s the man in the chair. He takes care of them, feeds them every morning. You think he knows?”

Boo didn’t answer. Instead, she looked toward the horizon. “Time to talk to Cheyenne.”

At the house behind the screen porch, Willow gave a signal. A low chirp. Nosey leapt, popping the window latch. Cheyenne slipped through in a blur of gray fur, graceful and sure-footed.

“What’s the situation?” Cheyenne asked, adjusting quickly to the outside air.

Boo laid it out with precision, her tone clipped. “A cat—Mama Kitty—has taken in five puppies. But no one knows where they’re coming from. She lost her litter recently.”

Cheyenne frowned, already thinking. “Puppies don’t travel on their own. And Mama Kitty couldn’t carry five from different places. They’re coming from the same spot. We need to find it.”

That night, Cheyenne held a strategy meeting in the camellia bushes outside Joey and Phryne’s house. Joey nodded sagely while Phryne looked uneasy.

“I don’t like dogs,” Phryne muttered.

Joey gave her a comforting nudge. “They’re just babies. And you’re not alone.”

The next morning, the patrol began. Boo led the core team—Midnight, Willow, Nosey, and Spot—toward Lake Drive. Cheyenne scouted higher ground while Joey and Phryne kept a low profile near Jay’s yard.

Sure enough, Mama Kitty emerged from the bushes, carrying a tiny brown pup in her mouth. She placed it beside the other four nestled in a sunny flowerbed near Jay’s front ramp. Jay wheeled out, gave Mama Kitty a gentle pat, and smiled, unaware of the stir these puppies had caused.

Cheyenne’s voice came through the hedges. “Found something.”

At the far end of Lake Drive, past the old cypress trees and into a forgotten corner of the lake, they found it: an abandoned boathouse. Inside, the air was thick with damp and mildew. And in the shadows, they saw her—a skinny, shivering dog curled in a torn blanket.

Her eyes flicked toward the cats but held no threat—only exhaustion.

“She’s their mother,” Boo said softly. “She’s sick. Couldn’t care for them.”

“Mama Kitty must’ve found them,” Willow added. “One by one.”

“Smart girl,” Spot muttered, impressed. “Took ’em somewhere safe.”

The plan was set. Joey stayed behind to watch the puppies while the others formed a rescue team. Even Phryne joined, shaking but determined.

They brought food from the garden of Miss Tilda, who always left scraps on her porch. Midnight and Cheyenne scouted human help. And by dawn, Spot used his clearest “HELLO!” to startle Miss Tilda awake—just as she passed the old boathouse on her morning walk.

By evening, the dog had a warm bed, clean water, and a name—Gracie.

A week later, Gracie, now stronger, lay beneath Jay’s ramp, gently licking her pups as Mama Kitty rested nearby, her job done.

“They’re going to share,” Nosey whispered. “Both mamas.”

Boo stood on the porch railing, watching the yard where puppies tumbled in the grass and two mothers looked on with calm eyes.

Cheyenne appeared beside her.

“You did well,” Boo said.

Cheyenne gave a rare, small smile. “We all did.”

And just like that, the cats of Cuthbert turned quietly to the next mystery.