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How Did You Know You'd Found the Right Cat?



 
 
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  #1  
Old June 16th 04, 07:17 AM
Melissa Houle
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Default How Did You Know You'd Found the Right Cat?

Hello fellow cat lovers,

I am a relatively new poster, here. However my cat loving credentials
are sound. I am the servant/human mother of Panther, a sixteen-year
old neutered male, and recently of Francesca, a seven month old brown
classic tabby female, soon to be spayed. Until late this March, I was
the slave of Isadora, a black and white spotted domestic short haired
female, now residing on the far side of the rainbow bridge.

So I've been wondering, when each of you went in search of your past
or present cats or cat family, what was it about the cat or kitten
that "clicked" the first time you met? How did you make the decision
about whom to adopt?

Briefly, my stories are as follows. Isadora was this little frightened
eight week old ball of fluff when I first met her at the animal
shelter in my town. She was so determined to get away from me, she
climbed the chain-link fence of the little play enclosure, and managed
to get herself wedged between the ceiling and the top of the fence,
and began to cry for help. When the shelter volunteer got her down
(they had to get the ladder), she handed Izzy to me and said, "now you
have to take that one." They were joking, but I actually did adopt her
a few days later, as I was afraid nobody else would. She repaid my
decision with fifteen years of excellent companionship, fun and love,
and was always a supberb cat, full of charm and personality. I still
miss her very much, although there's no doubt in my mind letting her
go was the merciful thing to do.

Pan, whom I adopted on the same day also at eight weeks old, was very
different--he climbed right into my lap and began to purr. G I
figured this was a kitten who knew what side his bread was buttered
on, so I took him. While Izzy was a little cobby persian type, Pan is
more of a long, elegant Siamese-Burmese type cat. He has the great big
Siamese ears, and he definitely has the voice. NOBODY can ignore this
cat when he's hungry. He's more shy and retiring with strangers,
although he's become braver and mellower with age.

After I had mourned Isadora for a while, I found myself thinking of
getting someone new. I know Pan won't live forever and I didn't want
to be left catless when the time comes to say goodbye to him. A friend
of mine owns a retired American Shorthaired classic brown tabby
showcat, who is a great friend of mine in his own right, as he has a
lot of charm and personality. Not to mention that he's a gorgeous,
gorgeous animal. Let me be clear, I definitely advocate finding and
adopting cats from the pound--That's how I've come by all three of my
cats in my adult life. However, I also think any show cat deserves a
happy, normal retirement as a beloved house cat. The life of a show
cat seems to be a very unnatural, unpleasant life for cats, as it
involves lots of traveling, being shut in cages,being poked and
prodded by judges and stared at by strangers in big, unfamiliar places
that must look and sound pretty scary to them.

To get back on track, I had secretly wanted a tabby of my own, so I
went to a few shelters, looking around for possible candidates. About
a month ago, I found Francesca, as pretty a classic tabby as you could
hope to find anywhere. She has a very sweet, gently pointy
aristocratic little face, and a beautifully marked coat. I do not
think she's a purebred anything, but I'm pretty sure she has
Abyssynian blood in her from somewhere. She is very affectionate and
will tolerate being held, although she prefers to be her own cat most
of the time.

So what are some other stories of finding the perfect cat?

Melissa
  #2  
Old June 16th 04, 07:44 AM
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Melissa Houle wrote:

Hello fellow cat lovers,


Hi Melissa, welcome to RPCA! Or, welcome to posting, anyway - I don't
know how long you might have been reading our conversations.

Your stories about your three cats were lovely to read. First of all,
you write really well. I loved the line about Francesca's "gently
pointy, aristocratic little face." Short of an actual image, that
description gave me a great mental picture of her!

Speaking of actual images, do you have any? Jpgs, I mean, of your
furbabies. I'd love to see them.

I have three cats: Smudge (long-haired grey & white female, 7 years
old), Roxy (short haired brown tabby w/white female, 6), and Licorice
(black & white tuxedo male, 1). As for the stories of how I came to
have these feline pals, you can find two of those stories (for Roxy
and Smudge) he

http://www.sonic.net/~jwermont/cats/cats.html

Licorice was a foster kitten I took in last summer with his brother Jake,
when they were 2 or 3 months old. I got them from a local rescue group,
and had them both for about 3 months, bringing them to the rescue group's
weekly mobile adoption. Finally, someone fell in love with Jake, and he
was whisked off. I myself was in the process of bonding with Licorice (who
hadn't been named yet - I was just calling him "black cat"), so I stopped
bringing him to the mobile while I decided whether to keep him.

It took me a long time! I really, really liked him - he's sweet, cute, has
a quirky personality, didn't allow me to touch him for the first month I
had him here, and now purrs his brains out whenever I pet him. And besides
all that, he's absolutely gorgeous! However, I thought three cats might be
a bit too much. Two was just right. It still feels a little too much at
times - it costs more to take care of them all, and they mess up the house
much faster, too (helps that one is basically still a kitten). They all get
along pretty well, though, so I don't think it's too much for them.

