Arlington Pet of the Week: Cali

This week’s Arlington Pet of the Week is Cali, a “bouncing ball of fluff” who needs a few minutes before she’s ready to play, unless a laser pointer is involved.

Here’s what Cali’s owner had to say about her:

Cali is a 3-year-old brightly colored Calico cat. I adopted her when she was 8 weeks old from Home Alone Feline Rescue, based right here in Arlington. I had always been very allergic to cats, especially those with short hair, but had discovered that my allergies somehow went into remission after many years. At that point, I visited a family in Alexandria that was offering seven cats for adoption and told myself that if I could tolerate spending time with that many cats without having an allergic reaction, I was ready to adopt. Success!

Cali was one of those cats, and when I visited, she was wrestling with another 8-week-old kitten named Conner, who turned out to be her brother. Not wanting to break up the pair, I adopted them both. To this day, Cali and Conner still wrestle playfully and though her brother is a little larger, she can easily more than defend herself. Cali is a longer-haired cat, something that I requested as long-haired cats never caused me to have as much of an allergic reaction because they shed less.

Cali is a bouncing ball of fluff. She is very friendly and not shy, and often craves affection. She runs to the door to greet visitors and is always underfoot looking for the next great activity. Cali is a little unusual as she didn’t learn to play like many cats. Her brother Conner usually takes over playtime if he sees her having more fun than him. She’s almost like a wind up cat. It usually takes a few minutes of playing with her with fake mice, strings or feathers, to get her in playful mood mode.

Once she gets started, she’s a bundle of energy and scampers from room to room in the house expending her energy and leaping at anything that moves (except me). Cali loves chasing laser lights. Once she hears the click from a laser, she immediately stops whatever she’s doing and looks everywhere for the beam of light. Once she spots it, she will chase that elusive light everywhere. That’s when Conner usually enters the scene and playtime ends abruptly, though she may start chasing him depending on how much energy she has left.

Cali (and Conner) were the first cats I had owned since my allergies went into remission just 3 years ago. She is kept indoors for safety reasons and has been a picture of health, never requiring a visit to the vet other than routine checkups. She’s an extremely friendly and loving cat and has been a wonderful addition to my life.

Want your pet to be considered for the Arlington Pet of the Week? Email [email protected] with a 2-3 paragraph bio and at least 3-4 horizontally-oriented photos of your pet.

Each week’s winner receives a sample of dog or cat treats from our sponsor, Becky’s Pet Care, along with $25 in Becky’s Bucks. Becky’s Pet Care provides professional dog walking and pet sitting services in Arlington and Northern Virginia — “Quality Service from a Trusted Friend.”