Hazel

Did I save the best for last? Absolutely not - all our cats are the best. I did save Hazel for last, as she is the last cat that Gene mentioned he would be "ok" taking in. Hazel is a calico - so she's a mix of all the colors: Black, white, orange, brown. She is adorable beyond words.

While Gene may deny he said he would take her in - his words were if there's a calico in this litter I would be interested....low and behold there was a calico along with a few other standard cats. Gene ultimately named Hazel (I believe he had a name picked before he knew for sure there was even a calico to be had!)

Much like her siblings she is a little shy and skittish, I'm really hoping they all grow out of that phase - I'm used to cats who are more needy for pets and cuddles. Hazel will cuddle and let you pet her, just once you are situated and not really moving. Her favorite spot to eat wet food is on the stairs, where she is half hidden by the wall, and can hear everything. I'm not sure what it is about those steps, but lots of our cats prefer to eat there. Hello tripping hazard!

Hazel loves to watch me crochet or work on projects at night when I watch TV. My wind down time before bed has become her wind up time. We watch TV for an hour or so before I go upstairs for bed. Once I get in bed she climbs in, walks around, makes biscuits and finally settles down on my shoulder or next to my side. If we don't have TV craft time, she doesn't come to bed with me. Guess she needs that time to feel comfortable with me. She has a tendency to walk back and forth from Gene to me, which bothers him to no end as she won't just lay down.

She has claimed the window behind our bed as hers. She spends most afternoon's laying in the window, hidden behind the curtain. It does have a great view for cats - shaded, with just the right amount of sun coming in. Tree branches that allow the birds & squirrels to entertain her. Best of all, she has all the quiet time she wants! When she's not chilling in the window, she naps on the chair next to Gene's desk while he works.

Tanners Grand Introduction

I know you're thinking how many more introductions could there be?! Just a few more - I promise! We've gotten through most of my purrfect dozen crew. That being said - today is Tanner's grand entrance.

He is a brother to Peaches, Bear, Ash, and Hazel - all from the same litter. You may have noticed that I always say these kittens are less welcoming (they love attention, but hate fast movements and any noise!). Tanner is still pretty skittish, even around me - I simply move too fast for him and make way too much noise. When I manage to move slowly, he does come for pets and belly rubs. He has a mustache on his face, has a little more white on his belly, and is almost triple the size of Peaches and just slightly bigger than Roughy, who is 5+ years older. Otherwise, they look very similar!

Tanner sometimes gets a case of the zoomies when I'm not home and can run around like a horse. He must save all his zoomie energy for when Gene is the sole person at home. As shy and hidden as Tanner likes to be, he does warm up to guests. Recently he became buddy-buddy with Carlo - must have been a mutual liking, as Carlo has a soft spot for orange cats.

We are fortunate (maybe?) to have 3 orange cats. These orange cats could be a breed all on their own. I believe it. They have strong personalities. Since we have 3 of them, I noticed Tanner has the softest fur! His orange siblings - Roughy & Peaches - both have more coarse hair. I hope his stays so soft forever!

Til our tails cross again,

Mel

Peaches

Peaches is another one from the litter we took in from Mama Cat (the stray who roams our street). Peaches is an adorable orange and white cat - mostly orange with a little bit of white. He was the runt of this litter, who had a few extra vet appointments when I noticed he wasn't gaining weight or growing the same as his siblings. Everything checked out at the Vet so we just gave him some high calorie food to make sure he was getting enough Kcals. (Yep - thats the right word for cat calories!) He is still smaller than his boy siblings, but that's ok!

Peaches was one of the first cats to be named - he might be a little gender confused as he has a girls name, but truly is a boy. Good thing cats are pretty indifferent to what we call them. He hangs a lot with his brother Tanner (who seems to be like 3 times his size!) Peaches is full of love and very needy for attention, but can be reluctant to warm up to new people, or people that move fast and make to much noise. Peaches hangs a bunch with Gene - which is alright. He's more connected to this bunch of cats cause he's been home more since COVID. As you can see in the last picture, he can sleep soundly no matter how uncomfortable of a position he may be in! All that matters is he's feeling safe with his humans and cat siblings!