The Accidental Cat Lady

~ Kana Smith
three cats sitting on a window seat

We didn’t ever mean to have five cats. But how could that happen by ACCIDENT, you ask. Well, here’s the thing.

When we took this job managing an RV park, the job came with a house. We’d lived in an RV our entire marriage, so we moved into that house without a stick of furniture.

After living for so long in much tighter quarters, the three bedrooms, two bathrooms, living-room-dining-room-kitchen-space felt downright cavernous. I felt like we should take home the maintenance crew’s walkie-talkies:

“I’m in the front room. Over!”

We hadn’t wanted to deal with a cat (and litter box, etc.) when we were in smaller quarters—but once we got settled into the house, I began a campaign for getting a kitty. Every house needs a cat, in my opinion. It wasn’t a subtle campaign; my ongoing tactics included things like adding Cat Toy to the weekly grocery list.

four cats napping on a couch

My husband steadily resisted, and the campaign continued. Then suddenly, one day, he marched out of the bedroom and said, “You can have your cat!”

I meant to say “Yay,” but was startled into saying, “Why?” instead. (It was quite a sudden reversal, after all.)

Turns out there had been a mouse in his pants.

He picked up his pants when he got out of the shower, and a mouse jumped down and ran off. So yes, I could have a cat. Happy dance! He added some modifiers, though. We had just been visiting my mom, who had a very tiny, very sweet little black cat called Mila. “If we’re going to have one, it should be like your mom’s cat,” he specified.

So when we arrived at the local animal shelter, PAWS (Pendleton Animal Welfare Society, isn’t that cute?), I half-jokingly announced that we were in the market for a very small female black cat. “I think we have one,” she answered.

As it happened, the choice was taken out of our hands, and into the paws of a very small female black cat, who trotted right up to us when we walked into the Cat Room. It’s an enormous room, full of shelves and ramps and cat condos, and dozens of cats roaming and hiding. And one cat who jogged right up to our feet and looked up at us expectantly. Small and black, just like we’d specified. The decision was made for us!

black cat sitting on a post

We took her home and named her The General (because she clearly outranked us both), and had no more mice in our pants.

black cat looking at a group of kittens

The story wasn’t over, though. While we were filling out our adoption paperwork, the lady at the front desk asked if we would be interested in volunteering to foster kittens.

Somewhat to my surprise, Jon said “sure.”

As we found out the next spring, PAWS receives dozens upon dozens of kittens—in ones and twos and whole litters—who need care and feeding (bottle-feeding for the itty-bitties) until the weekly cat-shuttle (driven by a volunteer) could take them all to Portland where there’s a more robust adoption market.

writer's husband bottle-feeding kittens
writer's husband with his hands full of kittens

We became a collection-point, our collection growing every week by ones and twos and whole litters, and then they’d all be taken off and we’d start over. For a couple months, our house was the way-station for orphaned kitties. And ohmygosh they were all SO CUTE! We reveled in their antics, named them according to their looks or personalities, and saw them off every week in the shuttle piled with cat-crates.

It was understood that none of them would be staying. I’d already gotten My Cat, and these were all going to be transient. The danger period, as we found, was late in the “kitten season” when the shuttle was no longer running so regularly and the kittens stayed with us longer and had a chance to worm their way into a heart. (Or two.)

There was one little guy who was an absolute ugly duckling, fur sticking out in weird directions, a little hairless tail sticking up like a radio antenna… But he was the sweetest little cuddle-bug. And he was with us long enough to start growing into his looks. Like the ugly duckling, he turned out to be a swan. Or, actually, a Norwegian Forest Cat, cousin to the Maine Coone, enormous (twenty pounds when he grew up) and majestic with beautiful long hair.

