Our Family!
Hmmmm...How do I even start to tell the story of our current family/herd! I moved to the midwest from the east coast in July of 1997 with Niga my Dachshund and Little Bit, my chihuahua. "Bit" is currently appx. 19 yrs old and I found her in an SPCA back in 1988. She had been badly abused by whomever the "creature" was that owned her prior to myself, but over months and hours of care and attention we came to have a deep rooted love for each other!
Niga, affectionally aka as "Fatboy" was owned by a family who left him out constantly and seldom worried about his well-being. When I asked if I could take him home with me it was no big deal to them, but he has been an unending wealth of laughs since Valentine's Day '94 when he came home with me!
NOW the fun starts, we are here in the midwest for a day! I am at a Ren Faire with my boyfriend and his mother. And THERE he was...all 6 inches long and 5 inches tall of him, My little Malachi! All I could think while my boyfriend kept echoing "I want a BIG dog when we get one" was "Who will end up taking that little guy home if I don't?" A few whimpers and grumbles later from his mom and I and off I walked with the newest addition to the family! This is him in the picture below. That was taken Aug. '97 so he was appx. 7-8 weeks old. He is the family "NUT" behaving like a dog when it suits him or a cat if the notion hits!
This is poor Niga finding out what a baby brother is all about!
Well, seems that 3 is the family number, until November '97 when my boyfriends mother tells me that they have found an abandoned kitten and it needs a home. She wanted to give it to her son for an early Christmas gift! In comes Tanis to the family, affectionately known to me as "Satan Cat". Her daily life is not complete unless she or I one are climbing the walls! She has become Malachis BESTEST buddy...they are a treat to watch together as they grow up!
Taken Dec. 1999
Side note Jan. 1999: Tanis is no longer my "Satan Cat". In Oct.of 98 she was diagnosed with Feline leukemia. It was a scary 2 mos of cancer treatments...but not only did it save her life...she and I have bonded in a way I never thought possible!
Ok, we are at 4 but it's winter in the MIDWEST! WHO knew it could get this cold and life still go on??? My boyfriend built a sleeping/feeding box to put out by the garage and as we watched over the next few weeks, we were feeding about 5 stray cats that we could see regularly. One was simply beautiful. Even from the window we knew she was a female! Such grace, such soft features (although she did get shorted in the leg dept..she has tiny little legs!). On a night that was supposed to reach below zero, I looked out to see that the pretty one had come to eat and there wasn't much food left. The others always spooked and ran when we tried to go refill the dishes, and sure enough when I went out she headed across the street. Once I added food I tried to call her back. She sat and meowed at me for several minutes, THEN it happened. Across the street she came and walked right up to me. I managed to get her into the mudroom of the house, and within 10 minutes, into the kitchen! That was the night Shalimar joined the clan! This is without a doubt the MOST loving cat I have ever been around. She has been the perfect addition to rounding out the family! Pictures of this beauty soon!!
Now you have the family story, except to mention that we have no human children, only the 5 wonderfully unique, loving, furry children that "own" us and "rule" the house! If the truth be known, I wouldn't have it any other way...this is a family of 5 that I know will never do without! :::smiles:::
Thank you for visiting my family page and again, photo updates to follow soon!
UPDATE: 3 more added!!
Christmas 1998 we found a 5 mo old black lab curled up by our trashcan. There was 8 inches of snow on the ground and she was terribly hunger. Needless to say by now...In came Mystic to the family. Picture of her coming soon!
The two below are the most recent additions although they are not related, to look at them they appear that they could be brother and sister. The one on the left is Shadow. This little guy came to us in July. He was appx. 6 weeks ond and hiding up under the speaker at the McDonalds dive through when my husband stopped to get hamburgers. When he came home and said I got you a little surprise I was expecting a chocolate sundae. :::laughing::: Instead it was Shadow. He is without a doubt the most well rounded, personality packed, adorable cat I have ever been around!
On the right is Sheba. This poor little thing found our house on New Years Eve 1999. Weighing in at 4 lbs and dehydrated, slowly but surely this beauty is adjusting to the managerie that we call home.
Taken Jan. 8, 2000
Email me at United4Pets with questions or comments!
Last revised: 1/10/2000
