Duncan Kelly

In March, 2010, I lost my 13 1/2 year old kitty, Esa.  He was one of the sweetest cats I've ever had the joy of knowing and his sudden loss had me swearing I'd never have another cat.  I'd lost 2 other cats, my beloved Gus in 1997 and my best buddy, Sybil, in 2005 and I was done.  NO MORE CATS!  It was too heartbreaking when they left.  Well, my friend Cheryl had other plans!  After watching me grieve for over a week she convinced me we HAD to go to PetSmart to return something I'd gotten for Esa when I thought he might get better.  Oh and while we're there, we can just LOOK at the furbabies up for adoption through S.M.A.R.T.II, the shelter that works with PetSmart to find homes for their shelter rescues.  Yeah, right.  We'll just LOOK!  HA!  However, I was determined NOT to bring a cat home with me.  So much so that I didn't even bring my carrier!

Well, we looked.  And as I walked around the tower of cats, this orange tabby on the bottom stuck his paw out and tapped me.  So, I just HAD to say hi and chat with him, right?!  I mean, it was only polite!  And he was a real chatterbox!  He told me his name was Duncan and that he would really love to come home with me and he was a very good boy and...  Well, you get the picture!  Next thing I knew, I was making that fatal mistake all animal lovers make -- I was asking if I could hold him!  That was it.  I was a goner! 

Cheryl stood by Duncan's cage while I filled out the necessary adoption paperwork and I heard her say to him "Kid, this is your lucky day"!  She later told me that he was intent on watching me while I was filling out the paperwork and whenever anyone came by he'd back away from the front of his cage, as if to say "No, its ok.  I have a mom!"  What can I say?  Esa was a total sweetheart but definitely a few fries short of a Happy Meal.  Duncan, on the other hand, is too smart for his own good!  And he recognized a sucker the second he saw me!

So, now Duncan was mine but I had no carrier with me.  Remember, I was NOT going to adopt another cat!  God bless Cheryl!  She had driven so now we had to go back to my apartment, get the carrier and then go BACK to PetSmart and get Duncan!  But it was a gorgeous day, so why not spend it in the car travelling back and forth to PetSmart?  Especially since the trip back home would be filled with the lovely strains of Duncan "singing" at the top of his lungs! 

So, the journey began.  We arrived home and Duncan popped out of the carrier, surveyed his new surroundings and immediately pronounced them "purrfect"!