The Travelling Pixie in London

The Perks of Being a Cat Mom

I grew up with dogs throughout my childhood and teen years, right up to when I left Hong Kong to study abroad in England.  I have to say, one of the toughest moments of being away from home is actually being away from my beloved pet-siblings (peblings (?) lol)

I have refrained from keeping pets while I’m in London because I’ve always feared leaving my pet alone over the holidays.  Who can I trust to care for my baby if I’m not around?  Plus, almost everyone is going back home for the holidays!  But what has gotten me through these few years without a pet in London was the dream and determination that I will get a little furry daughter in my third year! – plus I got the green light from my parents that I could bring hr back to Hong Kong after graduation.

As a matter of fate, just when we started Year 3, Minna & Sarah’s cat Winky (oh yes, she has her own blogpost on Minna’s site!) was unexpectedly pregnant! – Well actually it was planned that she will bear Tinky’s child sometime in the future, but we just didn’t expect it to be so soon.  Well fortunately for me, Winky’s litter was due in November and I finally had the opportunity to ‘adopt’ one of the kittens as their human-mom! <3

I still remember the night when they were born.  It was late at night and I was just procrastinating in my room when I received a text from Minna saying “I think Winky is giving birth”  OH THE EXCITEMENT!  So began two hours of texting and waiting by the phone, eager to know how Winky is doing and how many kittens were there!  The moment when Winky had her fourth kitten, I was simply overjoyed – this meant that perhaps they would be willing to let me adopt one kitten!!!! Please, pretty please!!!!!

I rushed over to their home right after lectures the next day to see the kittens.  They were sooooo tiny, so delicate and literally looking like little hamsters!  For the next month, I became a regular visitor at their flat, and every time I see the kittens, they appear to have grown!  I don’t want to sound too cheesy, but seeing them grow really warms my heart, ahh the wonders of Life!

It was quite clear from the start that I would choose Buttons, the third-born of the litter, there was something special about her that mesmerised me since she was about two weeks old.  This is her when she’s around 3 weeks old – so adorable isn’t she! (I won’t take no for an answer.)

Well, being a first time cat mom, I have to say that everything excites me, from her playing with her toys to her naps, from eating to going to the toilet, every step she takes simply mesmerises me.  There wasn’t even one moment of boredom when I’m with her, except from when she hides under the bed and I just can’t see her, other than that, I’m entertained 24-7.

So back to the perks of being a cat mom!

1. You notice the cleanliness of your flat suddenly escalates off the roof.

That’s so true for messy people like myself!  My boyfriend has always complained about how I can be really messy with stuff in my room, but ever since I got Buttons, I have started to clean up everything that she could put in her mouth in fear of her swallowing some foreign objects!  So for family or boyfriends who won’t let you get a cat on the basis that you’re a messy person, tell him that by being a responsible owner, you would actually clean and tidy your home much better than before. HMPH!

 

2. You notice that all your browser history is either about ‘How to care for your cat” or amazon searches for cat supplies.

I have been obsessed with reading on cat nutrition and healthcare for the past two months – which I know most of you might find it really weird, but this is actually what I do in my spare time.  Well, what’s wrong with wanting the best for your little furbaby right?  Plus, giving her good nutritious food will ensure her health in many years to come!

 

3. Obsession over her litterbox.

Oh yes, I’ve been obsessed over her litterbox since day 1.  Weird again, I know.  But being aware of your cat’s excretion is quite effective in letting you know if she’s feeling ill!  Plus, if she’s not going regularly, or goes multiple times a day, you would know to take her to the vet!  Oh, and not to forget, cats hates a dirty litterbox, so I have an obsession of cleaning it at least once every two days.

 

So what about the fun things, I hear you say.

4. Effective Wake Up Call.

I don’t know how could it get more effective than having a cat constantly rubbing her head into your nostrils and then sitting on your chest with her butthole facing your eyes.

 

5. Sometimes you get the dog out of the catsuit.

We all know dogs love a game of fetch, but what about cats?  Apparently my cat loves to play fetch, hmm or she may just be upset that we keep throwing her ball out the room and thats why she’s bringing it back.  Anyways being a technology-noob, I haven’t figured out a way of uploading videos onto WordPress without first uploading it onto Youtube. – Could someone help me out on this one please!  But if you’re interested in watching the video, you could visit my Instagram! – don’t forget to like and follow please <3 x

 

6. Training to become a professional pet photographer.

You end up having 300 photos of your cat on your phone in a week, most of them blurry because the cat just moved (again!).  But then occasionally, you do capture a stunning photo that not only is in focus, but beautifully framed.  You then edit and post on various social media platforms.

 

7. Creating Memes

After snapping a million photographs of your beloved furball, you then decide that waiting for the miracle chance of capturing a nice photo takes too long, so you move forward with staging photographs of your pet to create memes out of it.

 

8. Displaying how to enjoy Life.

After all the time spent on taking photos of your lovely furbaby, you finally realise that you must catch up on your dissertation.  As you sit in front of your desk, notes ready, books open, le chat casually walks by in front of you and plops down, sprawled across the desk showing you how to enjoy Life.  Or she might be just mocking you – you be the judge of that.

 

9. You find your home with more cat toys than skin care.

You just can’t help but spoil her to bits right? right.

 

10. A Loving Companion.

Contrary to popular belief that cats are solitary animals, they are actually very affectionate towards their human.  Or may be they’re just waiting for you to clean the litter box and dispense food.  But they do show their love in subtle ways.  I caught a video of Buttons air-kneading while I was rubbing her belly, again, I have no idea how to upload it on WordPress, but you could find it on my Instagram account!

 

I feel grateful everyday for having my little bundle of joy with me <3  and I really cannot imagine life without her now – it’s getting to a point where I wouldn’t want to leave the house because I don’t want to leave her alone, but we all know that they actually don’t care that much whether I’m home or not.  Well, she does get more affectionate with me when I get home in over three hours, but only she would know whether she’s upset that I’m away from her or because she simply wants food.