Success Gallery

Hugo & Daphne  Hugo's and Daphne's mom wrote recently to say: Of course it's a black and white photo; they're black and white cats. That's Hugo on the right. We brought siblings Hugo and Daphne to our house in May of 2004. Since then, we've learned to understand their rules and now happily share our home with them. At first, they were shy and scared. It took them quite a while to come out from under the bed in the quiet room we set up for them. Eventually, they began to explore the rest of the house. They love hanging out on top of the half walls in the kitchen and the hallway. In our sunroom, they'll sit and stare out the window or lie down in the sunny spot. They have yet to learn about the warm spot in front of the fireplace, but they'll figure that out in due time. We did have some adjustment problems. At least once a day, Hugo would nip at Daphne's rear, and we got used to shouting "Hugo, don't bite your sister's butt!" But now they play together, chasing each other from behind any clothes we've left draped around the house. Hugo is not a lap cat. He needs his personal space, but he does deign to allow us to shower him with love when he is on his bed. But he really loves getting brushed and will gladly forget he's supposed to be aloof if it means a chance to get brushed and stroked. He likes to greet "me" ("dad") when I step out of the shower and help me to dry my legs by rubbing his fur against them. His nickname is "Monkey Boy" because of the chirping noises he makes when he wants to play. Hugo (left) tries to look innocent while Daphne (right) tries to look demure. This picture catches them snuggling, something they don't do a whole lot of. In comparison Daphne is the love monger of the pair. She'll happily sit on our laps and insist on being petted. She, literally, walks all over us, especially when we're in our bed. If given a chance, she'll lick our hands incessantly with loud slurping noises. It sounds a lot like "kitty" porn. We sometimes call her "Piglet," since she'll eat anything at anytime, and has even been caught begging -- like a dog -- for table scraps. There's always something new for them to learn, or for us to learn about them. Just this week, they've begun to play with small balls of crumpled paper. The new game is to try to toss the balls into our shoes and then push them down deep into the toes. We're so happy we get to share our house with these two -- the "best cats in the world!"