We evidently are cat people. We do love all animals, but cats seem to be attracted to us. It is 2026, and we live with 2, no, 3, no, 5 nope, 9 cats. to understand how this family has grown let me go back to the beginning. When we moved here, we brought our tabby, Pippin. He traveled well in the car from NJ to middle TN. I include the word middle because like the kids yelling 'are we there yet?', crossing the state line means there are only four more hours to go. Pippin stayed quiet for most of the trip. He only cried when he needed to use the bathroom. Amazingly enough he only had one minor accident. 
Pippin.
Pippin was about 13 or 14 when we made the move, so after a while we decided to adopt a Ragdoll cat. Actually, since Pippin was devoted to my son, I wanted to have my own lap cat. I couldn't decide between Ragdoll or Maine Coon. (until I saw the prices.) We found a breeder in Tennessee and I chose a blue eyed, silver point male kitten. When we got there we were introduced to the kittens, most were female, the male I choose was the smallest and in my opinion the cutest. My son however had other ideas. There was a particularly playful kitten who took to him immediately. Do you believe in instant bonding? We adopted both.
They grew into their names well. Puppy because he acted like a dog, and Moxie - well she was made of it. Pippin reluctantly accepted the new comers. After some time Pippin passed away.
Moxy and Puppy as kittens PUPPY MOXY. FOREGROUND TO BACKGROUND: MOXY, PUPPY, FITZ
A stranger appeared at my back door in 2021. He was a tuxedo, and very friendly. He just did not leave. Every
time I went outside he'd follow me and hang out with me while I did chores, gardening, or just enjoying the outdoors. I couldn't imagine he did not have owners. He was content to be outside and at meal times he'd disappear for about 20 minutes. My son was in the Navy during this time, but he always wanted to hear about my adventures with this cat. Puppy and Moxie were indoor cats. They would peer through the door or window to watch this newcommer. I looked forward to his visits but I did not officially count him as ours until my son came home from active duty. Remember the instant bonding thing? They took to each other right away. Devon started calling him Fitz and it stuck. He took Fitz to the vet for a check up, flea treatment, and to make sure he did not have anything to pass to Puppy and Moxie. Also to see if he was chipped or had a registered owner. As soon as he was cleared he was in the house and not going anywhere.
We are up to 3.
In December of 2022, we attended a family reunion of sorts celebrating Christmas in Orlando. That's when the idea of adopting a rescue first came up. I still had not given up on the idea of having a Maine Coon. So it was not at all surprising that we adopted Asher on January 17th and Foxy on Jan 18, 2023, bringing our total to 5.
Fast forward to 2025. Another beautiful long haired cat, also black and white started hanging out in our yard. I first spied her in February. Definitely feral, she would come to eat but stayed away from us. In March, she went into heat and was married on March 18, 2025. (We have the ceremony on camera.) We estimated she would deliver around May 23rd. The camera confirmed on May 26th when it captured her quite thin. We were away at the time, in NJ for the wedding of my niece, and returned June 2. She had birthed her kittens off property but she moved them to our house once she knew we were back home. Once we discovered the nest, she moved them again. At dusk we were privileged to see them play under her watchful eye. She was a good mom. By the time they were 4 weeks old we decided we should capture them soon before they were too old to tame or she came into heat again. We did try some unorthodox ways to entice her into our home but that really did not work. We put the food closer and closer and finally into the house. Eventually she came into the house to eat but was very wary and would run back out if she thought she was threatened. We then built a window box in reverse so that she could come into the air conditioned house to eat. She still was way too fearful of us, but nursing her young and the need for food was an overwhelming need.
After a few failed attempts to capture her in the window box, (she was too fast), my son said we should get a have-a-heart trap. All the resources said to capture mom first, but this made no sense to us. My son went to the nest and just grabbed each kitten placing them in a carrier. They were fine and settled together rather quickly. We covered the carrier with a towel to keep them calm and positioned the trap in front of the carrier. We made sure that we put it where mamma was used to eating. We did put food in the trap but in hindsight, the call of her kittens would have been enough. It took over an hour and 2 times for her to not quite trigger the trap before it was successful.
Devon had prepared a floor to ceiling 'cage' in his room, complete with litter box, toys and hideaways. He released the kittens into this cage. Mamma was another story. She reacted very badly to being caged. Right away she looked for escape. she actually climbed the cage to the ceiling and squeezed out between the top and the ceiling. The door to the room was closed. My son sitting on his bed and crazed mamma running around looking for the way out. After a few hours she calmed down but was unapproachable. The miracle moment arrived when Devon used a broom to gently guide her to her kittens. She liked the feel of the bristles and rubbed against it to scratch herself. From that moment on she was happy. Devon left the cage up for a day before he decided it was unneeded.
Now, I have to come clean. I was totally happy with the 5 cats who adopted us. I was willing to add Mamma to that list. (Before she became Mamma). But adding 4 more to the tribe? I was talking this entire time about finding them forever homes. My son however had no such intentions. They are all his. He is the cat whisperer. He really is. They react to his voice, they run to him when they are scared, they sleep with him, and climb all over him when he his working on his computer. He doesn't need to find them if they are hiding. He calls, They come. Let me illustrate further.
The adoption of Asher was easy. We had visited the Nashville Cattery to adopt a cat. This was our second visit. Devon went in the cat room and met several cats who needed a home. He was looking for a challenge. However, it is the cat who chooses you, not the other way around. Asher was in the middle of the floor when Dev pointed to another cat and said "you come here". Well that other cat didn't even blink as Asher went running over and jumped on his lap. I did the paperwork and off we went. Asher fit right in. He and Fitz got along almost instantly. After the appropriate number of hisses, Moxie and Puppy accepted him as well. Most likely Asher would fit in any household. I am happy he choose ours.
Lets examine the adoption of Foxy. This was the next day after bringing Asher home. I did not have the time to cancel the appointment to meet her. No worries, I was going to decline the adoption. The foster mom had other ideas. She gave me the carrier and did not take her out or let me pet her. The paper work, unsigned was given to me and she escorted me out of the store. Everything happened so fast, I did not even register what had occurred. On the way home I recalled some of what she said. All red flags. "This morning was the first time Foxy let me pet her in 4 months." "She's shy and is not okay with kids." "She feels safe in her carrier." What I think she meant was: 'This cat is still feral, I can't foster her any longer, You must take her.'
She was fine on the way home. I brought her in the house. Closed the doors so the other cats would not distract her. I took her out of her carrier and put her on my bed when she attacked. She tore open my arm and climbed up the blinds to get out through the window. Devon put on oven mitts to get her and put her back into her carrier. She immediately calmed in the carrier. I looked around and discovered I was bleeding pretty badly, my mini blinds in two windows were thoroughly trashed, and that I was bamboozled into adopting a feral cat. Enter the cat whisperer. Devon built her a custom cage with litter box, hidey-hole, room for himself, and play area. He did this in the den where we all hang out so that she could become accustomed to all of us. Our cats, on their own time, would smell her and she them. Devon spent a good amount of time with her. Especially when feeding her. He took his time, did the slow blink thing, and let her come to him. By and by he was able to take her out and cuddle her. By two months the cage was gone. Although she will never be a lap cat like the others, she has her space and is a true family member .