My fiancé and I both grew up in petless households, so when we moved into our newly shared apartment it was the perfect timing for our first cat. We planned a visit to Koneko, a cat cafe partnered with Anjellicle Cats Rescue. We were told that all the cats residing at Koneko were beginner level cats.
At Koneko, we tried to engage one of the cats we were interested in with a wand toy, but instead we caught the attention of a petite tuxedo with the cutest brow whiskers who was eager to stalk and play. It was Boots! We were instantly charmed, and felt ready to make a decision. Upon querying, however, we learned that she had recently arrived at Koneko with her bonded sister, Bear, with whom she would need to be adopted. We were told that Bear was hiding that afternoon in the back room. They had come from a hoarding situation and were quite young, teenagers at 10 months, and we were looking for a cat a bit older and more mature due to our inexperience. Bear never came out and we left feeling disappointed, as we didn’t feel prepared to take on two teenage cats at once.
The pictures of Boots and Bear on PetFinder.com were undeniably precious, but I was certain we would be in over our heads if we adopted two cats at once. I continued to research and consider other cats, while my fiancé pined over Boots. The memory of the playful cat with perfect tuxedo markings had prompted him to research the cost and additional effort needed in caring for two cats versus one, and he proposed we should take the leap. I gave in.
A few weeks later, Boots and Bear arrived at our apartment. We had undergone heavy preparation, having purchased several pieces of cat furniture including a large cat tree and scratching post, dedicating a walk-in closet as a litter room, and had a basket full of cat toys. We had anticipated that they might hide immediately, but both cats strolled right in with tails high, jumping onto our furniture and exploring every corner. Boots quickly stranded herself on top of our kitchen cabinets, while Bear lounged calmly on the hardwood floor.
In the first few weeks due to our inexperience, we approached and handled them as if they possessed the fragility of newborns. Boots and Bear turned out to be equally playful, with gentle temperaments, but their similarities end there. Boots hunts wand toys with the cool efficiency and precision of a seasoned predator. Bear is less tactical and coordinated, but pounces continuously.
We learned that Boots is quite the couch potato when not playing, and that she has a gastrointestinal problem which manifests as random acts of turdness, but we love her all the same. She is also hopelessly picky, while Bear is undiscriminating where treats and food are concerned, going so far as to snatching up a freshly crushed cockroach. Bear is endlessly curious but quite the scaredy cat, prone to being surprised by non-moving objects, whereas Boots remains nonplussed by most events.
Boots and Bear stayed off of our desks and keyboards, never sat on our faces while we slept, and did not knock objects to the ground, as cats on the Internet so like to do. We did find that as is often reported, our cats did not cooperate with our preparations, as they preferred to lounge on our chairs and on top of our shelves instead of the cat furniture, that the numerous cat beds we purchased went ignored in favor of cardboard boxes, and that we would probably never be able to clip Bear’s nails without suffering grave injuries. And goodness, why did no one warn us about all the fur? Yet we adapted, and the cats did as well, and we have now become seasoned and proud cat parents! – Boots & Bear’s Mom
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