Cheddar
I found Cheddar when he was 5 weeks old, crying in a tree by our old apartment. He was sweet and active, but appeared to be underweight. When we brought him to the vet a few days later, we learned why.
Cheddar had a common internal parasite called coccidia. The condition is easily treated, but left untreated it can be life-threatening, especially for a small kitten. The veterinarian believed that had we not found Cheddar and brought him in, the kitten wouldn't have lasted another week. He was literally skin and bones, with no muscle mass or fat anywhere on his body.
Needless to say, Cheddar made a fully recovery. He grew and grew until even our vet made comments that perhaps Cheddar wasn't pure house-cat (yes, he was joking). We do wonder if he might have some Maine Coon in him. At his last vet appointment he weighed in at just under 22 pounds. We are hoping to get him down to 18-19 pounds, but even at his optimum weight he is no dainty kitty-cat!
Brie
Brie is the first cat we ever adopted. How we came to get him is a funny story. We had decided to get a kitten and found an add in the local paper. While visiting the woman trying to find homes for her many kittens, we had a hard time choosing which kitten to bring home. The first kitten we saw was sitting in a box and hissed at our approach. We decided not to get that one.
We were looking to bring home a female kitten and we chose a very sweet one. We stayed a bit longer, chatting with the woman, and I just had to play with that hissy little male kitten. I picked him up and calmed him down. Before we left, I placed him back in his box and we were happily on our way home.
When we had almost reached home, a good hour-long drive away, I was playing with the kitten and realized I had put down the wrong kitten! So, we ended up with a male...
I've never been more happy for one of my mistakes. Brie is a joy for us. He is affectionate, seeking attention from anyone who will give it. He enjoys talking- meowing back if you call him or if you ask him a question. Our friends are much amused by having "conversations" with our cat.
I'm so very glad I chose the wrong kitten.
Greyure
When we first got cats, we didn't know much about them. Greyure is proof of how very little I knew. Our vet at the time had told us that we shouldn't get our cats neutered or spayed until they were at least six months of age. I had Cheddar neutered just a week too late by our calculations and our young female, Havarti, became pregnant.
Havarti has since passed on, but Greyure remains a sweet and shy member of our family. At 5 pounds, she takes after her mother who was 7 pounds, and it is hard to believe that she is the daughter of her giant of a father.
I felt quite uneducated after that episode and have learned much since then. I am all for early spay and neuter and all of my own animals are spayed early. Because I felt it was my fault that the litter existed and I was well aware of the overpopulation problem even back then as novice as I was, I had planned on keeping the kittens myself. My sister talked me out of Greyure's brother, Carson, who is the spitting image of his father. Not a bad deal for Carson, who is now an only cat and spoiled rotten!:)
