Molly and Peep

Molly is our black furry cat and is actually a male despite the name. We thought he was a girl at first but by the time we found out differently, the name had stuck. We adopted him and his sibling Piper from a friend who had taken them in but couldn't keep them along with her own two cats. This was just after we moved into our condo.

So we had these two frisky kittens in our new home as our third and fourth cats and they loved having such space for their playground. Molly soon became our morning wake-up cat -- the cat who climbs into the bed the first thing in the morning for strokes, petting and general attention. His fur is soft, thick and luxurious, and it didn't take much to get him purring! 

When we adoped our fifth cat, there was some antagonism from Molly. He behaved like the displaced middle brother who was no longer the center of attention, chasing and swatting at our newest adoptee. We ascribed it to an almost-human jealousy and hoped it would pass.

But it didn't, and we had to maintain peace in the house, so we installed a pet gate. He squeezed through the bars, so we blocked the gaps. He jumped over it instead, so we put in a taller gate. After he learned to scaled that one (which took all of ten minutes), we finally had to gate the entire doorway to keep those two cats apart. It was an amazing show of determination as Molly overcame each challenge! 

I miss the morning visits from Molly and I often think that his jealousy proves that cats feel human emotions like love just as strongly as we do.

 

Peep the Maine Coon

Peep is our Maine Coon. She is a nine-year-old female with soft gray and brown fur. We adopted her from one of the big-box pet stores after my wife saw her while shopping for Christmas gifts for our other four cats. Peep just looked so sad and lonely in the store cage. Her first weeks at our house showed how bashful and skittish that experience had made her--she would run for the nearest closet and hide from the world at every chance she got. 

We let her be and gave her love and comfort. Gradually she warmed to her new home. She made a habit of sleeping between our pillows on the bed, and later began to venture out into the living room to hang out with the whole gang.

It didn't help to be the only girl-cat in house full of boys. Their curiosity and attention led to occasional hissing and chasing, and we ended up installing a gate to protect her. Lately, we even find her scratching at it when she wants social time. And when she gets tired, she jumps on to the couch, rests her head on my leg and falls asleep.

She even developed a close bond with our tabby (who recently passed away) and engaged in some mutual grooming sessions! They just loved to lie and sleep next to each other. And that is the thing Peep taught me about love: after receiving so much of our love, she was able to pass it on.

D. Roberts