Yes, we are the crazy cat people! And we’re both sitting here wondering how that happened?! It started innocently enough; we both had always wanted a Maine Coon cat – the operative word being ‘a’ . . . as in singular. Maine Coons are larger than normal kitties weighing in at nearly 20 pounds, some even closer to 30. They’re beautiful animals, will play fetch, very family oriented and have great dispositions; you can Google Maine Coon for more information if you’re interested.
SPARKY: We found a reputable breeder within driving distance and fell in love with 2 all white female sisters but when we went to pick them up, there was Sparky – cute as a button and just full of energy – couldn’t pass him up, so we ended up bringing him home too. One of the sisters passed away a couple of years ago from kidney failure, rare for this breed.
WINNIE – AKA ‘WINIFRED P WIDEBOTTOM’: Winnie is a BIG girl (hence the aka) and not the least bit graceful, nor does she remotely care that she’s not graceful; she’s a bit of a tomboy and doesn’t like to be groomed. Our sister-in-law calls her “Paula Deen” because of her white hair.
BEL RAGAZZO – AKA ‘RAGZ’: Ragz came to Smith Bites the year after the other 3 and is the largest of the Maine Coons weighing in at almost 20 pounds; he’s a complete touch-me-not unless it’s on his terms – in which case the moon and sun have to be aligned and in the 7th House . . . name that tune . . .Ragz is serious and focused, but really just wants to fit in.
HOOPS – AKA ‘THE HOOPSINATOR’ CUZ SHE HAS FOOD ISSUES: Hoops was an outdoor cat, born here to one of the ferral cats in the area; she had a litter of kittens and then we discovered that she had two very large puncture wounds in her neck. We brought her inside to nurse her kittens with the intent to get her well enough to find a home for her along with her kittens. Almost a year later and many trips to the vet for surgery, antibiotics and treatments, she’s finally healthy. The kittens found a home . . . and as you can see Hoops is still here . . .
MISSY ANN – THE OLDEST OF THE BUNCH: Missy Ann was here when we purchased the house 9 years ago; she’s always been an outdoor cat and has never liked being inside. She was recently attacked by either a raccoon or another ferral cat and had two very large open wounds on her backside, both of which required surgery. And now I just can’t put her back outside again . . . can you tell there’s a pattern developing here?
LIL BIT – CUZ HE LOOKS ‘A LIL BIT LIKE SPARKY’ HE’S ALSO DESPERATELY SEEKING ENTRY INTO THE HOUSE: Lil Bit just showed up on our front porch a year ago and has never left. He thinks if he looks cute enough, I’ll let him inside. I’m not looking him in the eye . . .
Sigh . . . so that’s how we ended up with all these cats; and I’ve now developed cat allergies . . .
I am sooooooooo in love with Sparky and Hoops!! Hoops looks like my old cat Bagheera 🙂
Oh, I think this is my favorite Sunday photo so far…and I really liked the other ones! Your cats are beautiful. And (of course) I love their names! Thanks so much for sharing them with us. Are you serious that you’ve developed cat allergies or was that more tongue in cheek. That would be really ironic wouldn’t it?
Thank you for the wonderful note you wrote in my blog. I am so glad we found each other’s blogs!! I loved how you wrote in your About Page that you would love to inspire others to head to the kitchen and cook. Sharing stories about food and about life is what drives me to write mine.
Looking forward to reading your future posts!
Jun
By the way, your cat photos are so beautiful!
I so enjoyed reading about your rather large cat family, they are all beauties. I am sad today because my little dog got killed by a coyote last night 🙁 and my cat disappeared 2 weeks ago, so this post made me smile.
awww Suzanne ~ that just breaks my heart – am so very sorry for your loss; pets really are like family members and it hurts when they’re no longer with us.
They are all so beautiful! Wish we could take one of them of your hands! 😉
You have such a wonderful group of cats! I adore cats, and we were set on buying a kitten last weekend, but after talking to the landlord…we got a NO. I started crying! Cats can be such precious and comforting creatures to have around the house. I’m sorry that your allergies are bad…I hope that you can find them all homes!
Debra, love seeing all your kitties. Makes me wish we had room for more than just one. But he’s pretty happy being the king around here.
Beautiful collection of kitties you have…I love Maine Coons – they have such unique personalities!
Cats-o-rama! Woowza! That’s a bunch of cats. We just had friends visiting that ended up with a bunch of cats when they didn’t even like cats. How does this happen?! Good luck finding them homes. 🙁
Those are all your cats??? Oh my! I wish I could help you ’cause I love cats too. And I love your stories on each. A fun read this Sunday morning!
What beautiful cats!!! How sad you have allergies now, the cats will miss you.
Your kitties are beautiful! Growing up, my parents always took in strays, too. At our peak, we had five kitties in the house. The fifth was one was simply “Kitty,” because we ran out of creative names for them.
Have you tried Zytrec? I take one every night before going to bed, and it helps immensely with my allergies to “Will” and “Grace.” I’ve had them with me since college and can’t bear to let them go… even though I’m incredibly allergic.
[K]
Kim ~ I’m going to try Zyrtec at night and just sent The Professor out for some; I’d tried it during the day but made me sleepy so now I’m using Claritin D which helps some but not nearly enough. Thanks for that tip!
Yep, I think it made me sleepy, too. Solved that one by taking one before bedtime. It’s been a few days, have you given it a go yet?!
YES – MUCH BETTER! I don’t cough all through the night now – THANK YOU!
Awwwwww Poor Missy Anne!
I’m not a big cat person, but yours are adorable and seem so relaxed.
I can totally relate to this.. I have to of my own, and two that just simply show up at my doorstep for breakfast and dinner time. I just cannot say no to them. Beautiful cat-family you have there. Love your names too!
They are gorgeous! Lil bit looks like my old cat:)
AW! I LOVE cats! I have allergies too, otherwise I’d have a million. I want a kitty…These are so gorgeous, I’m so sorry you can’t keep them 🙁
Awwww…so cute!
Y’all are crazy! Crazy in the good kind of way, though.