And still a cuddle-bug, as if he never thought he was bigger than the handful who used to curl up under my chin while I read. Well, I began to campaign again, to keep one more cat, to keep Foofy Kitty. Two cats is reasonable, right?

cat upside-down having his bellly rubbed

And so it went, year by year—my husband growing more emphatic, each year, that the number of cats we owned was the absolute maximum number of cats we were going to own… And every year that “maximum number” creeping upward anyway.

kitten with enormous ears earning him the name "Yoda"

The final year that we fostered (and I’m sure I don’t have to explain why we stopped!), Yoda arrived, and stole my heart at first sight. (I’m also sure I don’t have to explain his name—the photo will do the job.) Whether or not a cat-mom is “supposed” to have favorites, I confess that I do. Yoda’s adoption was the perfect note on which to wrap up our years of fostering.

We returned the big cat-cage, and the various kitten-care items we’d accumulated, and thanked PAWS for a good run. (They also did not have to be told why we were bowing out of fostering. Siging the fifth set of adoption papers pretty much said it all.) And that, my friends, is how you accidentally become a Cat Lady! We lost Foofy Kitty to illness a couple years ago, and we still miss his enormous cuddle-bug-ness… But when Jon sits on the couch with his feet up, and four cats curled up on his legs in series, like a furry choo-choo train, we think we probably have enough cats to be going on with.

cat in a window-seat with flowers

84 thoughts on “The Accidental Cat Lady”

  1. When we went to adopt our kitties, I told my family that if there was more than one kitten in the cage, we had to get them all, assuming they had been together a while and/or were siblings. Sure enough, every cage had more than one kitten. I don’t doubt for a minute the shelter did that on purpose LOL. While my family wanted the three ginger siblings who were ridiculously out of control, I insisted on the two calm ladies who weren’t siblings but had been found together. We lost one of them earlier this year and my other kitty seems so lonely without her sister. Unfortunately, I recently found out I’m highly allergic to cats, so there won’t be any more coming in :(

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  4. In the army when we married, a cat adopted us in our first home; he went with friends when I went to Vietnam. We always said we would get a dog when we quit travelling, but now the time has arrived and a dog that needs walked even when snow is deep seems too much…a cat?🤔

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  6. I know the concept of adding to your fur-family. For a while we had two cats and two dogs. The down to the dogs and a few years ago up to three dogs. After losing two of them to old age and an illness we had one lonely dog. Until January of this year and we decided we needed a cat. She did not like the dog and he felt the same way. Now, they are best friends.

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  8. I loved reading your story. I’ve always had dogs as pets and never really considered having a cat. My grandson, who just turned 30 has been living with me since my husband passed away this year. He grew up with cats and I told him he could get one, but he’d be responsible for caring for the cat’s needs. Still waiting for that to happen. I’m kind of looking forward to having a pet in the house again.

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    1. I was very sorry when my mom’s cat died. It may sound silly, but I knew she wasn’t all by herself, when she had the cat. She’s very active socially, but since my dad (and the cat) have gone, she’s all by herself at home. I’m glad you have your grandson (and maybe an incoming cat?) so you’re not by yourself this year.

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      1. Thanks for those kind remarks. I am blessed to have my grandson. I can remain in my home, am not alone and feel safe. God has a plan for each of us and I know his plans are always good.

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        1. You’re so very right! I admit I had trouble imagining what the plan could be, when I lost MY husband at the age of 40. (I’ll never forget the funeral director, blurting when I walked in: “You’re awfully YOUNG to be a widow!” Yes, well, I thought so too.) But God still had a plan for me—this time in the form of a really good man, who had also been widowed too young. (God also had plans that brought us to visit my parents on the weekend that my dad—unexpectedly!—died. My mom had the immediate support team of two people who had BEEN THERE, and that was definitely God at work!)

