Marissa Baca, Gatsby, Rae & Lola
I have three amazing cats Gatsby, Rae, and Lola. All three of them have insanely different personalities while meshing with each other purrfectly.Having three cats is better than having one. I’m never bored and I have a special relationship with each of them. They really balance each other out. When I’m playing with all of them at once or when we’re all just hanging out, it really feels like a little family. They also have such a strong bond with each other, and sometimes it feels like they work together to get what they want- like loads of treats.I’d say the only downside to having three cats is the mess. They are crazy messy.Four years ago, a pregnant cat charmed her way into my apartment and made herself at home. She then gave birth to four kittens under my bed. Unfortunately, I wasn't allowed to have animals at the time, so I slowly adopted out the whole family and was catless once again. While searching for a new, animal-friendly apartment, I found out one of the kittens needed to be rehomed. Without thinking or caring whether I might get kicked out, I grabbed a bag and ran over to pick him up.
His name is Gatsby, and he has grown into a very particular and energetic cat. Gatsby likes to lure me into the bathroom for extra quality time away from the girls. He loves beer and every time I open one he will wait until I’m finished so he can lick the leftover drops.Shortly after moving into my pet-friendly apartment, my then roommate came home in the middle of the night (and pretty drunk) with a kitten and left her in my room for me to wake to. I was upset at first but seeing how sick she was, I couldn’t resist her. I cleaned her up, fell in love and name her Rae.
Rae is always by my side and I feel like I can count on her no matter what. I get the sense she knows that she is a champion cuddler. She really plays it up on the weekends when she squeezes her chunky self in between me and my boyfriend in bed.[gallery ids="1737" type="rectangular"]The third cat came into my life unexpectedly, when my boyfriend and I found ourselves fostering a family of stray kittens discovered in the neighbor’s back yard. I never meant to keep Lola, the tiniest of the litter, but she was the first one to purr in my arms and she had the biggest thumbs I've ever seen.
Lola constantly makes sure you know her role as the youngest. She always lets me know when Gatsby and Rae are playing too hard with her by letting out little cry-meows and then immediately running up to me, almost as if to tattle.
It has been my dream to be TNR certified (trap, neuter, return) ever since my mom became certified in California. She had always loved cats and I've grown up with them my entire life, despite my mom’s allergies.When I was in high school she started taking me on her nightly rounds of feeding stray and feral cats in our Northern California town. I think my mom started to realize there were a large number of them who would gather outside of the restaurant she worked at when she worked night shifts. That was when she began rescuing them. My mom worked a lot, which meant any time off she got was spent with me. Together we fed stray cats at night, allowing us to bond over something we both cared about. After I moved to Brooklyn my mom would come to visit and we’d find ways to feed and build houses for the stray cats in Bushwick. When she earned her TNR certification I knew I had to do the same!
Marissa Baca lives with her three cats, Gatsby, Rae and Lola. On the weekends, Lola's brother Wally lives with them as well in Ridgewood, Queens. She is a menswear graphic apparel designer for American Eagle and has a little side business dedicated to her furry companions called GRL Supply.