Curious Eyes

From my experience so far in my life, I have found that having the comfort an animal, whether they are great or small, assertive or timid, that they are something to really be appreciated. Yes, your pet will not ask you, "How was your day?" or "Are you okay?" but they will listen if no one else will. They may not hug you as you walk through the door after a long day at work or a full day a school, but they do show their affection and love for you. Your pet becomes a loyal companion, a loving friend.

This all started for me, between the months of 2009 and 2010. I was around five years old. The memories are some what vague but they are still here, in my mind. The day my mum sat me and my two older brothers down on the sofa, in the lounge and announced the big news. That we would be adopting a cat into the family very soon. I don't exactly remember what five year old me thought in this moment, but I vividly remember the excited, high pitch squeals coming from me and my brothers from hearing this news.

I'm sure if you have ever recieved news like this, you know the feeling, or even just having the memory of bringing your new friend home for the first time. Watching it as it explored and sniffed every item of furniture in the house, or even its attempt to balance on the toilet seat. Whatever your first memory you still have of your first pet is, hold on to them. They are always so delightful to look back on.

The day we adopted my cat, from what I can still remember, was one of the most memorable days of my childhood. Myself, my two brothers, my mum and dad, bounded into the car as fast as we could that morning and drove the long drive of "Are we there yet?" and "How long left now?" to finally meet our new family member.

My memory of the cat kennel place is all a bit of a blur but from what I can recollect, the cat kennel had five or six kennels in total, owned by an elderly woman. One kennel, the one we were hoping to adopt a kitten, had the mother cat, all black, with white paws. And crawling and climbing here, there and everywhere were her eleven little kittens. All of different colours. Ginger, black, white, beige and some were all of the above!

The elderly woman let me and my family meet and play with all the kittens. Opening the kennel door and letting them roam around our feet. But me and my brothers just sat on the floor, wanting to be as close as possible. My mum doesn't quite remember now but I am certain all of eleven kittens were male, except for the one little female. Who we all fell in love with the most. She was and is indeed, of many colours. Ginger, black, white and beige. Tiny little thing at the time. Her curious eyes. Watching us as we scooped her up and cuddled her close. There was no second thought or slight hesitation, she was the one. The elderly woman let us take her home as soon as possible.

I have a feeling, in the car journey home, me and my brothers would have defintely fought over who got to hold her cage on whoevers lap. It was just all very exciting, bringing her home. Being able to be apart of the first moments of her new life with us.

We let our new baby kitten out of her carrier and we all watched in such enjoyment as she took her first steps in her new home. I remember my mum being insistent on letting her explore by herself. Too not overwhelm her so much. But it wasn't before long I was following her everywhere, picking her up and placing her down on out of high, out of reach places, as she was too small to climb them herself yet.

You may be wondering what we ended up naming her. There was some debate of course. Five year old me probably wanting to call her something like 'Fluffy' or one of my brothers wanting her to be named after their favourite action figure or game character. But after a long discusion we found her name.

Tatty Bogle. Tatty B for short.

I know, not quite anything of the ordinary but thats Tatty B, not like any ordinary cat, she has her own personality, she will let you know when she wants attention or you have given her enough, and she is very picky with what she eats and drinks out of. Her particular favourite thing to drink water out of is one of our small, floral ikea glasses with a little handle on the side. Weird girl I tell you. But I love her for it.

And thats the story of how we adopted our girl, Tatty Bogle. Her birthday is actually soon, well, when I am currently writing this, its coming up (13th April). She will be turning 12 this year. My mum says she is like a creaking door, Tatty B will be around for a while yet.

Right now, as I am typing these words, Tatty B is laying alseep (snooring) in a cardboard box I made into a bed for her. She loves it. She is happy and content, living her days watching the world go by on a window sill or cuddled up in a cardboard box. Just how she likes it.