Chandler, Joey, Bean and Spaz and Elijah and April Holcomb: Furry Friends Fur-Ever

“Growing up, we usually had two cats in the house at one time,” Elijah says. “And so, it came as no surprise when my mom, April, recently decided to adopt four cats, bringing the number of cats living here to six!

“Joining our two current cats, Buffy and Coco, are Chandler, Joey, Bean and Spaz. Chandler, Joey and Bean were foster fails from a group of eight, sick feral barn kitties, while Spaz was previously at another foster’s home. Now that she’s firmly ensconced here, she’s found her true love in Joey. Chandler quickly decided that I was his person, Bean fell in love with my mom and Joey, our big, fluffy goofball is infatuated with Coco.

“Their adjustment to living in our house was immediate. They didn’t like being put back into the ‘kitten room’ at night, and there was the occasional kitty temper tantrum of howling and scratching at the door until we eventually gave up and they were soon free roaming 24/7.

“There’s certainly much more laughing and cursing here than before. The laughing is mostly from me when my mom walks down the hall and the trio (Chandler, Joey and Bean) makes her trip and almost fall, which leads to the cursing. We’ve predicted that the day she falls and breaks something, it will have been because of one of the cats!

“Although they didn’t get along at the start, they’ve gotten used to each other. Chandler and Joey, however, still annoy Buffy and Coco because they chase them around the house and refuse to take the hint. As for toys and games: Chandler isn’t much for toys, he prefers brawling with the other cats. Joey loves garbage and objects other than actual cat toys, including a pen, a piece of licorice, tufts of his own hair ... the list is endless.

“Bean has an unhealthy obsession with a rubber, wiggly snake toy. The snake was previously stored in a cabinet until Bean broke into it one day while my mom was feeding the fish and took off with it. While the snake is no longer stored there, she meows and puffs up her tail every night when my mom feeds the fish now, convinced it’s still there. Spaz loves springs. She carries them around in her mouth and steals them away if another cat’s playing with one.

“As far as affection goes, Bean loves being petted and cuddled by my mom. Chandler loves being petted and cuddled by me. Joey allows each of us to hold him like a baby and give him kisses. I could probably count on one hand the number of times I’ve petted Spaz because she was sidetracked by food every time and gave me the ‘death glare’ afterwards.
“The kitties have even more silly quirks that make my mom and me smile. Chandler is obsessed with baked goods. If he spots any on the counter, he eats them. He even dragged a box out of a grocery bag once to get at them! Bean, for no reason at all, will have her tail puffed up when my mom feeds the cats in the morning. Joey has what we call his ‘episodes,’ when he runs around and jumps at things that aren’t there. If I’m taking out the canned food, Spaz comes up to me and taps my leg (no claws out) every time, which is nicer than when Chandler nips the back of my leg.

“At night, they usually sleep somewhere in my room -- either on my bed or on the floor.”

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Furry Friends Fur-Ever Stories are compiled and written by Nomi Berger who is the bestselling author of seven novels, one work of non-fiction, two volumes of poetry, and hundreds of articles. She is a volunteer writer for Furry Friends in Vancouver, WA and also volunteers her writing skills to animal rescue groups in Canada and the USA.