I know I said that I would start my cat bios with Moblin, but I really should start this story from the beginning. To do that, I really ought to go back to a little before we got Link. It was right around Christmas time in 2009, and my (now) husband was with me as we stopped into a PetSmart. They were having an adopt a pet event, and I saw a really cute kitten (really a cat–but aren’t all cats kittens at heart?) that reminded me of a cat I used to have. I asked him if we could take her home and he said no. Okay…no cat, end of story, or so I thought.
A few months later he says, “Let’s get that cat.” Confused I thought, the cat is gone. It was probably adopted that day! When I voiced my concerns, he said, “That’s okay, we’ll just go the shelter and pick another one,” like getting a pet is the same as picking out a new couch. So we went to the shelter. Link was about nine months at the time, and he took to us right away. He spent the entire time in laps and trying to crawl into our carrier. It was clear that he wanted to come home with us. Of course, my husband found the oldest and fattest cat in the shelter to fall in love with. When the shelter offered us a 1/2 off deal on the fat one if we took both cats, the deal was sealed. Bandit was a good cat, and I hope he enjoyed the last few years of his life.
Link (left) Bandit (right)
Link and Bandit were besties, so when Bandit died, Link took it pretty hard. My husband thought it would help to get another cat to keep him company. Apparently, he is not capable of walking out of a shelter with only one animal, because once again, we ended up with two cats (again, my husband finding a fat, derpy one). Truthfully, I think Link tolerates other cats, but he doesn’t like them the way he liked Bandit.
For most of the time we’ve had Link, he’s been a very anxious cat who doesn’t like other people. He would hide whenever guests came over, and very few people had seen him in person. He’s always hated change, and will get upset if we move furniture, change our schedule, or do anything to upset his norms. As he’s getting older, some things are changing. He is venturing out in the open a lot more. So far, he’s come out of hiding for a few of our friends, even letting one pet him. As a kitten he would run away from a camera, and now he will sometimes pose for a shot.
Be very sure that Link is the ringleader here, lol.
Link is probably the most intelligent of our cats. He is a Norwegian Forest Cat, who are known for their intelligence, but Link demonstrates his understanding of how things work quite regularly. We have normal doorknobs, but every once in a while I’ll catch Link trying to turn the knob. It’s clear that he understands how the doorknob works, he just can’t turn it without opposable thumbs (thank goodness–I don’t want the cats outside without supervision). There are plenty of other things he does that show how smart he is, but it’s hard to think of specific things. Most of the time it’s more of a ‘wow’ moment, when I watch my cat do something I would expect a toddler or child to do, not a cat. It’s pretty cool to watch an animal use higher reasoning skills to solve a problem, though.
Of all my cats, Link is the most independent, yet bringing him home started me and my husband on this path toward a houseful of cats. Life is full of cute little ironies.
Link (left) Ganon (right)
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