It all started when, on a whim, we went to the Humane Society after picking Elodie up from a weekend with Robbie's dad. We looked at the dogs and the bunnies. I saw an angora that I was SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO tempted by. But then we went to Elodie's favourite part, the kitties.
They CHS has been overrun for years. Despite having a fairly new facility, the cat population is huge, and there's not enough room for all the cats. Our old cat, Ciaty, was a rescue from CHS, and I've always said our next cat would be a rescue, as well.
We had no intention of getting a kitty, but as we were walking up the aisle, one kitty saw Elodie and started frantically rubbing up against his glass, kneading the window and mewing at Elodie. I just couldn't help myself. I asked to meet that kitty.
We went into a little room with this cat, named Dieter, a tiny black-and-white stray. He and Elodie were like automatic best friends. They'd anticipate each others' movements. She'd run, and he'd run with her. He wouldn't take his eyes off her.
We put Dieter back and headed home. Elodie kept reminding us how much she loved that kitty and how she's give him food and clean his litter box every day. Later that night, Robbie and I decided to do it. We would adopt that kitty.
The next day, we drove to pick Elodie up from daycare, and then told her we were going for a drive and just headed into Calgary. She soon fell asleep, and 40 minutes later, we were in front of the Humane Society. Elodie was groggy and didn't figure out where we were until we were in the building. Then she asked if she could go see that kitty again. We said sure, and off she trotted, dragging us behind her.
I sat down at the adoption table to start the process, and Elodie was happily oblivious for ten minutes. Then she asked why he had a cut on his bum. We explained what neutering was, and that Dieter had been neutered that day. She asked why they don't want cats to have kittens because kittens are just so cute. We explained that there are so many cats in the world that there aren't enough homes for them, and some kitties have to spend their whole lives in places like this, without a family. She asked if Dieter would have to do that. We said, no, because we're taking Dieter home with us.
She was SO excited! Pretty soon, we packed him in the little cardboard box thing, paid our fee, and left for home with our new pet. He's really Elodie's cat. We spent the entire ride home trying to pick a new name for him. I went to school with a very strange boy named Dieter, and had no desire to be reminded of him every time I called the cat's name. We finally picked Pan, of the Greek persuasion, and Elodie decided his name is Pan Dieter Von SpaceCat. Don't ask me where she gets these things from.
Here's a picture of the little guy, settling in nicely.
We think he maybe was originally someone's pet, who ran away. He's certainly very affectionate for being a stray. He comes running if a shake the Temptations. He slept between Robbie and I last night and is holding his own against our very curious small dog. The big one doesn't really care. But most important, he and Elodie are like best friends. They romp around the house. She's spent all this evening playing with him, not once turning on the TV. Right now, in fact, she's playing with his mouse and him, tossing and tossing it over and over.
As for myself, I must say, since we put Ciaty down last December, I've been wanting another kitty. I missed the lap snuggles and the purring around our house. Pan has fulfilled both those things just today alone. He snuggled up and fell promptly asleep while I was reading a text book. And he purrs constantly. All in all, it's been a great choice.
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