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    1. It’s the same! He’s a softie, and the cats adore him, and HE’s the one who holds them on his lap and gives them treats, and… The same thing happened with my parents when I was young—my dad became the cat’s inseparable buddy, even though it was all of us girls who’d ASKED for the cat! )

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  12. At the moment we have three cats and two dogs, which balances out the period in which we had three dogs and two cats. Gotta keep the scales even for when we get judged by cats and/or dogs on our way to the Rainbow Bridge, right? 😁

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  13. I had so much giggling reading this story, Kana. My gosh!😁 Your cats are extremely adorable. Yoda, the kittens and the three on the bookshelves. I enjoyed this post, truly! Sometimes, a pet mom has favorite indeed. Virgo is my favorite because Paolo was a wildcat before. I have to be careful.

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    1. It’s practically unavoidable. I suppose if you’re the kind of person who likes cats well enough to agree to fostering, you’re the kind of person who’s going to be susceptible… ;)

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  20. I have a good friend, my hiking pard, who is married to a ‘cat lady’ – I’m not particularly fond of the feline order. I never grew up with pets, and they created a special problem when I was on active duty with moving around a lot, especially if its an overseas move. My son one day asked me if he could have a dog, I asked him why he wanted a dog and he told me so that he could play with it. I told him to go and play with his two brothers instead. He seemed happy!

    I Vietnam, as in many countries, cat was considered a delicacy. I’ve eaten cat (as well as dog) in Vietnam. Not to do so would offend your host and as an Advisor those relationships were critical to completing our mission and in some cases staying alive. So you indulged.

    I always kid my cat-lady friend. “Diana, I can’t understand it you never let me cat sit when you guys’ travel. I love Cat, I mean cats!”

    Cats must sense my lack of interest in the feline order. I’m the first person that they approach to get petted, I sit on the couch and find one of them in my lap, or they want to rub against my leg while I’m sitting; perjaps they are trying to recruit me! LOL

    Regards “Hardcharger”

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  21. Thank you so much for following my blog. I got the notice today & WordPress.com’s accompanying message that I should visit YOUR blog & perhaps I’m enjoy it as much as you enjoyed my post. So I did that.

    Since my mom said my first word was not mommy or daddy but CAT, I decided to read this particular blog entry. Like you ending up with a cat(s), I was immediately drawn in by not only the subject of the entry, but your charming writing style. I am now following YOU.

    Thank you again & I look forward to reading more of your posts.

    Linda

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  22. I can relate. We have Theresa, Trilly, Covid, Vander, Pricey, Bob, Licorice, Maggie, and two barn cats that eat, but don’t answer to kitty kitty. We live in the country and many of them were booted out by city dwellers nearby to starve (that’s how we got Covid, Vander and Trilly). Bob, Licorice, and Maggie were feral and resided with a neighbor who died four years ago. They now live in my exercise room and can be petted, if not picked up. Pricy is a calico that was retrieved as a wet young kitten by a daughter visiting a park in the rain. She promptly delivered her to us, since although she was willing to “rescue” she wasn’t where she could keep it. Oh, and Derecha was delivered by a friend before her eyes were open. How many is that? Eleven, and not one of them is here because we said, “We need a cat”.

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  34. I also became a cat lady by accident. I had two cats and that was plenty. Then a momma cat decided to put three beautiful kittens under my shed. Of course, my son and I started feeding them and were successful at catching them. One was killed and we brought the other two inside to keep them safe until I could find homes for them. That never happened so now I have four cats. NO MORE

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  37. I don’t think I’m strong enough to foster because I’d get attached too easily and probably keep them all. I already have two, but I’d love to take in more when I’m finally able to. I have absolutely no self-control when it comes to these little ones lol. Huge kudos to you amazing fur parents though, every single one of them is so beautiful❤️.

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  38. Wow ! That was a puurrfect cat story ! These lovely creatures know how to worm their way into your hearts ! Enjoy their company as long as you can ! I am a cat lover and take care of two beauties when my daughter drops them off at our place when they are out of town. Thank you for sharing.

