For almost nine years, Millie Tilley has been as much a part of the landscape at Reynolda Gardens as the floral archways and rose gardens.
She has slunk through the snapdragons, snuggled against the pants legs of men parked on the garden's benches and soaked in the sunlight streaming through the conservatory.
She has even greeted visitors at the door of the garden boutique and proceeded to lead them on tours of the four-acre garden.
Each morning, Millie, a domestic shorthaired cat, sits inside the conservatory, peering out the window in anticipation of the staff's arrival. Each afternoon, she hops back to the same spot and bids them good afternoon, said Diane Wise, the head horticulturist at the gardens. "She's a daily presence," Wise said. "She's the first thing we see when we drive up, and the last thing we see when we leave."
Millie has survived a bout with cancer that left her with only one ear; a viral illness; and an owl attack that left her with 43 stitches.
Her latest setback will likely exhaust her nine lives.
Two weeks ago, the staff learned that Millie has lymphoma.
The staff, which chips in to pay for Millie's veterinary bills, has decided not to treat the cancer. Millie is about 16 and would probably not survive chemotherapy or radiation, Wise said.
"As much as we love her presence, when that cat starts to hurt, we will end it," she said. "If we thought $5,000 could save her, we'd all chip in."
Wise said that Millie's vet has offered to euthanize Millie on the grounds of the gardens surrounded by as many staff members as want to attend.
"If you can die in Reynolda Gardens, you're doing damn well, frankly," Wise said. "This is her backyard."
Millie showed up at the gardens in October of 1999 but rebuffed the staff's attempts to get to know her. A few months later, John Kiger, a staff member, enticed her with some bits of fried chicken. He took her in his arms and into the warm office.
"We've always had garden cats," Wise said. "They just show up."
The staff named the new cat Millie, after the millennium, and Tilley, for an employee who was about to leave.
In time, visitors to the garden came to know and love Millie. One Wake Forest student used to come to the gardens each weekend, spread a blanket on the slate and study with Millie by her side.
Camilla Wilcox, the curator of education at the gardens, said that Millie is unusually social.
"She has this connection with visitors, especially with children," Wilcox said. "She's very sweet and gentle, and she'll wait by the door for people to come. Children like to come to the garden and look for Millie."
Millie has the run of the gardens but has never stepped off the sidewalk in front of the boutique or wandered over to Reynolda Road. During the day, she roams through the gardens or cools under the shade of benches. In the evening, she sleeps in the conservatory.
The staff had to start putting her inside in the evenings after she was attacked by an owl a few years ago. Wise calls it Millie's "4 p.m. curfew."
On weekends, a staff member comes in the morning and evening to let her in and out.
Last winter, the staff noticed that Millie didn't put on her usual winter fat. By spring, it was clear that Millie was losing weight.
Two weeks ago, an X-ray showed a tumor near her heart. Wise said that Millie could die within a year. In an attempt to keep weight on her, some of the staff members have been bringing in scrambled eggs and fried chicken livers.
The staff has posted sheets around the garden letting visitors know of Millie's health. Many visitors have been concerned about Millie's dramatic weight loss.
"That cat," Wise said, "has more friends than any cat has a right to have."
■ Lisa O'Donnell can be reached at 727-7420 or at lo'donnell@wsjournal.com.
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