Our Furry Children

NOTE: Click on picture to see larger version.

Hello, Shawn here. Athough Nessa and Megan are going to get most of the attention in this space, we do have three other "children"--our cats Spats, William, and Ginger, as seen from left to right in the photo. We refer to them as our "furry" children, as opposed to our bald children (which in Nessa's case is still mostly true).

William (full name William the Orange, details of obscure historical pun available on request), is a male orange tiger that I adopted in May, 2002. He is the classic curious cat: he never met a door he didn't want to see what was on the other side, which means he's gotten shut into a closet by accident on several occasions. I swear William is part Labrador Retriever. He loves people, and is very sociable. He has to lay down right where he'll be underfoot. He comes running whenever he hears sounds that might be people food (cellophane especially). And he hides in the basement whenever there's a thunderstorm. William always has an eye out for the main chance--you don't leave food open when William's about.

I adopted Spats--named for his white feet, of course--in November of 2002. For a while he was the classic scaredy cat, but he has gotten less timid as he has gotten older. He is also good with people, but he's basically a one-person cat. If my lap is free, Spats is likely to be on it. He has a bad habit of nipping at your elbow or toes if he thinks he deserves attention. Spats is a high cat; he loves the top of our armoire, and used to get up on top of the cupboards in my last house.

We adopted Ginger, a calico female, last January to be Megan's kitty. Ginger is also often very friendly and sociable, but is otherwise content to go her own way. When she wants something, usually attention, she lets you know, loudly and persistently. Less than a year old (though she is as big as Spats), Ginger is still very much a kitten most of the time, and is frequently tearing around the house to work off some energy.

As with any family, they don't always get along. Spats and William have been good buds from the get go, and Spats will often let William use him as a pillow. William and Ginger have become friends, and can often be found cuddled up together. Ginger likes Spats, and is more than willling to play with him. Spats...tolerates...Ginger. It's rare to see Spats and Ginger lying together, and if all three cats are cuddled up, William is usually in the middle (partly because William tends to plop himself right in the middle--he's not shy, that boy).

All of the furry children have taken Nessa's arrival in stride, and don't seem to care one way or the other. They all exhibit occasional curiosity, but mostly they ignore her. Spats is unhappy that he doesn't get nearly as much lap time as before, but that's the only real fallout. In fact, as Nessa grows more able to interact with her surroundings, the cats are becoming friendlier. William allows Nessa to grab his fur and tug without reacting at all. This afternoon Nessa was lying on the bed, waving one of her rattles around, and Spats was chasing the other end of it. Spats would grab the rattle, Nessa would tug, and Spats would tug back.

We hope that all three kitties will put up with Nessa as she goes through her toddler years, so that by the time she is old enough to appreciate having a purring cat on her lap they'll all be fast friends. I only dread the day when Nessa says she wants a kitty of her own...