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  39. What a marvelous story — the kind that settles into you like a warm cat on a quiet afternoon. I read it smiling the whole way, watching how one pawprint led to another until five cats were not a plan, but the most natural accident in the world.

    It’s always like that, isn’t it?
    First one — only one, we say.
    Then a stray who needs help.
    Then another with a face you cannot refuse.
    And suddenly the house belongs to them, and we are happily outnumbered.

    My daughter Emma — Emmita — loves cats with a devotion that feels instinctive, almost inherited. They fascinate her, and they fascinate me too. I imagine that in a house as open and new as yours, we might have fallen just the same — gently, repeatedly, beautifully. Cats don’t wait to be chosen. They choose us. Just like The General did, with military certainty and a tiny, fearless stride.

    Your story reminded me of one of Mexico’s most beloved writers, Carlos Monsiváis, who lived surrounded by cats — sometimes almost twenty. And the way he named them was brilliant — pure wordplay, cultural humor, and intelligence. For example:

    Miau Tse Tung → from Mao Tse Tung — just one vowel changes, and a political leader becomes a revolutionary cat.

    Miss Antropía → from Misantropy — the concept of disliking humanity turned into a sarcastic beauty queen.

    Fray Gatolomé de las Bardas → from Fray Bartolomé — a friar reimagined as a scholarly, monastic cat.

    Catzinger → from Ratzinger — the Vatican, but with whiskers.

    Voto de Castidad (Votito) → humor in contradiction, because cats are famously anything but chaste.

    Posmoderna → from Postmodernism — philosophy made feline.

    Peligro para México → sounds like a political threat, but it’s really just a cat who knocks things over.

    Chocorrol → not intellectual at all — simply sweet, playful, perfect.

    He didn’t just give them names —
    he turned history, philosophy, and politics into jokes with whiskers.

    Each cat became a living pun, a tiny cultural satire that purred.

    And that makes your story even sweeter — because love multiplies quietly, like pawsteps in a long hallway. You didn’t become a Cat Lady by intention.

    You were chosen. 🐾✨

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  40. I loved reading this, thank you. We have three of our own permanent cats, and have also fostered kittens, so I know what it’s like giving them back just when you’ve started to get to know them. Not easy! We foster rabbits for the RSPCA. There are six in our garden as we speak. Rabbits are tough to re-home, and we’ve had one set of three white bunnies for two years now. We also fostered Sooty the black rabbit for three years before, like you, we weakened – two weeks ago, we signed the permanent adoption papers for him! It wouldn’t surprise me if the three whities followed suit…

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  41. I absolutely loved this story. I agree about not wanting a lot of cats in a small apartment. I live with family in a congested place and the one cat we have is tough to handle. We love our Luna with all our hearts though. I also feed stray cats around the city. I even have a Instagram account (barely has any followers so I just post for fun) called randomstraycatsanddogs. You can check it out as I am not able to post pictures here.

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  44. This post made me SO HAPPY to read! A dear friend of mine also fosters, and visiting her little ones until they find their furrrever homes is always a joy. Thank you for sharing!

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  45. I LOOOOOVE this post! I love cats!! More than that, we just lived in a camper for 2 years and moved back to New Hampshire from North Carolina and we literally lose each other in our 2 bedroom apartment!! LOL Thank you for putting a huge smile on my face on a Sunday night!

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  48. What an absolutely heartwarming story! The way you went from zero to five cats is both hilarious and touching. Your husband’s journey from resistance to having four cats curled up on his legs is perfect. Thank you for giving all those foster kittens so much love and care!

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  50. Although not a cat person, I have to say your story won me over. The way each cat arrived with its own twist of fate—and how they filled your home with personality—made me smile all the way through. You’ve turned ‘accidentally’ into something beautifully intentional.

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  56. Such a nice reading (and pics)!
    Does Yoda’s purring sound like a lightsaber? Seems there’s some FORCE going on there ;) I guess those neon green spots were NOT accidental ^_^ Lovely touch!

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