CHARLIE TAKES OVER
The
death of our beloved Persian cat, Bismarck, on 9/10/01 made a terrible
week even worse. I don’t know who grieved more—his human
family or his canine “sisters,” Freya and Scrunchy. Since
he had come from the Humane Society, we let them know that we would welcome
another feline friend, preferably a Persian because of their unique personalities.
Some time later we learned that a 6-month-old bi-colored Persian kitten
had been brought in by an unappreciative owner. He was just getting over
a cold and looked scared and miserable. When we brought him home, he
hid in the bathroom and ate anything we gave him.
Since we are both historians, we named him Charlemagne after the 9th
century Emperor Charles the Great. This got quickly shortened to “Charlie”,
a more suitable name for 3 lbs. of kitten.
A visit to the vet was the turning point in his attitude. For some reason,
our bringing him home again convinced him that he was a permanent family
member now. He marched into the living room and proceeded to take over
the house. The dogs’ tails became his favorite toys, he sampled
their food and checked out their toys. But if one of them came near his
own food dish, he came at them swinging both paws! If they objected to
his behavior, he climbed on the furniture and threatened to jump on them.
We have also learned to obey His Imperial Highness. He has learned to
be finicky so we only buy his preferred, expensive brands of cat food.
We change his litter on demand and retrieve his catnip ball from under
the furniture. Of course, we also brush and comb his magnificent fur
every evening as ordered!
The television is regularly tuned to appropriate entertainment for his
enjoyment. Animal Planet is his favorite channel. He had a wonderful
time watching the movie “Cats and Dogs” until the cats lost.
He then stalked out of the room and ignored us for hours.
We can’t imagine life without Charlie!
Leslie O'Malley Finke
Note: Charlie had a heart murmur when we got him. Often, a heart murmur is benign, but not in his case. He enjoyed every minute of his life with us, as much as we enjoyed him.