Isabelle and Carrie Fagerstrom: Furry Friends Fur-Ever

“I have had so many cats in the past!” Carrie cheerfully admits.

“After browsing the Furry Friends website, I found Isabelle, visited the shelter to meet her and promptly adopted her. I chose her because I was looking for a senior cat. I, myself, am a senior, and I want to make every effort not to leave pets behind when I die. Plus, she seemed as if she’d fit in with my current furry family.

“Isabelle’s adjustment to living here was immediate. After she was kept in a separate room for about a week, she marched out of her room with no hesitation, quickly found and used the cat door to the catio, and seems very happy. She sleeps in her bed in the bathroom (door open) off my bedroom most of the day, but is more active in the evening. She quickly learned that treat time is 9PM and comes out for that.

“In all honesty, she’s been a joy. Love me an old lady cat! Isabelle, who’s 15-years-old and tiny, hasn’t been mean to my other pets, but she must have an aura of ‘don’t mess with me’ about her,’ because they give her a wide berth. For her part, she mostly ignores them. She’s chased her 17-pound brother out to the front of the house several times, which is hilarious! I’m fairly sure that she’s playing, but he doesn’t stay around long enough to find out. 

“As far as playing with toys and enjoying games are concerned, give Isabelle a Chewy box with packing paper and catnip and she’s happy. Although she likes to be close to me and always follows me around, she doesn’t particularly like being picked up or cuddled. She loves pets and scritches … until she doesn’t.

Isabelle’s family:

Ivy, Sawyer, Boone, Colby. I’m back there somewhere. I just asked Boone to hide my chins, but he’s an overachiever. 😸It’s fine if Isabelle doesn’t want to be a lap cat. If she decides she wants to be, we’ll make room.

“One of Isabelle’s most endearing quirks that keeps me smiling is that she has the voice of an 80-year-old smoker and uses it to ‘yell’ about her meals being late! She’s not talkative unless she’s making demands.

“At night, she starts out next to me on the bed, but, at some point, moves to her cozy spot in the bathroom.”

 ______________________________________________________

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.