Our Newest Furry Beast
It's been a long time! Weeks and weeks ago I wrote about how we were hoping to get a cat for the shop, but I guess with the late winter and cold early spring, cats were late in delivering their litters. But just this morning, we drove off to pick up our little kitten. The name is still to be decided (I took a long time to even name Caleb!), but boy is he a cutie.
Everyone is excited to have him around! The entire Wonder Pens team is cooing at him, Caleb is thrilled, I am in love, and Super can't get enough sniffing. Jon claims a few early childhood incidents with cats have scarred him for life, but even he can't resist those deep, sweet blue eyes. I'm swooning. Caleb has always been pretty good with new animals, coming close and then waiting for them to make the first move, and he's been great with the new kitty. I'm not too sure where he learned it from, it's not something that we explicitly taught him, but he loves coming up to new dogs and squatting two or three feet away from them, waiting for them to give him a kiss. With our newest family member, Caleb has turned into the pinnacle of helpfulness, bringing every new thing we've brought home for the cat, to the cat. It's startling to see how Caleb just "knows" the new stuff is for the cat, even the littler scooper and bags of treats. He's been holding out things for the kitten to sniff and to see if the cat will go ahead and take a bite.
"This is the stuff for you to poop onto. I'm still in early potty-training myself, so don't worry if you have any accidents."
"It's not open yet, but I'll bet it's tasty!"
"This is your food, don't let Super have any of it because he'll eat it all." Unfortunately (for Caleb? the cat? the dog?) the new cat is not quite like Super - when Caleb leans in for a kiss, the cat just looks up at him, there's no big tongue coming out. When Caleb offers a treat, it's the same old snout coming in for a taste.
It's safe to say that Caleb is enjoying the kitten. While the kitten was wandering around the couch and the carpet, Caleb could barely eat lunch for having to keep checking on the little guy. While trying to convince Caleb to go down for his nap today, the kitten crawled up onto us to snuggle, and it took about four times longer than usual to get Caleb asleep.
We are thinking of Chewbacca, or maybe Chicken for a name, but the weight of naming a creature for the rest of their life! Oh, the pressure. I have to admit we were all a little worried about Super going crazy, but don't furry little kittens have a way to bring out the best in us, even big smelly dogs? Maybe it was all the hamster training, but Super didn't bark even once. He saves that for humans.
Knowing nothing about cats or how to raise them, we still have big hopes for this little one. We've been careful to make sure his health is up to snuff, and have even researched into fel-o-vax and other vaccines for the little fella down the line. Super has been a pretty resounding failure at becoming a shop dog (although one can still dream in the late afternoon), mainly due to his barking and jumping, but who doesn't love a shop cat slinking around your ankles as you browse for stationery and inks? And it wouldn't hurt if he could catch a few mice, too.
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Comments
Anonymous said:
How exciting! Yes, he’s been darting around people’s ankles, at least when he’s not hiding around and attacking the plants. I’ll let him know to expect you ;)
Anonymous said:
A great name! We’ll have to save it for the next one, especially if this one turns out to be a dud at mousing….
Claudia said:
Oh my god it’s so freaking adorable. I’m super allergic to those little buggers, but this one is making me think “screw it – I’d cuddle him anyway – totally worth the face explosion” Ommmggg <3
Anonymous said:
You’ll have to come and see him!! He’s actually very friendly, even with strangers. Maybe just a quick hug ;)
Les Smith said:
My wife Margaret says you should call him “His Nibs”.
Jim said:
Well, if your goal was to make a 56yr old man SQUEEEEEE like a 9yr old girl, mission accomplished.
We’ll be in Toronto in early Nov and can’t wait to drop by – to shop of course but we’ll keep an eye out for some orange goodness around the ankles!
Anonymous said:
That would be a cute team! Super Dog and Wonder Cat, although our cat is not so wondrous right now, as we’re still working on litter training, haha :)
Maybe we will do a contest! And maybe something special, you’re right, like a Franklin-Christoph ;)
Anonymous said:
That had never occurred to me before! But I think you’re right – of course we would end up going by whatever name Caleb picks :)
Nina said:
Eeee, so cute! Is he already “available” for petting, or are you waiting until he’s older before bringing him to the shop? (The pics look like an apartment so I’m confused)
Anonymous said:
He is! That is to say, we live in an apartment behind the shop, which is where the cat (and dog) also live, so that happens to be where I take most of our photos. However, I do try to bring him into the shop whenever I get a chance. It’s mostly now at night, just because Caleb will be in bed so I don’t have to worry about too many creatures trying to escape at once. However, if you’re in the shop, just let me know, and I will bring him right out! :)
Anonymous said:
Those are great names! I think my indecisiveness is the problem here, haha! ;)
Chris S. said:
That’s ok if a name doesn’t come to you immediately…. because whatever name you choose, Caleb will come up with his version of your kitty’s name or a totally different name altogether and that’s what you’ll call him forever more!
Silvie Savoie said:
Hi Liz & co,
Why about calling the little cat “Wonder” ?
Wonder and Super, a nice team I think.
And it will become the mascotte of the store anyway…
Or you can do a “Concours” about naming the cat and we could win something, like a Franklin Christoph fp ? Ah ah !!
Have a very good day
Anonymous said:
I’m so glad you think so! I’m hoping this kitty will really be one to wander around the shop!
Anonymous said:
Haha! He is a cutie! We’re hoping he’ll also be a good mouser, but we’ll settle for a willingness to be rubbed behind the ears :)
Anonymous said:
We couldn’t agree more!
Anonymous said:
I heard you have two orange kitties yourself! Can’t wait for you & Erin to meet this guy!
Pamela Keown said:
Every pen store needs a cat. :)
Stuart DesBrisay said:
Congratulations on the new family member, he’s beautiful! It’s great that Super gets along with the little guy. As wonderful as dogs are, I think cats are a better fit for your kind of shop, as with bookstores too.
Good luck with the naming, and please keep us up to date! Great blog, one of the best of the pen-related ones. :)
Anonymous said:
He is a beauty! I’m not sure quite how well Super is getting along, but I’m hoping the cat will really take to wandering around the shop and greeting customers, or at the very least – purring from the top of the ink shelves!
And thanks so much for your kind words – it really means a lot!
Mark said:
This made my day. What a lovely little kitty.
Michael Simon said:
Adorable!
Aaron said:
I made several very unmanly sounds upon seeing the pictures of your new kitty. SO CUTE! And, one vote for Chewbacca.
Chris S. said:
Ahh, beautiful! All the cats we’ve had each ended up with a 2nd name that we used more often! We’ve had Mossy, Poon, Stink’um and now Puddy!