Last year I was working such long hours, I was worried about Rasputin being alone all day. I could tell that he was bored since he got into all kinds of mischief during the day and even when I got home, he acted up. I looked into getting a second cat. I knew three things – the cat needed to be shorthair (I had a hard enough time keeping up with Rasputin’s Maine Coon fur), the cat couldn’t be too young (Rasputin weighs 17lbs and is very playful), and the cat needed to be female (I had read opposite gender cats get along better). So, I went off to the Quincy Animal Shelter just to window shop. I thought I found the cat of my dreams. She was a smoky beauty named Aster. I went home, crunched some numbers, assessed my apartment, and decided to go for Aster. The next day when I contacted the shelter, Aster had already been adopted. Boo! I went back the next weekend and hung out in the socialization room. A sassy tortoiseshell caught my eye. One minute she was all affectionate rubbing against you, the next she swatted at you. Her name was Daisy. She was so small I had no way of guessing her age – 8 years. I adopted her, named her Stella, and took her home the next weekend.
It was a steep learning curve with Stella. She wasn’t as playful or snuggly as Rasputin. Catnip did nothing to her. She hissed and growled at Rasputin. I couldn’t trim her claws without getting ripped to shreds. There were a couple days there that I worried that I made a mistake adopting her. Now, I can’t imagine my home without her. She is so much more relaxed and friendly! Rasputin and her will never snuggle up and snooze but they definitely enjoy having each other around. They chase each other back and forth across the apartment, and play swatting games. Rasputin even gets my attention when he’s worried about Stella (like when wind blew a door shut with her stuck in the eaves. Rasputin also likes to tattle on her when she’s getting into mischief. Stella is great with guests. She hangs out while Rasputin hides in the bedroom closet. She also gets very worried if I am crying and has to sit next to me.
Stella is the first down the stairs to say hi to me when I get home from work. Also, when I wake up in the morning she is at the foot of the bed and walks up under my hand to get petted. She doesn’t hiss at Rasputin anymore unless he has vet smell on him. She shows her tummy all the time. I play this Venus flytrap sit-up game with her. If she’s displaying tummy I scratch her lower belly so Stella tries to sit up to swat at my hand. Over and over and she gets abs of steel! She isn’t a big meower and when she does meow, she sounds like she had a three pack a day cigarette habit. Stella adores these colorful fuzzy balls and treats them like her babies – meowing as she carries one into another room.
I love you girly! You make my home full of furry love.
