For those of you who don’t know much about me, I must tell you I LOVE CATS. I have had a cat since I was ten or eleven and got my first little black and white kitten for my birthday. I named her Kerry after a lovely girl I’d just met at a new school I started. Kerry and I went on to become best friends at school and my cat Kerry was my best friend throughout my early teens. Unfortunately she injested rat poison when she was just 5 and suffered a horrendously painful death. We were never sure which neighbour was using poison but I’ve never used it myself – I use humane rat traps.

When Kerry was quite young – we somehow aquired Katy – more of a family cat than my own. Beautiful long haired lively loving tabby. We lost her at three though as she was knocked down by some teenagers driving too fast in the lane behind our village home.

My next feline friend came into my life when I was working as a veterinary nurse in Liverpool, in my early twenties. I’d been given random wild creatures to take home, nurse and ‘learn on my feet’ so to speak. But Maddy (above with baby Tash) was the first cat I had responsibility to nurse back to health. She’d been brought in one night after being found crumpled up on the side of the road, having being hit by a car. After three weeks not eating, I managed to get her to have a meal and she never looked back. Then as no-one came to claim her, she came home with me. Maddy was a wonderful companion for 13 years and passed away in 2008.

When Maddy was about three or four – I came out of a five year relationship and moved into my own place. I saw an ad in a shop window for kittens and went to see them with a good friend Mary.

She took two home and so did I. My two were named Robbie and Macy and Rob is still with me now at the grand age of ten. Sadly, we lost Macy at three to acute kidney failure. Robbie is sitting proudly above and also pictured at the top with Natasha and Aleck.

And the newest kitten on the block is my daughter’s first cat – Gabriella (above). Natasha was very lucky to be allowed her first much wished for cat on her 8th birthday and Gabby is already 6 months old, how time flies! She’s a rescue from our local East Devon Cat’s Protection, found under a rabbit hutch in a garden in Cullompton at a day old with her two sisters and a very bedraggled tired mummy cat. She’s the first tortie – or tortoiseshell we’ve had and is such a lovely affectionate girl. Natasha and Gabriella already have a wonderful bond.

I’ll leave you with this photo (below) of me about to burst preggers with Tasha – 8 years ago. With my three cats at the time – Maddy on the left and the two boys Robbie & Macy.