Tobby the Tabby

by Amy
(Alamogordo, NM, USA)

My favorite type of cat is the orange tabby. Granted I have only owned two cats, both being tabbies; one orange and one the common mackerel.

My orange tabby, named Tobby, has a great personality! I got him from an animal shelter when he was two years old. At first, we had many problems adjusting to each other.

He didn't have any 'manners' inside the house and would make trouble every minute. He also did not take to my other tabby cat.

But, after about a month of trying to gain his trust he started to come around. Now, he is eight years old and still behaves like a kitten. He wakes me up every single morning by jumping into bed, curling up on my chest, and purring very loudly until I get up and feed him. During the days he loves being outdoors, climbing trees, sleeping on the hood of my car, and attempting to catch birds. The coolest thing about Tobby though is he is not scared of anything!

He will go on car rides and calmly sit in the back seat, he enjoys taking baths, enjoys his nails being trimmed, and when I start up my motorcycle he jumps up onto the padded seat and curls up for a nap. He now gets along with my other cat too. Sometimes I think she wishes Tobby still didn't like her because he will chase her around the house and yard relentlessly swatting at her tail and legs trying to get her to play with him. I still don't know why his original owners got rid of him, but I do know that he has a permanent home here with me and my other tabby.