Georgia…. the cat-dog

This is Georgia. Georgia also goes by George, Georgie Porgie, and Fuzzybutt Princess. George started out on a farm in Georgia. My twin sister found her and her siblings on a family farm and decided to bring her home. So, she began as my sister’s cat and her name then was “Hemi”…. She has 6 toes on each paw (Ernest Hemingway cat). Well, after about 6 weeks, my sister showed up on my doorstep with this little kitty.

The Day Georgia Arrived

All you could see was huge paws, 2 big blue eyes, and fur. My sister informed me she could no longer keep her as her puppy would not “stop eating the kitty crunchies” from the litter box. I had zero intentions of getting a cat (my childhood cat had just been put down not a year prior this), but as my sister held her at my doorstep, I could hear this tiny “mew” and I was instantly in love with this ball-of-fuzz. So, she became my kitten and I decided her name needed to be Georgia. She is the most entitled, spoiled, outspoken diva of a cat that had meager beginnings in a barn. She was born around Valentine’s Day in 2005, therefore, that is her default birthday and she became my child on 05/05/05. Today, she is the ripe young age of 15. She is very outspoken in the home. Often I believe she gets her hisses mistaken for meows, in that she hisses a lot but she is not mad or angry. She will have full fledge conversations with you and it appears she knows what you are saying. She loves tuna, popcorn, and dog food. We feed her cat food, but she will shove her butt into the dog’s (Willow) bowl and eat her food, and the dog is quite larger than her.

BUT that does not stop her, she is queen tut and the dictator of the household. On one occasion the closet that held the dog food was left open, and she helped herself into the canister of dog food and “went to town”. When my stepdad found her, he described her as “being so full that when you picked her up, you thought she would explode”. And gosh forbid we make popcorn: the noises and meows that come from her are obnoxious. She will crawl on your lap, up to your face, and paw you, try to reach in your mouth, and anything to get a nibble. And when she gets one, she will meow and chomp at the same time (I never taught her table manners…. My bad).

Her Mischievous Ways

Her personality is not like that of any other cat I have met or known. She loves to cuddle and sleep in bed and on the couch with you (but you are not allowed to change positions as, being the princess, only she can do this). She loves rolling on concrete. She loves sleeping in front of the fire. She loves car rides, even knows when she is going to grandma’s house. She absolutely does not like to be brushed or taken to the vet. She has had a few UTI’s as of late, and the last one I had to leave her at the vet because they actually wanted a urine sample. She was so angry that she literally peed all over the kennel she was in (except the cat box), and made sure you knew what she did. When you brush her, she will smack you, growl at you, and make her opinions known. Apparently, to her, her fur is very special and likes to keep it to herself, unless she leaves it on your clothing. Then, and only then, can you have her fur. She can play fetch with popcorn: because she has 6 toes she can grip items, especially popcorn! She also knows when it is breakfast, even if it is hours before it is time for breakfast. She thinks she is starving and needs to protect every calorie she eats … not really. She starts off mellow but becomes a raging fire if you do no get out of bed. She walks on you, licks your nose, bellows with meows, and then… starts knocking items off the nightstand. The cellphone seems to be her most assured way to get you out of the bed. (I did have a self-feeder for her, but my mom does not use it).

Because she is older, my sweet baby has developed arthritis in her lower back. Some days she walks like a 100 year-old frail lady, until she takes a poop. Then she is this feisty, speed-demon kitten that has zero signs of being old as she rips up the stairs and around the house like she is a thoroughbred sprinting the last leg of the Kentucky Derby.

She loves sitting on the edge of the bathtub when you are trying to enjoy a hot bubble bath. More like, she is obsessed with drinking as much of the hot, soapy bathwater as her little heart can drink! Almost like she has been stuck out on the Mojave desert without water for days on end, craves it that much! Because of this, and her extra-large, fuzzy/furry paws get quite slippery and on multiple occasions she has fallen into the bathtub. Which then turns in to the crazy, frantic, attempt to get out of the water as “she melts” when she is wet. But, because her fuzzy paws are wet, she must have her human help her out of the water. Which then leads to her storming off, leaving a water trail to mark her rapid departure. And then… she will stare you down for the next several hours as if it was your fault she fell in the tub. And … if looks could kill…..

Her tail is an extension of her personality. She wags it and flips it. Often times, especially with her growling and sounds, we think she is a dog trapped in a cats body. She is confused. When she is happy, she waves it back and forth, curls it around your leg. But, when she is mad (spitting mad), she flicks it and slams it around quite hastily and notably. And then she will hiss…. And when she does the entire length of her tail vibrates. Almost as if she is a rattler, ready to strike. Adding to her dog traits: she loves to lick you. Your elbows, chin, and nose are her locations of choice. Yet, she cannot understand why you don’t like her kisses?! They are a precious gift from the princess and we should revere every one of them LOL.

Dogs for Friends

Until COVID began, George resided with me and would go on visits to my mom’s house. However, it was recognized that she was missing my mom’s dogs and she seemed to be sad without them while I was at work during the day. My mom “hinted” that George needed her dogs and that she was happier with them. Which, sadly, I did realize. So, we share custody of our sweet George and I go visit her often. Grandma spoils her so, and she deserves it. This is the story of our barn-cat turned princess of the Specht Household: Georgia.

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