Our Cats Page

Seems like we've always had cats, but you have to start somewhere, so we'll start with Pumpkin. Pumkin was a sweet little marmalade tabby that was born to a stray we had adopted. Pumkin was the runt of the litter, but she's the one Kasia, then age 5, picked out as her own. That was 23 years ago. Pumkin and Kasia grew up together. Theirs' was a story of true love and friendship. She had never had any kittens and we thought her infertile.

Several years later, a gorgeous long haired male fell in love with Pumkin. "Thumbs" was a stray who looked like a mix between a long-haired silver tabby and a Maine Coon. He also had the largest double paws I've ever seen.

After about a year of his being around, we realized he'd moved in and gave him his shots. He quickly became a member of the family, earning his keep by guarding my old VT100

and posing prettily for our Christmas cards.

Pumkin then surprised us by having a kitten. Just one mind you, a litter of one, but that was enough to let us know she wasn't sterile! We named her baby Squash, but little Squash didn't last a week.

Because of Pumkins advancing age and frail health, we thought that getting Thumbs fixed would solve the problem of more kittens. Not. David came home from work one day and was startled by a stray Tom that came running out from under the bed. We'll never know how he got in, but once again Pumkin gave birth to a Litter of one. Her little orange baby was so tiny we called him Squirt. That was 12 years ago.

We had poor ole' Pumkin spayed after that, but she was a wonderful momma kitty. Pumkin was 12 years old when she died of cancer. This was a tragic loss for Kasia , but she handled it like a trouper. We buried Pumkin next to her little Squash in our Kitty's graveyard.

Thumbs lived with us for 15 years til we lost him to cancer in October of 1996. He too is buried in the kitty graveyard now. Losing Thumbs was a real blow to all of us.

Now we found ourselves down to one cat. Good ole Squirt.

Squirt has the best manners and sweetest disposition of any cat we've ever owned. He had to have all his teeth pulled out last fall, so now he's also known as Gummy Bear, but he's doing just fine.

We lost old Gummi Bear on 9/12/01, less than a month after my Dad's passing. Just as Thumbs seems to have left us to keep my Mom company, I think perhaps Squirt is now purring on Dad's lap.

In August of 1997, we snagged two little gray feral siblings, a brother and a sister. They were about two months old when we captured them and quite wild. We put them in their own room where they stayed for 6 weeks before we could even touch them. Now they're the most lovable little mushes anyone could hope for. We named the little male Teddy Bear and the little female Heidi.

Things worked out so wonderfully with Teddy & Heidi, that we decided to go for it again. Their mother had another litter about a year later..somethime near the beginng of July, 1998. One of these was just too adorable to resist and so last Friday, 8/22/98, we managed another 'catnapping'. This little one looks so much like Thumbs I had it in mind to call her Thumbelina..but that being just too much of a mouthful for such a little thing, it's already been shortened to "Thimble". It took 6 weeks before we could even touch Teddy or Heidi, and Thimble is older than they were, so I was ready for a long taming process. Not necessary. She went to the box immediately and was purring in Eric's (our own Horse Whisperer) hands within an hour.

Without further ado..may I present.... :THIMBLE" !!

Are we cat lovers in the LaPier household? ah..yeah..I guess you could say that.

animation done my Shaun

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