I want people to know exactly who they’re working with when booking a consultation with me. Often, clients hear stories about my own cats or meet them during virtual behavior consultations. Because both Prozac and Poutine play key roles in Class Act Cats, I want to take some time to introduce my dudes. Let’s meet Class Act Cats’ Chief Catnip Officer, Poutine!
Filling A Void
Much like Prozac, Poutine was an “oops” adoption. Prozac wasn’t exactly the snuggliest cat (this has changed) so about a month and a half after losing Zoloft, I was in need of some snuggles. Rather than getting angry at Prozac for having a different personality, I decided to head to the Cafe Meow to just pet some cats.
As you will quickly learn, whenever I say I am going somewhere to just pet some cats it’s a sign that I need to be immediately sedated because it rarely stops at me just petting them.
I was walking around meeting the cats and I looked at the adoption board. I noted a lynx point Siamese dude, but hadn’t found him yet. Because I am a big fan of Siamese cats, I wanted to meet him. I asked one of the staff members where he was. She walked over to one of the cabinets and opened it. That’s when I met Wesley, the scared Siamese boy hiding in the cabinet.
He was so scared and he hiding in the corner. I gently spoke to him and offered a hand. He walked up to me and began bunting me, but then backed away. Then he came back. He was so scared. I know I’ve said that a few times, but he really was fearful.
He also looked so much like my sweet Zoloft. I couldn’t help but think about what if this was my precious Zoloft, scared and not sure what to do? Plus, Zoloft also bunted me when we first met…
I filled out the application before I left the cafe.
True Colors Come Out Quickly
When I picked Wesley up from the Cafe Meow, I set up my bedroom so he could have his own space and I could slowly introduce him to his brother along with help him adjust to a new home. I got him a cute little Halloween cat toy basket from Target and set up some treats for him to find as he explored his space that I set up. I made a second litter box for the bedroom. We were good to go.
When I opened the carrier, he came out and quickly hid under my dresser. He stayed there for the next full day even when I left the room. I’m not sure if he ate or used the litter box at all. The poor guy was terrified.
I set up a camera to watch him while I was in the other room and the next evening, Wesley came out from under the dresser. He looked around, but as soon as any noise happened, under the dresser he went. I went in to feed him and decided to spend some time quietly hanging out on my bed.
I noticed a cute face pop out from under the dresser.
Wesley then came out and slinked over by the window, took a few bites of food, and hid again. The cute face popped out and then the screaming began. Holy heck, did this dude scream. It’s somewhat expected that Siamese cats are chatty, but he was loud.
A Secret Snuggle Bug
The next 15 minutes were him meowing, wandering around, and slinking around the room. Then, it happened.
He jumped on the bed. He came up to me. He meowed loudly. He threw himself at me. The rubs. The purrs. The loud meowing. The alternating between wanting to be near me and being scared. I think we were both confused!
It quickly became clear that he was a snuggle bug and that his favorite thing is being snuggled. The next day, we took a nice nap together with him curled in my arm. It was great and balanced out my less snuggly dude perfectly. I had been deciding on what to name him and was thinking of continuing my antidepressant theme, but I felt he needed a name that sounded snuggly. It then hit me: what’s more snuggly than Canadian junk food?
A Playful And Confident Friend
As I’ve gotten to know Poutine, he’s changed dramatically from being the scared dude hiding in the cabinet at the cat cafe. He’s sweet, he plays constantly (especially with the Cat Dancer. I order them in bulk now), and he is very friendly. He loves getting pets and being near me and loves attention. He’ll often curl up on my lap and purr along with chasing his brother around.
He has become incredibly confident and just needed the right environment to blossom. He’s excellent at clicker training and has strong opinions that he loves to vocalize. I sometimes call him my grumble because he makes a lot of grumbling sounds whenever I walk by and will chat up a storm. He’s an excellent friend.
Best of all? He improved my relationship with Prozac. Poutine feels like the right balance to give me the snuggly cat that I crave and Prozac is sweet and playful in a different way. He now occasionally snuggles, too. They work together and our little family just works together. While getting a second cat should be done with caution, especially if you have an older cat and are thinking of getting a kitten, it can work out if the cats line up correctly.
My sweet Poutine is a wonderful guy and I am so grateful I found him in that cabinet. We’ve only known each other for a few months, but I know we have years of fun and snuggles ahead. I hope you’ll continue to follow my blog and get to know him a bit more over time as he’ll be popping up to help you learn about cats!
