On Saturday, it will have been one year since my parents drove to our house with this guy in tow.
You may remember that my parents were on one of their regular drives through the Iowa countryside when they found Avon and his sister. Someone had abandoned the very young kittens in a box by a busy highway.
Both of the kittens were starving, especially Avon who was tiny and frail. My parents brought them home and nursed them back to health. It wasn't clear if Avon would make it, and if my parents hadn't found them, he most certainly wouldn't have.
Avon's sister was adopted out to a different family, and we adopted little Avon.
During those first few weeks, he turned our world around. It was only upon having a new kitten that we realized what a quiet and still home we'd had with adult cats who were set in their habits.
Pre-Avon, we started our day with leisurely cups of coffee and calm internet time. Post-Avon… Well, he only has two speeds - warp and off.
He is both a whirling dervish and a bundle of love. He'll race through the house with the thunder of horses, but he also loves to cuddle, purr, and give kisses.
We wondered if Jezebel would warm to Avon, a new kitten in the house. But Avon didn't give her a choice. He loves her something fierce. And it wasn't long before they were grooming each other, all curled up in the same small space.
Avon pesters Jezebel too much sometimes, and there is some screeching involved. But I am so happy they have each other.
She has always been the alpha-meow of the family. But her maternal instinct kicked in with Avon. She stands back and lets him eat first, even though she could easily elbow him out of the way.
When he is being particularly aggressive, we'll lock him outside of the bedroom with Jezebel on the other side. It's never too long before Jezebel is at the door begging to be with him again. They fight, but they love each other too.
After starving as a kitten, it's taken most of this year for Avon to realize that he will never be hungry again.
At first we had to keep a careful eye on him, because he wanted to eat everything. We've had to replace computer power cords, hide phone chargers, and always tuck in the drawstrings of our pants, because he wants to leap at them claws first.
It is a reminder that all of us - kittens included - spend our lives trying to save ourselves from past pain. Avon always runs to the sound of food being poured and is ready to dodge into the refrigerator every time it opens.
Even though Avon's food bowl is never empty and treats are plentiful, it's only within the past couple of months that there are treats he will turn up his nose at (as is a cat's prerogative). Even if it perplexed him that Jezebel loved asparagus, if that's what was offered, he would look at her quizzically and then gobble it down.
Now he's willing to walk away from a treat, and that's big progress.
Avon's Bad Day
One memory that stands out from his first couple months here is when I came home from the gym. Avon was uncomfortable, still, and not at all himself. He wasn't interested in food and looked nauseous.
The next day, he continued to be sedentary and ill. So we took him to the vet, where they did an X-ray. They couldn't find anything wrong. But said that if he still wasn't eating in 24 hours, they would have to do exploratory surgery.
My heart ached at the idea of sending a tiny kitten in for surgery.
Luckily, that night we realized what had happened. Jezebel had an old toy, a cat dancer, one of those long, dangly fabric pieces that is attached to a stick. When you dangle it in the air, cats jump for it.
Well, since it was so old, it had gotten separated from the stick. So we'd just use the fabric as a jumping toy. It was 15 inches long and about one inch wide.
Apparently Avon had taken one swallow of it, and then he was committed. He kept swallowing and swallowing until the fabric was gone.
I realize this is a cooking blog. So I'll keep the gross details to a minimum here… But you know that trick that clowns do, where they pull a long piece of fabric out of their pocket, and it just keeps coming and coming and coming? Well, something like that happened with Avon later that evening - all in one piece.
Worst clown trick ever.
But after that, he was back to his old self again, no surgery necessary.
Since then we've been especially vigilant about not having anything out that he might eat, even if it's something 15 inches long that seems impossible for him to swallow.
Does Avon do any other tricks? Why, yes, he does.
He loves to play fetch. He'll bring me his toy, hunker down for me to throw it, and then run off for it and bring it back. He's better at fetch than most dogs I've known.
This is a video of him playing fetch when he was four months old.
Avon makes every day sweeter.
Whenever we come home, he runs to the door and then flops onto his back to say hello. After we pick him up, he covers our noses in kisses.
Avon is the happiest being I know. If I've closed the bedroom door at night, in the morning when I open it, I hear him bounding down the hallway to greet me.
He loves everything, and even the most mundane things are a celebration. "We're going to bed? Yay! We're going to make dinner? Yay! We're going to sit on the porch? Yay!"
I shudder to think of what would have happened if my parents hadn't found Avon in that field last July. As much as he needed to be saved, we needed him so much more.
