Il Primogenito

Tuomo writes: Whatever you do, don't make snide remarks about his size in front of him. Or wonder if he's pregnant. Or if he's eaten a pregnant cat. Teddy is just big-boned and has feelings too, like his "mommy" and "daddy." So there! :-)

We may have unfortunately lost exact count of how old Teddy, our first cat, is, but he still deserves the moniker Il Primogenito, or "first-born." Our former roommate, who had a cat, moved out with the cat, so we felt we wanted to get a cat, to keep that positive feng shui or whatever cats do to our living environments going on. We did plenty of research on how to choose the right kind of cat, not just in terms of breed but also in personality. Like our roommate's cat, we wanted a personable and people-friendly cat, not a hisser that hides behind couches. Eventually we contacted a lady in Dundalk, a blue-collar suburban area in Baltimore. We refer to her "affectionately" as the *Dundalk White Trash Kitty Whore*. It turned out that after we had given her the check, not only did she have kittens but also puppies for sale in a house that in hindsight had all the tell-tale signs of a puppy mill, something that all our kitty lit sources had warned us not to use...

From the litter that was presented to us, a litter of cute white kittens with peanut patches, Teddy came across as the one that was the most interested in, feisty yet delightfully playful, so we chose him. Once at home, he also turned out to be quite smart too because when he had to go for the first time, he chose to do his business on a pile of newspapers (it probably seemed familiar to him). We caught him in time and brought him again over to the litter box - and he got it! No accidents ever since - except whenever Yours Truly has forgotten to clean his litter box...

For years Teddy was this aloof cat - typical I guess, like your average teenager - who wouldn't interact much with us... except that he clearly enjoyed being in the same room or otherwise near us, purring and minding his one kitty business. Over the years, and in course of the past 2-3 years however, he has become much more affectionate, so that he actually seeks out our attention. He still doesn't like to be picked up, and when he's lying on one of us, if we have to adjust our position, he runs off. However, there's nothing like when in the mornings while I'm having breakfast - especially on mornings when I'm wearing dark and/or when I'm in a rush - he decides to climb on my lap and make himself comfortable. It really breaks my heart when I have to shoo him off. It is so relaxing to have relaxed, purring cat on your lap... You know, that feng shui kinda thing...

Despite several big moves within less than six months, including our big move to Canada, Teddy (and his "sister," on which I'll write later) has adapted pretty well to being a fabulous cat in Canada. Quite an "achievement" for a little kitty cat with humble origins in the suburbs of Baltimore!



To sum, here's some trivia on Teddy:

Full name: Teddy Helluva Cat
Nicknames: Big Cat, Pooper, Hey You
Likes: women; milk that is left over after a bowl of cold cereals
Dislikes: People who pick him up, step on him or don't clean his litter box; car trips; spritzes of water
Favourite hangout around the house: In paper bags, on the couch (see photo)
Favourite pastime: Lounge on the couch while observing the world; lick water in the bath tub
Favourite position: On his back with legs curled up
Guilty pleasure: Chewing on plants (result: barfing at 3 am)
Things that upset "mommy" and "daddy": (nocturnal) hairballs; hair