I haven’t had the best luck with cats as pets thus far. I’m still reeling from the unexpected and unexplained disappearance of my beloved Oreo a year ago. Sweetie, a stray tuxedo cat that I fed for a few weeks, found a new hangout in a different part of the apartment complex. And most recently, the adorable feral black cat Queenie, whom I fed twice a day for a year, passed away. I was starting to think that I wasn’t meant to have a cat at all.
Then a new cat dropped into my life: Ren. Here’s hoping the fourth time will be a charm.
The Meeting
I met Ren in April 2021. One morning, I looked out the window and saw the cutest diluted calico of unknown heritage wandering around the yard. She was crying, which hurt me to my heart. I started talking to her through the window. She meowed back a few times and wandered off. The next time I looked, she was camped out on our porch, yowling for food.
My mom gave me strict orders to ignore the cat. For one thing, she still says she hates cats (which nobody believes anymore). For another thing, we couldn’t afford to feed both Queenie, who was still alive at the time, and a second stray. My mom didn’t want to start something that we might not be able to continue. I understood her concerns, but I couldn’t just close the blinds and walk away. I gave the cat some of Queenie’s leftovers.
The cat was extremely friendly when I brought the food out. She walked right up to me and let me pet her like she had known me forever. After she finished eating, she waltzed right into the house. She explored every room and closet until she got bored and went back outside. Predictably, she came back the next day.
And just like that, we had a new kitty friend. I named her Ren because her golden eyes looked orange to me at the time—”orenji” being “orange” in Japanese. She later became affectionately known as “Ren-Ren,” “Little Lady,” and “The Baby.”
Moving In
Ren quickly became a regular around the house. Mornings were especially chaotic having to feed two cats. When I opened the patio door in the mornings, Ren would come barreling around the bush, practically running over Queenie to get to her breakfast.
It didn’t help that Ren did not get along with Queenie. Ren is very territorial. She made it clear through constant hissing and bullying that she didn’t want Queenie around. I tried to keep everything equal between them to stop the fighting. I used the same plates, gave them the same food, and fed them at the same time. Despite that, I still had to physically stand between the two a lot. This went on until Queenie died.
After breakfast, Ren would disappear until mid-afternoon when the neighborhood kids came out. Ren wanted to play with the kids; the kids were only interested in abusing her. We often caught them kicking soccer balls at her, poking her with sticks, and throwing plastic bins over her in an attempt to capture her. She was a baby. She didn’t understand that they were trying to hurt her, so she wouldn’t run away. We repeatedly rescued her from these situations, ushering her into the house until the kids went inside for the night.
Much like what happened with Oreo, it got harder over time to get Ren to leave. We didn’t mind having her around, but we didn’t know if she belonged to anyone. She had a shaved stomach and a clipped ear, which I later learned are signs of having been spayed. We didn’t want to keep her inside too long so she could find her real home again. That changed after Ren had some run-ins with another stray cat. She refused to set a single paw out the door. We felt so bad for her that we gave up and let her stay.
Making Adjustments
Living with Ren full-time has been…challenging. She has a very different personality than Oreo. She has an endless supply of energy, which means she always wants to play. I, on the other hand, am too old to be twirling ribbons and bouncing balls to entertain her at 3 AM. And of course, all of that energy makes her a virtual bottomless pit. We go through at least two cans of food a day, not counting the snacks. It’s a good thing we signed up for PetSmart’s Treats rewards program.
Ren also requires a lot of supervision. Part of that involves protecting her from danger. The neighborhood kids continue to target her every chance they get, and there are a lot of dogs in the complex now. The other part involves keeping Ren out of trouble. She’s a little hellion! Inside the house, she swats at the TV antenna’s rabbit ears, flips the blinds out of the window, and chews on my mom’s colored pencils. Outside the house, she digs in the neighbor’s garden, climbs the cage of our other neighbor’s birds, and brings countless lizards into the house. We can’t take our eyes off her for a second.
Our biggest problem is that Ren bites a lot. If I say she can’t go outside or that it’s not time to eat, for instance, she will attack me. My hands, arms, and ankles are covered in scars from these incidents. She has bitten my parents too for similar reasons. They have threatened to permanently throw her out over her bad behavior several times.
She is getting better, though. She often claws a particular chair when she’s upset about something instead of biting. On top of that, I’ve learned ways to deter her. I hold a plastic bin top in front of me like a shield or we fire off warning puffs of air refresher (she hates the smell and the sound).
Conclusion
Beyond the minor problems, we have truly come to love Ren. She’s always making us laugh with her antics and attitude. My dad constantly picks up special treats and toys for her. I’ve even caught him running around in the yard playing with her. And not only has my mom accepted Ren, but they’re like best friends. My mom takes her for walks and saves her bits of whatever we’re eating. It’s so cute.