Kelly
I’ve just discovered your blog and am quite enjoying it, it is a bright sunny day out but I can’t tear myself away! I did have a question in regards to what you feed your kitty’s. Are they vegan too? We feed our cats low on the karmic load of animals (fish and fowl…I know how awful that sounds, so please don’t reprimand me), but have been interested in what vegans feed their cats and was it hard to change their diets if they used to be meat eaters. I also have heard that cats need something nutritiously that is only found in meat. Even our locally owned pet stores do not carry vegan cat food. Can you help me?
Cadry
Hi, Kelly! Thank you for the kind words! I’m so glad you’re enjoying my blog. I hope you were able to get outside today too and soak up some sunshine. That’s a really good question regarding Avon’s diet. (We just have one cat now, sadly. Jezebel passed away last week.) 🙁 We feed Avon a species-appropriate diet. Since cats are obligate carnivores, that means we feed him a meat centered diet. (Although, he does enjoy some vegan snacks on occasion like nutritional yeast flakes.) While humans can not only survive but thrive on a vegan diet, cats cannot. There are some people who argue that cats can eat a vegan diet, and vegan cat food does exist. However, I’m unconvinced. When I’ve heard from veterinarians (even vegan ones), they all recommend a meat-based diet for cats. Obviously, I wish things were different, and that Avon could eat a plant-based diet like I do. However, Avon is his own individual with his own personal needs, and as his care-taker, I have to make sure his dietary needs are met for his best health.
Kelly
Thank you for your advice, especially how vegan vets feel about vegan cat food. I feel better about our choice to keep fish and fowl based cat foods in place. So sorry about Jezebel, I know your heart must still be breaking. Our oldest (Paddy) is 19 and I know I’ll be devastated when he passes on. We also have a orange cat (Duffy) that is 8, so seeing Avon’s fetch video brought back good kitten memories!
I also want to thank you for your blog as it relates to human food. I’ve been vegetarian for 25 yrs and gave up eggs 14 yrs ago and have just started thinking about giving up milk products. So I appreciate all advice in making this last transition easier. I especially like your easy recipes as I am not much of a cook.
Cadry
Thank you, Kelly. I appreciate your kindness. It’s a really rough time. Jezebel was 17 years old, and so she lived a full & happy life. However, I still miss her so much, of course. It’s just not home without her here. I hope that you will still have many more wonderful years with Paddy. I know a cat named Puddy who is about to turn 21. I’m so glad to hear that my blog and recipes have been helpful for you. That’s why I do what I do! 😀
Elise
I have just discovered your blog recently after JL Fields posted your blog about packed lunches (immensely helpful to me by the way!) and I feel compelled to comment on your sweet kitty. I don’t know if it’s a ginger cat thing, but I adopted a female orange tabby in November and Avon reminds me so much of her! She loves to play, she flops on her back to say hello when I get home, wake up or even when I come in from another room after a while apart. She has made our lives so much happier, much like your Avon! Cats are amazing that way.
Cadry
Oh, that’s so sweet about your cat, Elise! I love it that she’s a flopper too. It’s amazing how animals have their own unique ways of connecting, showing love, and expressing themselves. I have a serious soft spot for orange cats. I think that every home needs at least one. 🙂
I’m glad that you found my blog through JL and that my lunches post was helpful. I hope I’ll see you around again!
Richa {VeganRicha.com}
This is sweetest post and much needed today. Love his pictures with Jezebel. She has that all knowing look in her eyes, like I know you, I know what you will be upto next minute :). Thank goodness for that clown trick. Saved him some surgery and you will always have a story to tell!
Cadry
Thank you, Richa. I love seeing Jezebel with Avon too. She has a surprising amount of patience for him, considering the way he can pester her. I get a little misty sometimes when I see how sweet she is with him.
Hannah
This is just the sweetest post! He’s gotten so big. His story, and his adjustment to life with y’all reminds me so much of my Eddie. We’ve had him for 8 years, but I still feel like he’s that rambunctious little boy we adopted in Burbank. We have to Eddie-proof our house anytime we leave, or go to bed because he’ll eat anything made of paper, plastic, etc. I’m always worried we’re going to have a situation like poor little Avon did, but I wouldn’t change a thing. Avon is a gorgeous cat, and I’m so glad you found each other!
Cadry
That’s so cute that 8 years later, Eddie is still your rambunctious little kitten. Jezebel feels that way to me too. She’s 15-years-old, but she’s still my baby. I’m surprised that after all of these years you still have to Eddie-proof your house before leaving or going to bed. I guess that’s what is ahead of us! 🙂
Becky Delson
“Worst clown trick ever.” Oh, Cadry, that sentence made me laugh! Glad you found this sweet boy. Sounds like a mutual rescue!
Cadry
I’m glad to hear that it made you laugh! I worried it might be a little too gross for a food blog, which is why I’ve waited so many months to tell the story. You’re right that it was a mutual rescue. Last summer was easily the hardest and saddest one of my life. Little Avon was the silver lining we so desperately needed.
