Zoey the Globetrotting Cat

One night in Beijing, about three or four years ago, a Chinese man bought a kitten for his foreign girlfriend. The kitten was a small thing, with tiny flat ears and striped fur. Little flecks of orange dotted her coat. Her large eyes took up most of her face.

The girlfriend named this new kitten Arabella. She also had another cat named Jasper.

The time with the woman wouldn't last. Arabella came as a gift in hopes the foreign woman would stay in China a little longer. Airlines typically don't allow more than one pet, if they allow a pet at all. So when it was her time to leave, she took Jasper, but not Arabella.

So Arabella watched her new mom and brother leave. But she stayed in the apartment with her old mom's roommates.

In those short months, they changed her name to Zoey. But busy schedules and long days alone made it hard for the roommates to care for her. And one turned out to be allergic.

Months later, I went to their apartment and brought Zoey home with me. That's how we met.

Adjusting to her new home

When I let out Zoey out of her cage, she didn't want anything to do with me in the beginning. She went under my couch and refused to come out. At first, I approached her to see if she was okay, but she hissed. So I acted like she wasn't there the rest of the night.

When I woke up the next morning I found her sleeping next to me on my bed. It didn't take her long to warm up to me.

In the early morning, if she saw your hand out while you slept, she'd meow to wake you up, then walk under your hand so you'd pet her in your sleep. I'd often wake up to her petting herself. Other nights, I woke up with her paw in my hand. She knew how to melt your heart when she wanted your attention.

But I had the same problem as her last owners. I often worked long hours, leaving her alone for most of the day. Even taking a trip somewhere, I'd need someone to check on her while I was gone. I'd wait too long to put her in a kennel while I went out.

To this day, I feel guilty about leaving her alone for so long. Once I stepped off the elevator, I could hear her crying for me, and it broke my heart a little.

One year later, and it was time to think about going back to the States

Before I adopted Zoey, I expected to leave China that year. I knew it'd take some time to prepare Zoey for her trip, but by the time the company asked me to renew my contract, I hesitated.

In China, you need six months to prepare a pet to fly to the United States. You need time to vaccinate your pet and prepare them for a flight. You need time to make sure your airlines takes pets in the first place, and you need the time to figure out the best way to get your pet home.

Zoey turned into one of the reasons I renewed my contract for another year. The thought of abandoning her made me cry, and I wanted to make sure I could bring her home.

In three months, she was vaccinated. I didn't have to, but I went ahead and had her spayed. She started watching me sleep then howling when she saw I was waking up when in heat. It got creepy waking up to her sitting on a luggage and staring at me.

But with shots and checkups, she was ready for a flight. The flight itself was fairly uneventful. Except for when she got scared in the middle of the flight and tried to headbutt her way out of her carrier. But she got through it.

And now she has a family

Zoey is much happier here than in Beijing. She has two other cats to play with her. My partner and his children love her. The other two cats learned to get along with her.

She still doesn't like to be left behind. If we walk out of the room, she'll be following us a minute later. She's also developed a liking for bread, tuna and pork chops. The only time I see her get aggressive is when there's tuna involved.

This morning, I woke up to her sleeping next to me. It's been a long time since she'd done that. I smiled and closed my eyes again. She's the happiest I'd ever seen her.