Cats on a Plane

The day after all of our possessions arrived via the moving truck, the girls and I had to go collect one new thing for our house. Chelsey’s cat, Zucchini. Chelsey is off to Colorado Springs for the summer and then to Mayo Clinic in the fall for her clinicals. Once those are finished, she is set to arrive in Austin before Christmas to live in our guest room, and subsequently, find an OT job, apartment and get started on adulthood. But while she’s perfecting her craft, her furry pal needed a home. I told her if she could get the cat here, it was welcome. With a few days notice, we were told that Zucchini was Austin bound via a United Airlines flight out of Chicago.

The girls and I were set to pick up the cat. We were told she wouldn’t be available at United’s cargo bay until an hour after landing, so our plan was to leave a few minutes after the plane landed. About five minutes after landing, as I’m rallying the troops, I get a phone call that Z is ready to go…so, we made our way to Austin-Bergstrom Airport to pick Z up. I figured I’d at least have to show some ID. Nope, I walked in, the guy says, “You here for the cat?” “Yep.” Guy reaches down and pulls the carrier up onto the counter. “Here ya go.”

I was slightly apprehensive to have Z at our house. She’s only two, so she has a lot of kitten in her. Compared with Stollen’s approximate 14 years, that’s a large difference in activity. Z has never been around children, and I’ve never actually met Z. Poor cat, gets loaded up into the car, then goes through an airport, says goodbye to her best friend, Chelsey, gets loaded into the cargo hold of a plane, travels two noisy hours (presumably without drink service) by air, zooms across a tarmac on a small vehicle to the cargo bay, sits for 45 minutes, then gets picked up by people she doesn’t know, sits in traffic for an hour, get to a new house full of new smells and loud children. Raw deal.

However, within a couple of days, Z was off to a great start at our house. She was most skittish around Lily (who can blame her). Even when we asked Lily to sit still and be quiet to meet the cat, she still seemed to vibrate and emit a high pitched sound. Unpacking with a curious cat was a new adventure. It’s as if she’s materialize out of nowhere. If I opened a cabinet, she was suddenly in it, open a shallow drawer, it was suddenly occupied by cat, space on a shelf, open a box, spread out some packing paper, there was Z.

Now a month in, our furry houseguest is fun as can be. We’re happy Chelsey had her declawed, otherwise my ankles would be torn to shreds, along with our leather furniture. We aren’t used to the playfulness, so that provides much entertainment. The girls love to play strings with her, watch her bat toys around and chase her around the house. I enjoy watching her paws creep under every door that is between me and her. When I stand by my bed, my feet are suddenly attacked from underneath. Every evening when I head towards the bedroom, she tears in from wherever she is in the house so she can jump into my sink and lay there as I attempt to get ready for bed.

Her only real naughty behavior has been jumping on our counters. At first it was endearing. But then she was licking our kitchen sink faucet, and that’s kind of gross. However, a trip to the dollar store and one spray bottle later and we have a very well mannered cat. We don’t even have to spray her, just one glance at the bottle and she’s back on the floor. But, the girls do enjoy when Z gets a little squirt. They’re the first to alert me when she’s on the counter.

A few weeks after Zucchini arrived, Chelsey’s belongings arrived on a moving truck. It’s as if Z knew those were her things, she was very excited. There was even a box that was marked for her. We opened it up and her bed (which she won’t use now), a blanket, some toys, treats, dishes and food were inside. She was visibly excited! It was really cute. Her things were here! I’m curious to see how she reacts when we get Chelsey’s bed set up, or even better, when Chelsey shows up at the end of summer to visit. Cat elation! The first few days, Z refused to touch our Meow Mix, so when we were out of the Whiskas Chelsey had sent on the flight, I ran out to get more. Now, I’m left with a bag of Whiskas she won’t touch because she suddenly LOVES Meow Mix. Just what I needed, another picky eater.

As far as cat rivalry, we had some hissing early on, but no fights. Everyone is on good terms and keeps their distance.

To the person residing in the basement of my aunt and uncle’s house in Colorado Springs, this post is for you. To everyone else, be jealous you don’t get to spend time with an awesome cat like Zucchini. After a rough start in life, which left her without a tooth (she does a great Elvis impersonation), and a scar on her back, she found a good life and makes us smile. We’ll miss her once Chelsey actually moves out on her own. We may need joint custody.

No foot is safe.