When my best friend offered to adopt a cat for me for my birthday I had only one requirement. It had to be long haired. This is simply because of allergies. After a search of local shelters turned up no long haired cats we drove nearly 2 hours to a shelter promising 70 cats, most of them long haired. As I sat in the middle of a room full of roaming cats one beautiful black and white in the window caught my attention. I slowly approached her and was ignored.
"That's Suki," the shelter worker said. "She's sweet, but pretty anti-social." She told me that Suki was almost 2. She had come to the shelter pregnant and watched all of her kittens get adopted. "We have a hard time with the black cats. People just don't seem to want them."
She was beautiful and I loved her instantly. I had to have her. I took her home, changing the spelling of her name to Sookie. For the first week she hid under the bed. Then one night I felt a weight near my feet. I sat up slowly to find that she was curled up next to my legs. Weeks later she was sleeping on my pillow. After two months she started following me around the house. Now, nearly 9 months after adoption, she cuddles with me every night, eats from my hand, and comes when called.
I could not ask for a better cat. Something drew me to her that day. I guess Sookie just hadn't found the right friend.
Birmingham, AL
