Q: Thanks for views on keeping your cat indoors so it will stay healthy. I got Bella on Monday and she is beautiful. She is black with green eyes and small for one year. She was abandoned and appeared at the door of the lady I got her from on a snowy weekend, pregnant and unmarried. The lady was a cat lover and took her in.

Bella had four kittens and three were adopted. I was the only one who answered the ad about the mother. We are older and decided not to get a kitten because they are so lively. Bella has a very sweet disposition and I look forward to seeing her every morning.

A: Bella was also spayed before she came to you, which was morally essential to the transfer to stem the tide of pet overpopulation. You are doing everything right. Thanks for reminding people that "older" cats make great pets, although we're talking nuances in your case. With life expectancies of 18 years and better, cats well beyond 10 make great companions for a lovely long while.

(Connie Bloom writes about pets for the Beacon Journal. She can be reached at 330-996-3568 or cbloomthebeaconjournal.com.)