Ghost cat

Many have heard this story, but I will tell it again since I mentioned it the other day. The house in Paterson was a scene for many paranormal experiences. The one that was probably the least scary , yes I said least, was the ghost cat.

We had a real, live cat at the time, we had not progressed to four cats yet. He was a grey tiger and thin as a rail. He was an in and out cat. He came and went as he pleased, but spent each night in the house. There were a few strays and other people's cats in the neighborhood, and my Grandmother had a bad habit of inviting in every tiger cat that came near the door. She couldn't distinguish our cat, aptly named Tiger, from the others. Tiger didn't seem to mind if others took his spot and came in, so he could chase more birds and mice, and the strays didn't mind a chance to get a bite to eat.

The way our living room was set up, you could sit on the couch and look across the room to the stairs that went to the second floor. It was a side view through the rails on the side of the stairway. One night, my Mom saw a cat go up the stairs. It was a fluffy solid grey cat. No stripes, no tiger markings.  She was up late readings and her immediate thought was that a stray had made its' way in. I was in bed, and so was everyone else, but my Mom. She quietly went up to look for the cat. She looked as best she could without waking the whole house, and finally gave up. She figured it would get out in the morning.

The next day, no cat. After puzzling over that for a bit, she forgot about it. We figured it shot out past us when someone went outside. A few weeks later, I was sitting on the couch next to her reading a book. She said "Look, see the cat , it got in again!" I saw the cat going up the stairs. We both began a thorough search for the cat. We couldn't find it. We finally gave up.

During this time, my Grandmother passed away, and she wasn't around to let in strays.Life went on, the hauntings ramped up a bit, but I knew it wasn't her. One night while talking to my mother she said  "There is the cat", I turned and sure enough the cat was making its' way up the stairs.  I ran up and she did too....no, we didn't find the cat. We also realized my Grandmother was no longer there to let in strays, and besides this was not a tiger cat, she wouldn't mistake it. My tiger cat was a killer. He was one tough tom. He never hissed, chased or even regarded the other "cat". How strange. Now things are getting a little strange to us. We had not yet imagined a ghost cat, but he was a mystery.

We were starting to wonder where the cat was coming from and going and could find no place of entry or exit (if there were one Tiger would be using it too). Weeks went by, one night my mother and I were sitting on the couch again, and up went the cat. She said "Do you see the cat?". I said "Nope", she said "Me either.

From then on we stopped wasting our time and let the little spirit cat make its' way up (never down) the stairs. He was as solid as you or I, and never said a meow, but he wasn't really there in the way you or I are. Today I would call him a residual haunting. He was just another resident of the haunted house we called home. He was seen a few more times by us, then we just stopped looking up when we saw something just out of view on the stairs. Wonder what other things we missed....

I have seen another ghost cat, so they are out there.

Happy Haunting!



Peshaui Wequashimese




(C)Dr R M Wolf. May not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission.