I grew up in a no pet household. No matter how much we begged and pleaded it was always a “no”. Eventually when we were in our 20s in our last years of university (my middle brother and I), much to our surprise, my dad asked us if we wanted a cat. His friend’s cat had a litter that needed homes. So we got our first cat. A beautiful blue eyed siamese. Mr Bigglesworth. What an asshole he was. I’m not sure if it’s the breed but the was everything that people who hate cats say about cats. He only had time for my mother and my brother. My friend was living with us at the time and she and Mr B had serious beef. He kept sleeping on her clothes like he was out to get her. He only wanted to be petted on his terms. He was also an outside cat so we didn’t see much of him. Unfortunately, he went missing for a few days and we found his body in a side street. A victim of a hit and run. We weren’t close but all of us shed a few tears as we buried him that day. My mother was particularly broken hearted. Poor Biggledeeboo. He was a punk but he was loved.

I was happy after that to not have another animal in my life. Saying goodbye to them is not fun. So how I ended up having three cats in my life who I love, will always be a mystery. But here they are. My three babies.

First we have Tweak. He’s N’s cat who he got from his mother (someone who works with her or something, he says). He used to be really over weight. So much so that he became diabetic a few years ago and needed special food and nightly shots. It’s because he’s greedy and never stops eating. We have to keep an eye on him or he’ll eat himself into oblivion. As soon as 4pm hits he starts singing for his dinner. Dinner is at 7 so you can imagine how annoying this is. He’s about 8 or 9 now. He previously held the record for loudest purr but has been bumped to second place. I’ll explain why later. He’s very cuddly. Annoyingly so. He makes a point of sitting next to you and slowly inching his way on to your lap. If you’re not careful you’ll have a sneaky ninja cat up in your business. He’s also our resident puker. I think it’s because he grooms himself and the other two so it’s hair balls a plenty. Also because he’s a greedy A-hole he eats to fast and pukes 5 minutes after then proceeds to meow for more food. He also loves to be carried on N’s shoulder and he plays catch with twisty ties. We give him a lot of shit but he is very much loved because he’s our first born and we’re so proud that he managed to lose weight and is no longer diabetic.

Next up, middle child syndrome in cat form, Spaz. He was born on our back door a year or 2 before I came into the picture. He is N’s little baby cat. His first love. He carries him around like a baby even though he’s a really big cat. Bigger than your average cat I would say. Spaz is always where N is and if any other cat encroaches on cuddle time he hisses. He’s so spoiled. He’s also a little sickly, although he’s been much better lately. He has urinary tract thing so he needs special food (notice a trend?). He’s also allergic to pine. Something we found out after our first and only real Christmas tree. And he has asthma and has his own little kitty inhaler. Thankfully we haven’t had to use it. He’s also completely nuts. I think that’s why his name is Spaz because at about 10pm every night he completely spazzes out for no reason and runs up and down the house growling. It’s the funniest thing. We’re always dodging a zooming cat as he jumps and dives by our heads while we’re watching tv. What a nutter. It took him a while to get used to me but I think we’re good now and he lets me carry him like a baby sometimes too.

And finally, our little princess, Trinity. I was jealous of N getting all the cat attention so I wanted a cat of my own. Enter this little fire cracker. Unfortunately, very shortly after we got her she found someone to love and it wasn’t me. So now N has 3 cats and I have none. Unless I’m home alone then I’m good enough. Trini was the runt of her litter. But when we went to pick her up she was wrestling her siblings and winning. Any doubts we had of her being bullied by our 2 monster cats were quickly squashed. She and tweak wrestle nightly and she doesn’t pay Spaz any mind when he hisses and swats at her. We think she enjoys provoking him actually. She specifically goes near him when he’s in cuddle mode with N, waits until he gets irritated, dodges the swats and hisses and when Spaz runs away out of pure frustration frustration she promptly takes his place on the warm lap and proceeds with the loudest purr known to man. You’d be surprised how such a tiny little thing has such a loud purr (oh my goodness!). She’s still really tiny but man can she hold her own. She’s the only one of the three who doesn’t listen to instruction. The other 2 will scatter if we yell at them to get off the kitchen counter but not madame. She doesn’t respond to verbal threats. She’s fearless. The other 2 don’t really go outside without caution. Her we’ve almost lost twice because she’s ventured out of the yard. She does not allow closed doors in the house and will scratch and yell until you open so she can see what you’re doing (pooping most likely). She also only lets you pet her on her terms and she will only allow you to pick her up if it’s so that you can help her reach something high. She loves chewing on pens, but only when you’re using them. She loves anything she can climb into and explore, nothing is safe. If something breaks, Trini broke it. She is loveable sometimes. Mostly in the morning but other than that she just wants to be left alone so she can cause mayhem and chaos and do a cute meow when you’re angry.

And that’s the story of our three fur kiddos. I’m not really an animal person but these guys really got under my skin. I just love them so much.

Okay, I’d better get some rest now because tomorrow’s a big day!!!!