new kitty

I got a new kitty! Warning, this is long but the cuteness is worth it, I promise.

The local humane society did a free cat adoption the weekend after Thanksgiving. Jay had to work both days, but I was off Saturday (after 9 hellish days in a row!) so he trusted me to go pick a winner.

I was originally looking for a male cat because the cat I already have is male. (Because they're from the Humane Society, no matter what they would be spayed or neutered.) I found one that was cute, but he was very shy. I'm awesome with cats, so he eventually warmed up to me, complete with snuggles and love nibbles, but he was still skiddish. There was an older couple outside the pen discussing the cat with an adoption coordinator. While they were surprised that I was getting any kitty attention (kit-tention), they were looking for an outside / barn cat - not necessarily people friendly but cat friendly and a good hunter. From their description, this was the perfect cat for them. Even though I liked him, I didn't know how he would react to Jhay and other guests, which is important to me. (I didn't stick around for the follow up, but when I next cheked the webpage, that cat had been adopted, so I assume it was with those people.)

Also I didn't feel so bad about letting that one "get away" because that cat's pen-mate, Hadley, was an adorable sweetheart. She was very affectionate, but not needy. She was comfortable enough around me to eat and let me hold her and touch her feet, and was still playful. In total, I spent over an hour in that pen, occasionally venturing out to see if I wanted to meet any other cats. But I kept going back to her until my mind was made up. She wasn't spayed yet, so I signed all the paperwork and was told I could come back Tuesday to bring her home. Perfect, as Tuesday is both my and Jay's day off, so he would get to meet her before actually getting home.

We got there and signed all the final paperwork and whatnot. They gave us a cardboard carrier to get her home - we took it because it's always nice to have 2 carriers when you have 2 cats. She was still groggy from surgery so we left her in the cardboard one. The adoption folks warned us that she hadn't gone potty since before the surgery - more than 24 hours ago. No problem, we had a litter box waiting at home. Unfortunately, poor girl couldn't wait til then, and I ended up very covered in stinky cat pee. And the cardboard carrier went straight in the trash.

At first the two cats didn't get along. We kept them separated, but the new one was still grumpy from surgery and all the recent changes in her life. So even though Mecrutio wanted nothing more than to be friends, the new kitty let out the occasional hiss, and that was off-putting to everyone. But as time went on. they became friends. As I type this, they are chasing each other around upstairs, sounding like a herd of elephants.

And now pictures! Meet Hadley. (The shelter named her, but I think it's a cute name so we'll keep it.)







Did I mention she's polydactyl AND bobtailed? She's my little genetic opera of a kitty.:)