New Zealand Life

Trouble

Bright blue eyes on a cream-colored face with dark brown ears and nose; a little patch of white fur above her nose and two white parentheses just below her mouth like a mustache. Cream-colored fur on her body, blending into a dark brown tail and paws artistically splashed with dark fur.

Our Devin Rex kitten was born on November 14, 2011. Though the breeder named her Potencia at first, we changed her name to Callie. We picked Callie up on January 21, 2012. She was already neutered at the time, and simple needed a wormer at the appropriate times.

For the first couple of weeks, Callie stayed in Mom and Dad’s bedroom. Then, she was old enough to explore the house. She was introduced to Jaynee and would eat Jaynee’s food right in front of Jaynee’s face. She would play with Jaynee, and escape to Jaynee’s restricted area when she got annoyed with Jaynee’s paws and nose pushing her around (see video link page). Callie would chase Jess around, jumping after Jess’s hind legs. Our little kitten loved peacock feathers and would go crazy when one was brought out for her to play with. She would jump up to catch the feather, and fall down on her back or side, only to get right back up and try again.

The occasional wild streak will get in her. During these times, she races around the house a top speed with her tail straight in the air, with a mind bent on destruction. She jumps on the curtains, plays with the house decorations, bites someone who is playing with her, and scratches at the carpet or her cat-scratch wildly. It is for these actions that she has earned the nickname "Trouble".

Other times, Callie just wants to get stroked and relax. She’ll slowly climb into your lap, purring loud enough for penguins in Antarctica to hear, and curl up in a ball ready for petting and attention. Once she’s settled down, she doesn’t appreciate getting moved even a centimeter, and will meow out her protest if she is.

Callie is now nearly eight months old, and is allowed in the entire house except for a few select rooms where she gets into too much trouble. One such room is my own, in which she will sneak in and destroy as many peacock feathers in my collection as she can. We have only nearly lost her once, when she escaped outside somehow when we were living at the Shelly Beach rental home. Since then, she has been safe and sound and as affectionate and adorable as ever.

~ Julia ~