Becky Striepe
This was such a lovely read. I didn’t realize that Avon had such a rough start. You guys are heroes!
Cadry
Aw, thanks, Becky! <3
amey
I forgot to tell you that Yummers likes to play baseball. When he’s up on his kitty perch, if we toss his little sparkly ball at him, he loves to bat it across the room. I bet Avon might like that game too!
Cadry
Oh, I’ll try that with Avon!
Amey
What a wonderful and moving post! Poor little baby Avon. Isn’t it amazing that living beings can recover and heal so completely from such destitution?? I’m so glad your loving parents saved him and his sister. I love all the pictures of him cuddling with Jezebel. We’ve progressed beyond constant fighting, and Yummers and Footie sometimes end up accidentally touching each other on the sofa, but there are definitely no love cuddles! I also love the story about naughty Avon eating the whole kitty toy! Ha ha / Ew. Love to all of you!
Cadry
Yes, I’m always amazed at the resilience of animals – both human and non-human. Avon is really social and wants to greet and love on every person who comes over. However, there are times when large, lumbering men will come to the house to fix something or work on something outside, and Avon changes entirely. He becomes really meek and hides and practically crawls through the house, like he doesn’t want to be seen. Obviously in the time he’s been in our family, no one has ever hurt him. However, his reaction makes me think that he has fears and memories from his early days as a kitten. After all, anyone who would abandon little baby kittens like that by a busy road in the middle of summer heat is lacking in the compassion department. Whenever it happens that he’s scared like that, I pick him up and tell him he’ll always be safe with us.
I’m glad to hear there’s some improvement in the Yummers and Footie relationship. 🙂
Caitlin
i can’t believe it’s been a year! avon is so sweet and i love the videos of him snuggling with mama jezabel. also, thank you for sharing the avon’s bad day story. i’m so glad he’s ok! it’s amazing what our little buddies will eat.
Cadry
I know! Time flies, doesn’t it? I’m so relieved that his swallowing story didn’t end with exploratory surgery. Having him around is like adding a toddler to the household, since it has to be kitten-proofed for whatever weird thing he might eat. He is so different in that way than Jezebel. She’s always had an awareness of what she should and shouldn’t eat and hasn’t pushed that.
Susan
Such a beautiful post, and such a beautiful boy! I may have shed a few tears reading this. Thank goodness your parents found him!
Cadry
Aw, thanks, Susan. I feel so lucky to have him in our lives. He entered it at a point when we really needed him, and he needed us too. 🙂
diana @ veggienextdoor
What a sweet kitty!!! I wish our cats had his fetching ability – how fun!
We have a young cat with an insatiable appetite. We often find him in the kitchen sink checking the drain for scraps despite food being available across the room at all times. And it is impossible to keep him off the dining room table for dinner.
Reading your post I realized he was so skinny when we adopted him and possibly had been starving at one point too and now feel more empathetic toward these less than desirable behaviors. We have only had him for 4 months so Avon gave us hope too that he still may adjust more.
Thank you!
Cadry
Good luck with your kitten, Diana! There are still behaviors that I’m trying to change in Avon – like jumping on counters and the dining room table, playfully biting (he doesn’t bite hard), scratching furniture, and chewing on things he shouldn’t. It’s definitely a process! Hopefully your little guy will come around too.
An Unrefined Vegan
What a love bug! So wonderful that you found each other.
Cadry
I’m so glad too, Ann! I can’t imagine our lives without Avon.
Adriane
What a sweet post! I love the video! Avon seriously reminds me of a dog the way he plays fetch! So intriguing! I’m so glad your mother found him and brought him to you!
Cadry
Thanks, Adriane! It is interesting how naturally Avon came to love playing fetch. He’s a pro at it. 🙂
Veganopoulous
How beautiful! Cheeky little guy, though very clever to play fetch like that! One of our cats swallowed a long length of string the day after we adopted him, even though we had kitten proofed the house he managed to pull a loose thread somewhere. Apparently he ate everything, according to the foster carers. He did it again a few months later and other times we found him with a thread hanging out of his mouth. Turns out it came from the cat scratch post of all places, underneath where we couldn’t see it and he’d scratched a bit of the carpet covering loose! A fair bit of anxiety on our part (and many hundreds of dollars in X-rays and such), fortunately he vomited up the string both times and spared himself the surgery!
Cadry
Oh, thank goodness! I’m glad your guy was able to avoid surgery too.
Rachel R.
What a sweet post. Animals make our live so much better!
Cadry
Thank you, Rachel. I couldn’t agree more! Animals are the soul of a home.