Soba-chan

Almost 5 years passed since my cats passed away in February and August in 2020. Then, Shari, a domestic short hair cat, came to my life through the pet adoption site, Petfinder. I adopted her on June 22 and named her Soba 2 days later. ("-chan" is an informal Japanese suffix to show fondness) .The truth is that she adopted me.  

Shari on Petfinder.

Mama Shari and her 6 kittens were rescued from a shed outdoors in Upper West Side on 86th street between Columbus and Amsterdam Avenue on May 16. In the night of May 15, a human lady in the area (her name is Shari) reported about the mom cat and her kittens to Big Apple Cats, a small rescue group based in UWS and Kelly, the director of the group rescued them on the next day.

https://www.instagram.com/bigapplecatrescue/reel/DKTHe3fxgZO/

https://www.instagram.com/bigapplecatrescue/reel/DJwupeeRKv-/

 

I video-chatted Kelly and Keri, Shari’s foster mom. I fell in love with Shari at first sight and loved the good vives surrounding her. I picked her at little past noon on Sunday, June 22 at Big Apple Cats. She was nervous on the cab  and her teeth were chattering all the way to her new home. But once she arrived, she and I hit it off each other right away. From the beginning, she showed what she liked and what she didn’t like. At the same time, she showed me her appreciation on my hard work for her with getting physically closer little by little. I was already deeply in love with her, who grew up on the streets, showing me a vivid display of ‘honor and humanity’ street code right from the start! My mom said that you guys already look like partners for decades. 

Shortly after arriving new home!

 

6/22(Sun)

She is a street smart just like my first cat, Momo from a Harlem bodega basement. The way she tells me what she wants is very clear and efficient from the very beginning. At the same time, her foster mom, Keri, who grew up with cats, said she had never seen such an affectionate cat. She had just given birth to and raised 6 cats, so naturally she got an enormous appetite. 2 small cans of wet food at a time & dry food on top. 

first night

She seemed to be using her appetite to relieve some of her stress. Obviously, she had been tired of raising her 6 kittens, but even when she became full, she still looked at the door and mewed, especially when her boobs got tighter. When she got frustrated, she got physical. I couldn't get mom & kitten formula wet food Kelly recommended and Kelly told me kitten food would have been ok , but after a few cans of kitten food, she started litter box motion. She also gave me several lightning-fast cat punches on my legs with both paws. Since it was already nighttime, I ran to a convenience store, and the next day I went to a Petco in Union Square first thing in the morning. On the middle of the first night and in the next morning, she woke me up and asked for food. She was on my chest in the morning.

 

Second night. About 7

6/24(tue)

In the night of the 24^th, I named her “Shimizu (my Japanese last name) Soba”. I wrote her name in Japanese calligraphy and took her photos next to the writing. A sort of naming ceremony. I was just looking for a simple and easy name to call. But she is Tabico, mix of Tabby and Carrico. Tabico already sounds like Japanese! She also looks like a cousin of ‘Saba’, who is the one of the closest cat friend of mine in Tokyo, especially her atmosphere and patterns. Soba is more nutritious than other Japanese noodles like ramen or udon. Soba, in Japanese, also means be by your side. Also sounds similar to sober.

 June 24, about 11AM

 After the nap above

Naming ceremony

 

6/25 (wed)

I came home from grocery shopping and she greeted me at the door. 

 

After I gave her second supper, she yelled at me to come over. I was ordering her food and other stuff. It was so stupid of me.  2 nights ago, she was bothered by the noise from outside while eating. So I moved over there and said to her “I got your back”.

 

Later, my eyes met hers while I was standing on my back. I waved at her and she ran quickly run to me.

Night of the 25th

6/26 (Thurs)

At 6 AM, I dropped off Soba-chan at Big Apple Cats for her spay. She was taken to a Brooklyn vet in a minivan with a dozen or so other cats. I picked her up around 7 PM. 

 

Soba-chan was in good spirits and had a good appetite. She came to my side on the couch and gave me kisses. I was very happy and moved, but I worried about her wounds, so I sent Kelly a picture of her wounds and we made sure she was doing OK. I also sent pictures of her adjusting to her new environment and thank again to Kelly, her foster mom Keri and (her fiancé Peter), who is a brave and kind soul fostering Shari and all her six kittens although it was the first time for her to foster any cat, and the volunteers. Kelly replied  "She loves you! Adoptions like this are why we do it. She is such a luck cat! “. I replied “ I am a lucky human!”.

 

After spaying, I was massaging her gently and she fell asleep leaning her face into my right palm. She was on the street for a long time. When she ate her first meal here, she had reacted to every noise outside!

Past midnight on the 28th

 

6/29 (Sun)

Three days after spay, she stopped meowing in search of her kittens for the first time. At the same time, she started to clearly refuse cans of Royal Canin Mother & Babycat. She slept a lot, ate a lot, and seemed to be trying to recover from deep fatigue from the three-year life on the street. For the first couple of days since she came here, she plunked herself down on the floor as if she was saying that she couldn’t afford to be graceful.

Morning of the 29th

Afternoon

Night 

About 1 hour later

6/30 (Mon)

Now she got free from burdens and totally refreshed. She has started exploring this apartment up and down, left and right and has increased her terrain little by little each day. My apartment seen through Soba-chan's fresh eyes is fresh. She now understands the concept of play. At first, she held a rainbow kicking toy with catnip in it (Kelly gave it to her), and next, a ball tower that was a gift from my good cat friend. The balls in the tower can be played with solo or with a human. The ball slowed down when I joined, but she didn't seem to mind.

After sister in law, her husband and their son left in the evening, 

Soba-chan ordered me to go to the bedroom, and when I went there, she tucked me in and she slept on the bedroom floor.

 

It was the first big social occasion for her. I had not slept in the bedroom since it is on the loft area and I was afraid that super affectionate Soba-chan would have climbed the stairs after the big surgery. However, she discovered the bedroom as a sanctuary and mostly stayed there while the guests were visiting.

 

7/1 (Tue)

I started work full time again after a year break. So, Soba-chan had to stay home by herself for long hours for the first time. I shouldn’t have worried about such a  street-smart girl, but I couldn’t help it and I checked the apartment many times before I left for work.

Night of July 1

 

7/3 (Thu)

A week passed after her spay. Kelly told me that full recovery would take 1-2 week. It was the quickest recovery!! She loves to play! Although she got little scared of Cat Dancer toy in the beginning,  it became her favorite and she showed  promo video worthy brilliant actions. Of course, I worried about her wounds and watched them closely, but she seemed to know the best!

Night of July 3

7/4 (Fri) Independence Day

From early afternoon, It was noisy with barbecue party chattering and music outside. Soba-chan and I watched fireworks together. She was scared by the sound of fireworks but did not hide completely. She hid under chairs and tables, flexibly lowering her alertness in real time as she got used to it. 

 Night of July ４

After Macy's fireworks were over, illegal fireworks nearby still kept going. She gave me a “throne” armchair, which gave the best view (though partial) of those firework, and at the same time, she herself fled from the window, away from the sound and light. Such a quick assessment of the situation and precise action. Man, She is such Golgo 13. I want to follow her!! The fireworks and firecrackers kept going until about 3 in the morning. And we watched the fireworks together.

 

I have lived with cats for 25 years but never had one watch fireworks with me before. This was how a history of Soba-chan and I started. I wished we would watch lots of fireworks together for a long time to come.