Calypso LaDottie
Zoometta
As most of you know, we lost Persephone aka TBS, (The Bride
of Satan), our very old cat about two and a half years ago. We knew we would eventually get another cat and
were just waiting for the right time. We
got our new kitty about three months ago.
We were looking for a cat between about 1 or 2 years old to about 7 or 8
years old. Then I saw this one on our
second trip to the shelter and fell in love with her immediately. We got her from the Seattle Humane Society. They have a very high rate of placement and
are a super place to get a pet. A good
place to make donations to as well since they provide excellent care to these
animals in transition to their forever homes.
This kitty had been transferred from another shelter but had
not been in either shelter very long. She
had only been in the Seattle shelter for about a day or a day and half. They did not have any history notes about her
origins. Her health record was good. They gave her all the necessary required shots;
she was spayed and microchipped. Ready to go.
It was estimated that she was 10 or 11 months old; therefore, about adult
size. We were advised to take her to our
own vet within two weeks. Our vet said
she was younger than the estimate from the shelter. She needed to stay on
kitten food for a while longer. The large
size of her paws was noted, her ears, blocky face and body shape, longer hind
legs than front legs, plus her general personality all seem to point to one of
the larger breeds. She is a tabby mix
but has a substantial amount of either Maine Coon or Siberian Forest cat in her
genes. She is alert, curious, friendly,
funny, and has stolen our hearts.
When we first got her…
We thought she was a small full-grown cat. But we were wrong. She is still a kitten. A large kitten, but a kitten none-the-less.
Now, three months later, and two pounds heavier, she has
grown up … almost… we are not sure… still lots of kitten behavior…how big will
she get? The fur on her tail is really
long, and the rest of her fur is changing to longer as well.
She has fit right into our daily schedule. She is indoor only. We hope to keep her that way. Even though we live in a large city, we have
coyotes and eagles in the area and cars. We also often get raccoons and deer in our garden. Our street abuts a city bike & walking trail
and is less used by cars than most city streets but could still be dangerous.
She takes her duties seriously. No laundry without supervision. Folding clean clothes and making beds offer
plenty of opportunities to scramble into socks, towels, and under sheets and the
blanket. Meal times require extra
supervisory time. Treats are mandatory. Toys must be interesting. High jumps to high places for better views of
what is going on in the house are a necessity.
No matter how many expensive toys and scratching surfaces we present for
her approval, she persists in selecting only the ones she likes. Often that is something questionable in terms
of suitability. Small toys find their
way into the bathtub during the night. She
makes many funny variable sounds from tiny chirps to full blown MEOWs. Breakfast time, complete with loud purring and
romping on the bed, and the silly humans still mostly asleep, is 5 am as
far as she is concerned. A little too
early for us.
Supervising meal time…
C: "For me? Is it ready yet?"
C. "Are you sure you are fixing the food correctly? Add some more, I’m very hungry."
C: "Where’s the meat
or fish? Are you following the cooking
directions?"
B. "It’s vegetarian,
you are a cat."
C: "Let me make sure it’s
not for me. I think this needs a sniff
& taste test."
B: "All gone. You don’t like vegetarian meals."
C: "Let me just check and
make sure. Bleah."
Verdict, not fit for cats.
The cookies are also the wrong kind.
Note: While we, the
humans, are not vegetarians, we try to have a vegetarian meal during the week. She is not a fan. We try not to feed her from the table.
What’s with her long name?
We named her Calypso after both the tiny orchid that grows
in the forests here and for the Greek nymph in the Odyssey. She has an orange dot on her forehead and she
can at times be naughty, hence LaDottie.
Often, she gets the zoomies and goes so fast, bouncing off furniture and
skidding on the hardwood floors, she becomes Zoometta. She is still learning her name and what down
means when she gets on the counters or the dining table. She knows up, up, up, when she is downstairs
means hurry up the steps and you will get a treat. Bob is trying the same trick with down, down
from the counters and table but having mixed results.
My
computer chair with the new occupant
