Introducing: Hazel

Losing Zoey was hard. I was convinced it would be a long time before I'd be ready for another cat. With such a unique bond and history the two of us had shared, I was afraid getting another cat would make me more sad, wishing I could have my Zoey back. My friend Kristal has a lot of animals, and therefore had a lot of experience losing them too. I remember when I first asked her how many pets she had, she prefaced it with "I know I'm going to sound crazy so I'll tell you how many of each kind I have instead." As it turns out, her advice and understanding helped me realize that maybe finding someone new now would help me through the grieving process.

We took it slowly at first. Matt and I visited some of the local shelters. The first one didn't have quite the cat we were looking for. As shallow as it sounds, we wanted to get a cat that was of similar color to Zoey because fur wouldn't show as much on our furniture. Sorry, kitty. Last time we picked a couch to match our cat, this time it would be the other way around. Another thing Kristal added was that if I really enjoyed the breed I had before, why not do it again? Chances are personalities would be similar. In case you didn't notice, we really loved our laid-back tabby cat.

For me, it was more about the feeling I got with interactions. I could look at online listings all day and still not make a decision. Nevertheless, we pored over the listings, finding a few that sounded good on paper and headed to the county animal shelter.

The first cat we met was a sleek black cat that Matt had his eye on. It took him all of five seconds to realize that gorgeous, inky black panther April would be a curtain climber. We wanted a chill pal. We met a couple more cats, giving everybody a little love as we moved through the shelter.

Then we were introduced to Hazel. She was one I was drawn to in the photo, in part because she was a little older, but also because it looked like she had a rough life and just needed a place to crash. Everybody wants a kitten, but I find that older cats are just as great and less likely to destroy your furniture.

I reached my hand out for her to sniff and her neck extended as long as it possibly could reach. She rested her head in my palm, leaning her whole body into me as if I gave the best neck scratches in all the land. After that, I was sold.

Day 1 with a new attack cat. As you can see, she's fierce.

Matt wanted to go home and discuss it. I assumed that if we left, we'd never come back. The animal shelter estimated her age to be eight years old so we walked out with the senior pet discount. She didn't look that old to us. My heart was full and warm. Until we started the car. The thirty minute car ride back home, she sang to us.

That night, she sang all night, meowing so loudly that Matt had to wear ear plugs to fall asleep. The same thing happened for the first three nights. "What have we gotten ourselves into now?" we asked ourselves. I googled separation anxiety and tried everything. Nothing worked but time. On the fourth day, Matt and I realized that she was no longer meowing at night or whenever we left the room.

"I love you Karen. You're not allowed to leave me. Not even to go to the bathroom."

Eventually we went to the vet. Given her estimated age, we wanted to make sure we weren't taking on a sick kitty from the start. Emotionally, I knew I couldn't handle that just yet. Over the last few years through Zoey's vet visits, we got to know our veterinarian pretty well. The look on his face when I brought Hazel in with me was priceless. He knew how hard it was for us to lose Zoey and he was so happy to see we could accept someone new into our lives. Everything checked out and we got her a rabies shot. Based on the state of her teeth, it is estimated our gal Hazel is about five years old.

This photo makes me LOL.My MIL sent us that book for Christmas.

Since then, everything has gone smoothly. She loves lounging around, napping on the couch with me, and surprisingly, responds well to the word "no". It's obvious she's had another family before who either didn't look for her or stopped looking after she ran away. In addition, they did  a really good job at keeping her from scratching random things and begging for human food. It will take some time before we let her enjoy the backyard because we're afraid she might just revert to her wandering ways, but it's something we're working toward.

Welcome Hazel! We're so glad you're here! :)