A-meow-sing cat stories

MANILA, Philippines - Somewhere in a cozy, breezy neighborhood in Ontario, Canada lives my sister’s family with their two cats, who never cease to amaze and amuse me. You can say that Nokio and Miya are very a-meow-sing cats!

Nokio (a.k.a. Laki) is 11 years old while Miya (a.k.a. Liit) is six years old. My nephew Josef Paul Yorro describes Miya as a cat who loves to play with strings; she was probably a snake catcher in a previous life. Or maybe a stringer (part-time reporter). Nokio, on the other hand, is more of a ball chaser. Too bad he doesn’t like to fetch.

Miya is a mix of Siamese and Himalayan. Josef Paul tells us, “I’m not entirely sure what breed Nokio belongs to, but if there’s a cartoon character I can best compare him to, it’d be Figaro the Cat.”

Nokio was adopted by the then pet-less Yorro family who originally wanted to name their first cat Nokia. But hello! The little furry bundle of joy the Yorros brought home more than 10 years ago was a he! Thus, Nokia became Nokio!

As for Miya, she was a frisky, tiny kitty when my sister Chelle and her daughter Maay saw her peering through the display window of a pet store with her big bright eyes that seemed to plead, “Take me home, take me home!” Mama Miya! So full of adrenaline, she was prancing all over the place and pouncing on the other kittens who looked somewhat catatonic. Now, that’s a catty remark! Top tip when scouting around for a cat (or a dog): According to the experts, get one who’s sprightly or nimble, and has good social skills because these are signs that he/she is a happy cat (not bipolar and has no attitude problem perhaps?). Simply smitten by this feline charmer, my sister wasted no time giving Miya a home she could call her own. Today, Miya has her own home and her very own sofa in the family room, smack in front of the TV set. She’s more of a chair cat, but at least she’s polite. She’ll ask for permission for you to get off your seat (by meowing in an irresistibly cute way) before she takes over your chair.

The Yorros will never run out of cat stories with which to regale friends who visit and care to listen. Let our Fil-Canadian storyteller Josef Paul share some.

Miya with owner Josef Paul Yorro: You don’t own a cat, it owns you.

 One time, Nokio surprised the family with a present. A feathered present. Apparently, he managed to catch a bird while he was out in the backyard and brought it back inside the house — alive. Well, it’s the thought that counts. Either way, the Yorros let the poor bird go. Too bad he didn’t get the message the next time he decided to give the Yorros a present. This time, it was a rabbit. And this time, it wasn’t alive.

While they’re unrelated, Miya is like Nokio’s annoying little sister. She enjoys nothing better than to disturb Nokio during naptime (and “naptime” means 20 out of the day’s 24 hours), and usually that ends with Nokio swiping his paw harmlessly towards stubborn Miya’s direction. Ultimately, Nokio acquiesces (“gives up” might be a better word) and allows Miya to snuggle up beside him.

Nokio thinks he’s a tough cookie, but scampers away at the mere presence of strangers at the door. Albeit once he gets to know you, you’ll find that he will accommodate your existence. And that means he’ll consider you as part of the furniture (except when it’s chow time, during which he’ll be an incessant nag until you give him his “yum yums”).

Nokio’s favorite perches include, says Josef Paul, “Dad’s laptop, our guitar soft case, and Mom’s bed (he’s usually there,   occupying valuable sleeping space).”

 On the other hand, Miya is the quintessential lap cat. She’s the gregarious one, compared to Nokio who’s anti-social. Miya enjoys being petted. “Mom half-jokes that this may not necessarily be a good thing, as she may take to strangers too easily. And she may get catnapped,” says Josef Paul with a chuckle.

Mama Miya!: Little frisky Miya, barely a year old, is perched on the shoulder of her owner Chito Yorro.

Nokio and Miya may be different in more ways than one, but there’s a considerable bond that exists between them, which was especially evident one summer when Miya went missing. Josef Paul relates, “I was in the backyard one summer, enjoying the outdoors when I noticed that Nokio was acting funny. He kept following me around the backyard, which I found odd for two reasons: One, the only time he follows me is if he wants food. And I already fed him maybe 10 minutes beforehand. Two, he’s usually preoccupied when he’s in the backyard; either he’s sunbathing, or chasing little bugs (or birds, or rabbits) that are unfortunate enough to have been in his crosshairs. I didn’t quite figure out why he kept following me around. I kept saying, ‘What do you want?’, simultaneously forgetting that Nokio didn’t go to the same grammar school as Lassie. Still, something about his gaze felt different. Call it non-verbal communication, but at that moment, I thought to myself, ‘By the way, where’s Miya?’ I looked around and noticed she wasn’t in the backyard. I went into the house, sought Ate Maay’s assistance, but still no signs of Liit. Panic was starting to creep in … and it wasn’t until several moments later when Ate, who was scrutinizing each and every square foot in the backyard, heard Miya’s unmistakable meow from the other side of the fence. Apparently, Miya found a little opening underneath our backyard fence, crawled under, and found herself trapped in the other neighbor’s yard, not knowing how to get back. You would think that cats know how to backtrack, but I guess evolution endowed owls with better spatial memory. But I digress. Anyway, I went to the other neighbor’s house to ask if I could come and get Miya, but there was nobody home. Worse, I noticed a sign on the neighbor’s fence that said “Beware of Dog”. Yikes! I had no choice then but to climb over the neighbor’s fence and fetch Miya. Miya was understandably scared, even though it was I coming to get her and not, oh I don’t know, a pitbull? Needless to say, I managed to bring her back over the threshold and into safety. Nokio was the hero in all this. He was the one who brought to my attention that something was wrong, and so you could say that Nokio earned his stripes that day. Miya apparently doesn’t recognize this though, as she still annoys him during naptime.”

Heaven-sent: Nokio is touched by an angel in the garden of the Yorro home in Canada.

Now, that’s a purr-fect ending to our little cat stories!