đ¸ Is it crazy to go back for a second pet in less than 24 hours?
âI got the kitten home and when the boys came home from school, it was a big surprise for them. They walked into the office and he was there. They loved him so much.
That first night when everybody was playing with him and loving on him, my husband looked at me and asked me, âSo not all of them are taken, right? Maybe we could get another one.â I was just like, âYes, we could get another one!â"
While Rachael C.âstay at home mom, botanical artist, and cat loverâhad grown up with cats, no one else in her family had any experience with them.
So when, just a few hours after bringing home their new kitten, her husband suggested they go back and get one of the siblings, Rachael was over the moon.
She knew firsthand how much love and excitement these cats could bring into their livesâŚ
But little did they know, this cat duo would keep them on their toes with a little bit of chaos too.
When the family of four was suddenly six
âI feel very lucky that I ended up taking the chance and thinking, âMaybe I will get another animal.â And then it ended up being two. Now we're just a happy little family and weâre so in love with them.â
The day Rachael went to pick up a new kitten for the family, she was filled with so many strong emotions.
Sure, there was the excitement of finally having a pet again. But up to this point, there was a bit of sadness she was healing from too.
Years earlier, their family had welcomed a yellow lab into the family. Unfortunately, her oldest son, Parker, ended up being severely allergic, and they had to make the tough decision to rehome the dog.
âThat hurt my heart for so long that I said that we would never get a dog again. I felt like I did such a disservice to that dog, because I always said if you get a dog, you have it for a lifetime...
After rehoming him, I was extremely sensitive to the thought of any other pet coming into our home because of that. But when my youngest, Owen, started to get a little bit older, he expressed interest in wanting some kind of pet.â
After a brief trial run with fish, they knew it was time to bring home a companion. Her husband, not having any experience with cats, was open to the idea when she asked.
Rachael got in touch with an old family friend who said she had a pregnant cat. Two days after chatting, there were kittens!
After weeks of waiting, Rachael went to meet the kittens for the first time and decide which to bring home.
Ultimately, she chose the one whose personality was described as a nice mix of spazzy and shy.
She brought him home and then watched her boysâ eyes light up with pure joy when they came home to a new kitten.
Just a few hours later, when her husband suggested they go back for another, she called the woman to let her know. And the very next day, Rachael went back for one of the more energetic kittens.
Little did she know⌠she took the âwrongâ kitten home.
The chaos that came with kittens
âOnce they started to grow, we realized that Jax was a lot bigger than Opie. And Jax was kind of gentle with her. I remember the two of them play-fighting and it almost felt like a big brother playing with a little brother. For some reason, I had already equated that size difference to little/big brother andâŚ
But this was before knowing that Opie was, in fact, a girl.â
As Jax and Operina (originally âOpieâ) began to grow, Rachael and her husband started to see some very interesting differences.
Besides the unique personalities, they couldnât help but notice their physical appearances were starting to change.
Jax, the energetic, social boy, was growing bigger and lovingly has a âderpâ face. Opie, the shy, elusive âboy,â had more petite and striking features.
At a routine vet visit for another round of vaccinations, Rachael expressed concern that Opieâs boy parts hadnât dropped yet. And after a little investigation, her vet exclaimed, âItâs because he doesnât have any. Heâs a girl!â
Everything about Opie, now Operina, made sense at that point.
Besides the gender mix-up, having the kittens at home gave the family a never-ending supply of entertainment.
When the boysâ bus used to stop near the house, Jax the âcat-dogâ would run up and put his two front paws onto the steps.
He would take a look and see if everything was safe, then get down and let the boys on the bus.
The kids in the neighborhood loved seeing a cat who acted like a dog!
Operina, on the other hand, would never be caught doing something so social. She likes to hide and observe everything from afar.
Sometimes, too far.
Because the cats spend lots of time outside, itâs not uncommon for them to be gone for a 24-hour period here and there.
One night, when Operina was still young, Rachael realized it had been two days since she saw her. Walking through the neighborhood, she spotted the sweet kitten up in a tree.
A neighbor with a tall ladder helped get her down. But apparently, once wasnât enough for Operina.
Just a few months later, she did it again. This time, she chose one of the tallest pines in the neighborhood to climb up.
She was so high up, Rachael actually didnât see her the first day she went out looking. It was the next day when she heard a little noise, she looked up high enough.