Here are some (lousy) pictures of Licorice (what's lousy is the camera,
not the subject!):

http://www.sonic.net/~jwermont/cats/licky/cats.html

You have to click on the thumbnail photos on the left, and a larger
version will come up on the right. (I haven't put any text on that page
yet.)

Enjoy!

Joyce
  #3  
Old June 16th 04, 07:44 AM
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Melissa Houle wrote:

Hello fellow cat lovers,


Hi Melissa, welcome to RPCA! Or, welcome to posting, anyway - I don't
know how long you might have been reading our conversations.

Your stories about your three cats were lovely to read. First of all,
you write really well. I loved the line about Francesca's "gently
pointy, aristocratic little face." Short of an actual image, that
description gave me a great mental picture of her!

Speaking of actual images, do you have any? Jpgs, I mean, of your
furbabies. I'd love to see them.

I have three cats: Smudge (long-haired grey & white female, 7 years
old), Roxy (short haired brown tabby w/white female, 6), and Licorice
(black & white tuxedo male, 1). As for the stories of how I came to
have these feline pals, you can find two of those stories (for Roxy
and Smudge) he

http://www.sonic.net/~jwermont/cats/cats.html

Licorice was a foster kitten I took in last summer with his brother Jake,
when they were 2 or 3 months old. I got them from a local rescue group,
and had them both for about 3 months, bringing them to the rescue group's
weekly mobile adoption. Finally, someone fell in love with Jake, and he
was whisked off. I myself was in the process of bonding with Licorice (who
hadn't been named yet - I was just calling him "black cat"), so I stopped
bringing him to the mobile while I decided whether to keep him.

It took me a long time! I really, really liked him - he's sweet, cute, has
a quirky personality, didn't allow me to touch him for the first month I
had him here, and now purrs his brains out whenever I pet him. And besides
all that, he's absolutely gorgeous! However, I thought three cats might be
a bit too much. Two was just right. It still feels a little too much at
times - it costs more to take care of them all, and they mess up the house
much faster, too (helps that one is basically still a kitten). They all get
along pretty well, though, so I don't think it's too much for them.

Here are some (lousy) pictures of Licorice (what's lousy is the camera,
not the subject!):

http://www.sonic.net/~jwermont/cats/licky/cats.html

You have to click on the thumbnail photos on the left, and a larger
version will come up on the right. (I haven't put any text on that page
yet.)

Enjoy!

Joyce
  #4  
Old June 16th 04, 07:44 AM
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Melissa Houle wrote:

Hello fellow cat lovers,


Hi Melissa, welcome to RPCA! Or, welcome to posting, anyway - I don't
know how long you might have been reading our conversations.

Your stories about your three cats were lovely to read. First of all,
you write really well. I loved the line about Francesca's "gently
pointy, aristocratic little face." Short of an actual image, that
description gave me a great mental picture of her!

Speaking of actual images, do you have any? Jpgs, I mean, of your
furbabies. I'd love to see them.

I have three cats: Smudge (long-haired grey & white female, 7 years
old), Roxy (short haired brown tabby w/white female, 6), and Licorice
(black & white tuxedo male, 1). As for the stories of how I came to
have these feline pals, you can find two of those stories (for Roxy
and Smudge) he

http://www.sonic.net/~jwermont/cats/cats.html

Licorice was a foster kitten I took in last summer with his brother Jake,
when they were 2 or 3 months old. I got them from a local rescue group,
and had them both for about 3 months, bringing them to the rescue group's
weekly mobile adoption. Finally, someone fell in love with Jake, and he
was whisked off. I myself was in the process of bonding with Licorice (who
hadn't been named yet - I was just calling him "black cat"), so I stopped
bringing him to the mobile while I decided whether to keep him.

It took me a long time! I really, really liked him - he's sweet, cute, has
a quirky personality, didn't allow me to touch him for the first month I
had him here, and now purrs his brains out whenever I pet him. And besides
all that, he's absolutely gorgeous! However, I thought three cats might be
a bit too much. Two was just right. It still feels a little too much at
times - it costs more to take care of them all, and they mess up the house
much faster, too (helps that one is basically still a kitten). They all get
along pretty well, though, so I don't think it's too much for them.

Here are some (lousy) pictures of Licorice (what's lousy is the camera,
not the subject!):

http://www.sonic.net/~jwermont/cats/licky/cats.html

You have to click on the thumbnail photos on the left, and a larger
version will come up on the right. (I haven't put any text on that page
yet.)

Enjoy!

Joyce
  #5  
Old June 16th 04, 02:51 PM
Sherry
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

So I've been wondering, when each of you went in search of your past
or present cats or cat family, what was it about the cat or kitten
that "clicked" the first time you met? How did you make the decision
about whom to adopt?


