| ||
 |
 |
|
|
| ||
|
|
|
04-Oct-2004
Suzanne and I had been thinking of getting a cat for some time. Of course, we couldn't while we were living in Germany (due to apartment restrictions and the fact that we didn't know where we were going to end up). Once we moved into our own place in Brooklyn and go a bit settled, we decided it was time.
We strongly believe that the best way to get a cat or a dog is from a shelter. After a quick Google search, we found the Brooklyn Animal Resource Coalition (BARC) Shelter, a no-kill shelter located in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn. So, Saturday, Oct 2, 2004, we hopped the subway for the trip up.
At the shelter, we headed up to visit the cat loft, where there were many, many cats waiting to find new homes. After spending lots of time trying to decide, we picked out Galaxy, a rambunctious 5-month old kitten. (We renamed him Cicero.) The staff at the shelter were great and really helped us out. They also cared a huge amount for the animals they were taking care of and worked to make sure the cat would fit with the people adopting.
Once at home, we got him set up with everything he needed. Unfortunately, he was very skittish and proceeded to spend most of the weekend hiding under the sofa, under our bed, or in his covered litter box. As of Monday, Oct 4, he's starting to come around a bit and we look forward to him coming out of his shell.
In case you're wondering about his name, I've been reading a bunch of Roman historical novels recently (Colleen McCollough's Masters of Rome series and Steven Saylor's Roma Sub Rosa series) and was intrigued by some of the Romans. Cicero was a famous orator, senator, and advocate (like a lawyer) who lived during the end of the republic in the first half of the first century BC. I'm not a huge fan of the person, but his name is one of the better ones for a cat. (See Marcus Tullius Cicero for a more extensive biography.)
06-Oct-2004
Cicero is really becoming the rambunctious cat we saw at the shelter. We were very worried yesterday as we couldn't find him in the morning. After Suzanne tore apart the bedroom and the living room, we found him buried behind some boxes in the office. Suzanne was able to hold him for quite some time and he started wanting to play and what not. He even ate a bit of his food. (We had fed him just a few pieces of ham Sunday night.) Now he's really himself. He ate a whole bunch today and drank a bunch of water. He's been chasing around this mylar ball cat toy all over the living room and kitchen. We felt wonderful when he seemed to come around. Hopefully it keeps up.
13-May-2003
I know it's been a long while since I've written anything here. Cicero just celebrated his first birthday a couple of weeks ago. (We're "assigning" it as May 1.) He's as active and rambunctious as ever. Over the last 8 months, he's become extremely friendly and is a great cat. Sometimes, we call him our 'cog' as he sometimes behaves more like a dog than a cat. When we come home from work, he races to the front door to meet us, jumps up on the chair, and rolls over to get his tummy scratched. He tends to follow us wherever we go, so when one of us heads upstairs to use the bathroom, up he goes, when one of use heads back to the office, he tags along. We're interested to see how he handles the move to the new house in a couple of weeks, but are confident he'll do fine.