Happy 12th birthday to my favorite wild kitty!

Bengal cats, the result of a cross between a wild Asian leopard cat and a domestic cat are known for many things, most noticeably their speckled, marbled, or spotted coats that give them that distinctly wild look. They are also great jumpers and climbers – so much so, they can jump up to three times their height in a single leap, boldly letting you know as they do, because they are also quite loud and chatty as a breed. Zoey, our Bengal, who is celebrating her 12th birthday today does not disappoint the breed – even with her officially being a senior cat, she shows no signs of letting up, down or quieting her true nature.

Case in point – due to several cats of ours that can’t seem to behave, witnessed by the territorial marking on our bed of late, our bedroom is now off-limits with the door shut. However, because we live in Florida and we need to run the air conditioner, we are forced to keep the door open so the air unit can properly function. Our solution – a very tall, 6-foot-high, wicker divider we bought to place in front of the open door to allow the air to circulate but to keep uninvited feline guests out.

With Zoey that door didn’t have a chance in heck of winning…

Zoey’s response to that? A rather loud and dramatic guttural meow she bleats while jumping over the wicker gate in one fell swoop to the other side. “Senior cat? Ha,” says Zoey, as the other cats look at her from the other side of the wicker contraption, marveling at her accomplishment.

What can I say? She’s my girl and she’s been loud and dramatic ever since we got her as a tiny kitten who fit in the palm of my hand. I love her to pieces and wouldn’t have her any other way. Okay, maybe she could lower the decibel at bit at 5:00 a.m. in the morning when she starts to rouse to demand breakfast, but other than that…

Happy Birthday, Zoey – I love you today and every day!

Happy Birthday, Zoey! I love you so much and wishes for many, many more!

The pain is real folks, the pain is real…

I’ve been MIA for quite a while now – no time to blog like I used to, but I thought it would be nice to share a brief update on Shadow for Sunday-Selfie. He’s been with us nearly 4 months now – clearly a part of our family – with the reaction of his permanent residence still receiving mixed reviews. Dan and me, that’s easy, we love the guy with his bold personality and charming ways. The other seven cats, still, not so much. Read more

Shadow has officially been with us for one month!

So, our little black cat, the one who showed up unexpectedly at our house the morning of November 8^th has been with us officially one month, today. We named him Shadow, a name perfectly suited for him, as he tends to lurk in the shadows of our house, blending into our counters, furniture, and more. He also likes to shadow the other cats, trying to make friends as only an energetic 6-month-old young cat will do, which they don’t find quite as endearing as I do. Especially Jazmine. Read more

My seven cats on any given morning of the week, circling like hungry sharks as they wait for breakfast.

Rain or shine, weekday, weekend, holiday or not, my get-out-of-bed morning routine is set-your-clock-to-the-minute established to be 5:30 a.m. My cats insist on it. Friday, November 8th was no exception. It starts with an unnecessary preamble of meows and paw pats to my face to get me out of bed, just in case, despite years of dedicated servitude, I might forget and sleep in until 5:35 a.m. I begin the routine by making the rounds scooping the numerous litter boxes, promptly followed by the feeding process – freshwater and filling seven bowls with assorted individual meal requirements for my seven cats. Seven cats in case you didn’t catch that. Read more

It’s the story of any multi-cat household and it’s usually not intentional. It starts with that cute cat that was given to you as a gift, because, well, it needs a home and who else better than you to give it one? And then that rescue you had to help with, resulting in you taking the cat home because goodness knows what would have happened to him had you not stepped in. And of course, that foster stint that was supposed to be temporary but was a resounding failure, represented by the cat contentedly taking residence on your bed, along with that cat that showed up out of nowhere on your doorstep that you were going to feed “just that one time,” that you have now been feeding for over two years…and just like that, you’re officially a multi-cat household. Read more