Welcome! I love your cat's names. I look forward to hearing more about them.
You *definitely* have the credentials to join our group.
I only adopted one cat on purpose. The rest of them just "happened". But here's
the story. We busted a kitten mill and seized the cats/kittens. (Siamese).
There was one, longhaired masked kitten. I found out later that he was
Balinese, which is a genetic throw-off that creates a longhaired Siamese. He
was pretty and would have been adopted easily.
Anyway, I was thinking how the only cats I ever got were malnourished, or
neurotic, or somebody else's throwaway. I thought, "I *deserve* to have a
beautiful, nice cat like that." So I took him. (Funny how we justify things we
want!)
That sounds really stupid put down in words. But anyway, that's how I adopted
him.
Sherry

  #6  
Old June 16th 04, 02:51 PM
Sherry
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

So I've been wondering, when each of you went in search of your past
or present cats or cat family, what was it about the cat or kitten
that "clicked" the first time you met? How did you make the decision
about whom to adopt?


Welcome! I love your cat's names. I look forward to hearing more about them.
You *definitely* have the credentials to join our group.
I only adopted one cat on purpose. The rest of them just "happened". But here's
the story. We busted a kitten mill and seized the cats/kittens. (Siamese).
There was one, longhaired masked kitten. I found out later that he was
Balinese, which is a genetic throw-off that creates a longhaired Siamese. He
was pretty and would have been adopted easily.
Anyway, I was thinking how the only cats I ever got were malnourished, or
neurotic, or somebody else's throwaway. I thought, "I *deserve* to have a
beautiful, nice cat like that." So I took him. (Funny how we justify things we
want!)
That sounds really stupid put down in words. But anyway, that's how I adopted
him.
Sherry

  #7  
Old June 16th 04, 02:51 PM
Sherry
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

So I've been wondering, when each of you went in search of your past
or present cats or cat family, what was it about the cat or kitten
that "clicked" the first time you met? How did you make the decision
about whom to adopt?


Welcome! I love your cat's names. I look forward to hearing more about them.
You *definitely* have the credentials to join our group.
I only adopted one cat on purpose. The rest of them just "happened". But here's
the story. We busted a kitten mill and seized the cats/kittens. (Siamese).
There was one, longhaired masked kitten. I found out later that he was
Balinese, which is a genetic throw-off that creates a longhaired Siamese. He
was pretty and would have been adopted easily.
Anyway, I was thinking how the only cats I ever got were malnourished, or
neurotic, or somebody else's throwaway. I thought, "I *deserve* to have a
beautiful, nice cat like that." So I took him. (Funny how we justify things we
want!)
That sounds really stupid put down in words. But anyway, that's how I adopted
him.
Sherry

  #8  
Old June 16th 04, 03:05 PM
Duke of URL
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Posts: n/a
Default

"Melissa Houle" wrote in message
om...

So what are some other stories of finding the perfect cat?


My life seems to have consisted of being found by cats, rather than my
finding them.
I buried Freddie last Autumn after 21 years of him being lovable all over
the place. I met him on a Virginia highway; he was so small he completely
fit in my hand. When I picked him up, he climbed up my jacket, burrowed
inside, curled up, and went to sleep. That settled it - I was adopted.
Chaos showed up on my back porch in an October downpour - she was a ball of
mud with a huge pink mouth wide-open. I took her inside, washed her off and
fed her. She looked around and moved in.
Killer was only supposed to be with me for a month or so, while I looked for
a new home for him when his previous slaves had to give him up. That was
over ten years ago...
--
The One-and-only Holy MosesT


  #9  
Old June 16th 04, 03:05 PM
Duke of URL
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

"Melissa Houle" wrote in message
om...

So what are some other stories of finding the perfect cat?


My life seems to have consisted of being found by cats, rather than my
finding them.
I buried Freddie last Autumn after 21 years of him being lovable all over
the place. I met him on a Virginia highway; he was so small he completely
fit in my hand. When I picked him up, he climbed up my jacket, burrowed
inside, curled up, and went to sleep. That settled it - I was adopted.
Chaos showed up on my back porch in an October downpour - she was a ball of
mud with a huge pink mouth wide-open. I took her inside, washed her off and
fed her. She looked around and moved in.
Killer was only supposed to be with me for a month or so, while I looked for
a new home for him when his previous slaves had to give him up. That was
over ten years ago...
--
The One-and-only Holy MosesT


  #10  
Old June 16th 04, 03:05 PM
Duke of URL
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

"Melissa Houle" wrote in message
om...

So what are some other stories of finding the perfect cat?


My life seems to have consisted of being found by cats, rather than my
finding them.
I buried Freddie last Autumn after 21 years of him being lovable all over
the place. I met him on a Virginia highway; he was so small he completely
fit in my hand. When I picked him up, he climbed up my jacket, burrowed
inside, curled up, and went to sleep. That settled it - I was adopted.
Chaos showed up on my back porch in an October downpour - she was a ball of
mud with a huge pink mouth wide-open. I took her inside, washed her off and
fed her. She looked around and moved in.
Killer was only supposed to be with me for a month or so, while I looked for
a new home for him when his previous slaves had to give him up. That was
over ten years ago...
--
The One-and-only Holy MosesT


 




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