She sulks to show her displeasure. She prefers not to be cuddled and hugged. And still Siddhesh, Madhavi and Sanam Bhobe can’t help but give in to Catrina’s charm
Her presence was noted when the garbage bin was turned upside down outside their home on many days. That was a start. In the next few days, Catrina crossed the threshold and snuggled into the warmth of the Bhobe home in Aundh on February 14, in 2008. A gorgeous Calico, Catrina is a spoilt brat. She sulks when she is upset, rolls over when she wants a back rub, decides where she is going to sleep on the bed and lets the family adjust around her accordingly. She eats just wet cat food of a certain kind, turns her nose at cold fish, walks away from stale food and refuses to be pet unless she feels like it.
This only adds to the endearing facts about the nine-year-old, says Siddhesh Bhobe, Vice President – Persistent. Wife Madhavi, Assistant Director, Cognizant, says, “Siddhesh and our daughter Sanam have spoilt her totally.” We believe her when Siddhesh tells us how they get Catrina to eat… she has to be told its yummy (with sound effects) only then does she show some interest and then she eats.
Finicky to say the least, she eats only pomfret, doesn’t even look at lesser fish like bangda. She doesn’t eat fish if it’s too cold. It has to be warm and not older than one day in the fridge. Rice, curd, milk, chapati are not cat food for her. So the family works extra hard to see that her demands are met.
The Bhobes didn’t think Catrina was going to be difficult to manage. “Initially, she started staying over for the entire day, we used to send her out in the night. But then she decided she wouldn’t go out at night and she stayed on from February. She has her people who she lets come close to her. She doesn’t like other cats, giving them snooty glances and is generally moody,” says Sanam, a Class 10 student.
Catrina’s day begins with waking the family, mostly for a bite. Then she stares out the windows, goes for walks in the society and then comes home to nap and recuperate. “If she is unhappy with something, she mews loudly and if she doesn’t like what you are doing to her, be ready to get swiped with her paws. The good thing is that she likes kids, while she “tolerates” adults,” adds Siddhesh.
A very good cat, she knows where she is not allowed and where she is. Her only worrying trait is the sulking. The first time the Bhobes left her alone, they went out of Pune for a few days. When they returned, she kept looking at the floor, at the walls… anywhere except at them. And she refused food. “She is a fussy eater but she was refusing everything. The first thought in my head was that she was poisoned. I grew up with cats in my home in Goa and this for me was a classic case of something terribly wrong. After extensively consulting with my veterinarian in Goa on the phone, we could identify it as her being upset because were not where we were supposed to be,” adds Siddhesh. Sanam chips in, “Now when she looks at walls, we know something is not to her liking. So we let her be for a while. She comes around.”
Her endearing capacity to purr is extraordinary. “We can probably generate electricity with it,” smiles Siddhesh. Almost as if she hears him, Catrina turns and purrs contently, from her favourite place in the living room window.
Uma Karve Chakranarayan is editor and publisher of Tell Tail, Pune’s only petzine and partner, Petsworld, a pet food and accessories store. She’s fond of animals and is parent to two mixed breed dogs and a Guinea pig. She also looks after homeless dogs in her area.’Furholics’ appears every Saturday on Pune365.
- #Furholics-Monsoon Care For Your Pets - August 5, 2019
- #Furholics Presents Leo- The Handsome Darling At The Sanzgiri’s - August 11, 2018
- Finches, Lovebirds, Two Dogs And A Lot Of Love At Vandana’s - July 28, 2018
