There was a lot of sadness here when reader Gayle Ferguson, a biologist at Massey University in New Zealand, lost her beloved tabby Huxley to a marauding dog. I’m pleased to report that she has adopted a new kitten. Meet Lucy:
Lucy is a sweetie. She loves cuddles, is friendly to everybody, has a very loud purr, and is fond of food and vocalising. She would love to play with her big step-sister Millie, but Millie will have none of her 🙁 Lucy loves playing ping-pong and hunting for cicadas. Lucy and her brother are 5 months old and both had to be rehomed due to one of their carers being allergic to cats. Maybe one day she will fill the void left by Huxley, whom we miss so much.
What a cutie! She’ll never fill the hole that Huxley left, but will very quickly find her way into your lives and hearts (actually, looks like she already has!).
Tabbies are coolest. Close to the wild-type.
I love Lucy.
And how could one not love her? She’s gorgeous, and clearly got plenty of spunk to spare.
Congratulations, Gayle, on being selected by such a worthy overlord!
b&
Yes–she definitely looks like the benevolent tyrant type. 😉
(Wish mine were–they’re definitely furry little ruthless dictators.)
What a beautiful little being ! *heartstrings being tugged*
Oh! This Lucy looks much friendlier than our Lucy. Then again, looks can be deceiving 😉
Congratulations!
All together now: “Awwwwwwwwwww” 🙂
Awwwwwwwwww
Wait — was that ten “w”s or eleven?
Here, let me try again:
Awwwwwwwwwwww
There, that’s better…I think….
Cheers,
b&
More awwwwwwwww…. she is just darling. I hope Millie takes to her soon :-).
As has been said, no, she will never fill the void left by Huxley, but she will create her own unique spot in your life that will be equally impossible to fill when she is gone (hopefully after a very long fulfilling kittek life).
How adorable! Congratulations to every one involved!
We have a 50% success rate for our 2 cranky old ladies taking to Merlyn. It’s been almost 4 months. Good luck.
Indeed, it’s something of a crapshoot introducing “outsiders”. I’ve been lucky with my four–after about a week of hissing and growling and kitteh stink-eye with each introduction, they’ve all gotten along with each other. Sometimes though, you have to settle for them barely tolerating each other (I’ve had that with cats in the past, too).
I am so happy that she got a new cat! He looks so cute! 😀
congratulations!
What a cutie pie!!!! AWWW! Congratulations! Nothing enriches your life quite like an interesting and quirky loving kitteh.
^^^Precisely!
And it doesn’t hurt that Lucy looks so much like our new cat…And like so many others I’ve been noticing since. Had no idea gray tabbies so often had tan noses, freckle spots at whisker bases, eyes lined with black and then tan…
Congrats, Gayle!
You mean like this?
http://whyevolutionistrue.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/baihu_bedroom_eyes.jpg
This may help you understand where it comes from:
http://google.com/search?q=african+wildcat&tbm=isch
Cheers,
b&
Wow–there went another ten minutes scrolling through all those amazing shots of African Wildcats… (thanks!)
Yeah, exactly!
Man, I feel like such an idiot! In 40 some years of having cats, I’ve had black ones, tuxedo, ginger, gray & white, orange & white, calico…but never a classic “gray tabby.” So upon adopting the fantabulous Winston, we’d been cooing ad nauseam over all the wonderfully ‘unique’ little features of his pattern(s)…till I started seeing doppelgängers everywhere I looked.
After reading this thread the other night I started going back through all the kitteh contest threads and making a list of all similarly marked kittehs and came up with about 14 or so, if I count longhairs with similar markings…And of course the inestimable Baihu was among ’em.
So Winston is not exactly unusually marked. Somehow it’s even neater that he’s nearly wild-type! I will not break it to him that his white front mittens and back boots sort of spoil the wildcat gestalt…
It’s even worse that there’ve been threads about African wildcats on this very forum… blush!
This past week-end the kids & I took in “African Cats” at the cineplex, and I saw some of the same telltale markings on some of the lions! (The black & tan -lined eyes; the brick-colored nose lined in black…)
(Guess there’s something to this evolution jazz after all….)
Beautiful. Congratulations. Hope she helps your heart heal. ^..^
I love this site – whenever I’m having a bad day, can just stop by and sure enough, always a fluffy kitteh or two are there for virtual petting and admiration 😉
Roll her in catnip; maybe then Millie will take to her.
A disturbing new development: Lucy went to the vet yesterday to be spayed and while we were gone Millie sprayed inside the house to mark her territory! This is the first time she has done this. So much for Feliway. Any tips on how to get cat piss smell out of the fabric of your favourite reclining chair would be much appreciated!
Gayle, I don’t know if they have this in New Zealand, but if they do, pick some up. It’s not cheap, but it works.
http://www.ilovenaturesmiracle.com/home/index.php
Feliway.
Artificial pheromone, and I will testify that it works. However, the couple of times that we had territorial peeing between Keeshu & Fifi, it was more directed at us, not the other cat.
I’m not an expert, but you need to spend lots of time reassuring Millie that she is not being replaced. And she may still be mourning in her own way.
When we got Merlyn, I slept downstairs with him for a few nights, while Debra (Spousal Unit) slept upstairs with the Grrrls.
I guess I completely missed your feliway comment. Millie is mad at you, not Lucy. Show her how much you love her.
Do let us know how things progress, Gayle. And best of luck!