No ladder could reach Operina.
Instead, a man from a local tree service came to help with a bucket truck. But Operina, being the scared, shy cat she is, ran up even further when the bucket approached.
Thatâs when he had an idea. Rachael would join him in the bucket.
âIt was so high in the sky and I'm going up in this bucket white knuckling the whole way up. Luckily, he pushes me into the tree so that I'm closer to the trunk and this tree is so massive that the branches underneath almost form like a floor effect⌠I couldn't see how far up I really was because at that point⌠it felt like a false floor.
That's when I literally reached and grabbed her by the scruff and pulled her in.â
That was the last time Operina climbed a treeâŚ
And that moment really solidified in Rachaelâs mind just how much she loved these cats.
Though the bond looks different, the love is the same
âOwen and Jax have such a funny, special relationship, because he will just pick Jax up and carry him anywhere. And you can see on Jaxâs face that he's like, âUgh, this kid again." But he's also like, "Okay, here we go!"
And he's literally laying there with his arms flopping out. It's one of the funniest things, and they definitely formed a huge bond.â
As with humans, each of the cats has their own unique personality and interests, and because of that, the interactions and bonds with each sometimes looks very different too.
Jax just wants to be around his people. When theyâre outside in the yard, heâs right there alongside them. When theyâre hanging out inside, heâs there too.
His personality feels like that of a dog at times, and the nickname Jack-a-doodle just kind of stuck because of that.
Jax also loves sticking by Rachaelâs husband, George, when heâs outside doing yardwork or splitting wood.
Heâll look at George and start to act spazzy for attention. George will exclaim something like, âMy gosh youâre so fast!â and then narrate for Jax, âYea Dad, Iâm so fast!â
Operina, on the other hand, will mostly just come to Rachael for affection.
âI do think with Operina being so shy, I am her only sense of safety and comfort in the house. So even though she is so shy and afraid of everybody else, she'll stick by my side. She sleeps on me. She comes to me when she wants something. She cuddles with meâŚ
So I still feel very connected to her even though she's so afraid of everything else.â
The boys have learned how each cat has their preferences, and will adjust how they interact accordingly.
With Jax, for example, play might look more rough and sporadic. He loves gripping onto Rachaelâs arm and having her swing him side to side along the floor like a little broom.
With Operina, a gentle play session with a wand toy is enough to get her out of her shell, even if just for a moment.
Any time someone walks by, Jax loves stretching out to invite, and insist, a belly rub. Operina prefers a serious face massage and head scratches from her mom.
But regardless of their differences, they always start their morning off the same way.
The moment Rachaelâs fit hit the floor in the morning, both cats are waiting in the kitchen for their treats.
This simple moment is a constant reminder of how much these two have really impacted their family.
They knew love, but not like this
âThese two have brought so much love into our house and that was kind of very unexpected. I think I was just still so scared about the dog and then I was afraid that, because they're cats, nobody's going to love them because it's not a dogâŚ
But I was so blown away by how much love they brought into the house⌠I couldn't believe how amazing the energy was and how happy everybody was, and still is, with the cats. Everybody loves them.â
Rachael has always felt so fortunate to be in a family where love and friendship have been fostered since the very beginning.
Her boys have grown up feeling loved and supported, and theyâve always been a close family.
Saying things like, âI love youâ and, âYouâre my best friendâ to each other is just part of daily conversations.
But when the cats came into the family, it just felt different.
âIt was like, we now had these two other souls where you can express out loud the love that's inside of you.
And when we can express it out loud to something else, it's like a good energy in the house for everybody. To be always so verbal about how beautiful the cat is or how much we love the cat or how you're the best cat mom or you're the best cat brother⌠It's just always so positive when it comes to the cats.â
To Rachael, it was like there was something missing from the family. But they didnât realize what they were missing until they had the cats.
Theyâve brought a new sense of life and energy into the family, and for that, sheâs grateful she decided to open her heart to a new pet. Well, two.
No matter how crazy, chaotic, or cuddly your pet is, theyâve come to love the life they live with you.
But if you had to step away for a few days, would someone know exactly what to do to keep them happy and safe?
If something happened, could someone confidently step in and take your place?
Putting a Cotl plan in place ensures your pet is taken care of, just the way theyâre used to, no matter what.
Discover how the process works or book a call directly with Sean, our founder and CEO, to see what a plan could look like for you.
