Happy 20th Birthday Wiggy!

Wiggy just 3-4 weeks old the first day with Mum.

 Today is a very special day!

Today Wiggy (aka Ludwig) is 20 years old. Can you believe it? That's 97 in human years.

Back in 1995, Mum adopted Wiggy from the Southside Animal Shelter through an adoption event at Petco. That's the same shelter where I came from!

Mum had adopted Wolfie, my other kittie bro about five months earlier at 8 months and he was just a handful. He'd play with a golf ball in the kitchen until all hours of the night, keeping Mum awake.

So Mum thought he needed a playmate. Wiggy was just a very little thing when we found him. They said he was 12 weeks old, but later Mum learned that kittens that old do not still have their blue eyes. So he was probably just about 3-4 weeks old.

Over the weeks he grew and grew and grew. Wiggy kept growing for almost two years. Which we found out later is what Maine Coons do. So Wiggy is a very big kittie now, just about as tall and as big as I am. Come to find out too that Maine Coons are very good with dogs; and it's true of Wiggy; he rules the animal kingdom at our cabin.

Wiggy was a super cute little thing. 

When Mum brought Wiggy home, she was a little nervous about introducing him to Wolfie. The first time they got together, Wolfie got him in a bear hug and started using his back legs on Wiggy. Scared Mum a little. But the third time they got together, they played really well, and then Mum found them sleeping together. That's when she knew they would be best friends.

Like I said, Wiggy is really good with dogs. He and Gracie (and now Rach) are so loving with each other that Mum often jokes they 'need to get a room.'

Wiggy is bold and pushy. And sometimes that creates a little conflict, but overall I respect him greatly, especially after I got that first and only scrape on my nose for trying to herd him.

He used to be a very sickly little guy, but once Mum moved him to organic canned food all his health issues disappeared. He used to get urine crystals so bad that he would drip blood around the house. And he used to get hairballs so bad he would need a vet to come and give him an IV he was so dehydrated. But he's been healthy for years now. He has a little arthritis that prevents him from jumping up and down too far, so Mum puts chairs next to her desk and her bed, so if Wiggy wants to join her, he can.

Still at 20 years old, Mum and I will come down from the bedroom and find Wiggy's toys all over the living room floor where he had a big party all night.

We're really glad that Wiggy allowed me and Gracie and Rach into his life. And I think that both Rach and Gracie are really glad they get to enjoy Wiggy's love, just as Mum does. Me?

Wiggy used to love hanging with the sage in our yard in Indiana.

Wiggy likes to hang on the chair likes this, especially in the summer. Mum won't get rid of that old chair, just for Wiggy.

When we lived in Indiana, Mum used to put a dog harness (as they didn't have kittie harnesses back then) and let him explore the great outdoors. One time he caught a bird flying by jumping up over Mum's head right in mid air.

When our training tunnel is inside, Wiggy can't help but be an agility kittie.

This is one of Mum's cherished photos. She was taking a photography darkroom class (before digital was cool) and she had to take a roll in for negative developing and print developing. This one was a big hit with the class!

Happy Birthday Wiggy!