The Most Important Patch Post I Ever Read #AdoptDontShop

About seven years ago today, I was on (the late) Google Reader on my phone as I rode back to Westwood on the T after a grad school interview. We’d put our older* cat Oscar to sleep owing to a long illness a few weeks earlier, and my house was without a cat for the first time since I was in preschool.

Brothers Tom and Wes, read the headline. Now, I am not a big Pats fan, so it took until we had them a month and renamed before I realized they were a reference to Tom Brady and Wes Welker. By the time I had emailed Bay State Animal Cooperative, I already had thought of about ten different names.

The descriptions of them on the Patch were as follows:

They are active and playful, and love each other very much. Yepp, still true.

The brothers are very attached to each other, so they must be adopted together. They are friendly and great with kids and other cats. I cannot imagine a world where these two were separated.

Wes (grey tiger) is very energetic and frisky. Tom (solid grey) is more laid back, but don't let him fool you! No lies detected. Well, save for the fact that Rocky is the king of running our household and hence cannot relax.

I had been emailing the Cooperative and the cats' foster mother. One Saturday we set off to Brockton to meet the kittens. They were pretty happy to go home with with us—the tiger walked into our carrier, while the solid kitten hissed at him for being so glib. I had planned on naming them Fred and George, but look at those huge ears—how could I? I ended up naming the solid gray one Rocky, for the Brockton Rox, and the bony tabby Rory.

Things we quickly learned: Rocky loved water, Rory liked chewing on fabric. Rory loved playing on my iPad, Rocky would rather watch.

Flash forward seven years: Rocky is still a fan of water, his “fishing poles,” and helping his grandma read their kindle (Grandma thinks its hers, but Rocky disagrees). Rory? The kitten whose ribs I could count and who had been nicknamed “little Wessie” by his foster mother? I just had to order a bigger carrier to hold his rapidly-pushing twenty pounds body. He’s a fan of watching cat Youtube, playing with his cat dancer and being attached at the hip to me. If I have a new post up on the Patch, there’s a 90% chance he was clinging to me as I wrote it, giving his input.
I was extremely happy with every interaction I’ve had with Bay State Animal Cooperative. If you are looking to grow your home with a cat (or dog or lizard or alpaca), I highly suggest that you adopt--Petfinder is a great resource.

Did you find your pet on Patch? Tell me about them!