Pukkie & Paco

After Satchmo had passed away in 2007 and finally Snuffy in 2009, it has taken me several years before I could even consider looking for new feline companions. In March of 2012, I browsed the web pages off one of the local animal shelters (Chats libres de Colomiers) and found the photos below of two young brother-cats. They had been dropped of at the shelter earlier during that week. I just could not resist! Several days later, they arrived at my apartment, sniffed out the place in 5 minutes, and then they were "home". And the rest is history!

Pukkie (the smaller of the two, pink nose) and Paco - photos posted by the animal shelter

Their official birthday is 15 July 2011. They were first registered under the temporary names they got at the shelter. Their original names were unknown. So I decided to rename them. The one with the pink nose is the smaller of the two. So I called him "Puk" or "Pukkie", a word for "little guy" in the Dutch language. I also wanted a short name for his big brother. Before these two, there were "Snuffy" and "Satchmo". So now it had to be "Pukkie" and "Pa---o". Not too many options: Paco, Pablo,... I settled for "Paco".

At the shelter, they told us that these cats were raised in a household with dogs. Sure enough, if there's somebody at the front door, they growl like dogs! Sometimes they growl when defending their food, or "prize" (caught bug, toy..).

Like many cats, they have culinary peculiarities. For instance, Paco likes avocado, humus (but not just any brand!), and duck breast (on the "rare" side of "medium rare" please! Like Snuffy, both Paco and Pukkie love chicken! And yes, they eat bugs, and Paco eats cobwebs. In an attempt to help them loose some weight, they went on a diet: pureed steamed zucchini - they have learned to love it, and even ask for it!

Other peculiarities... Pukkie collects brushes and elastic/rubber bands. If they are anywhere in the house, he finds them. Paco has a preference for felt objects (he even searches in my tool box and workbench). And Paco's nose drools when he is happy and purring.

They usually sleep together

Yes, we can be sweet boys!

No comment...

Together watching the sunset from the bedroom window

Pukkie is an acrobat and lets us know when he wants us to open the front door

Pukkie doesn't mind rain and snow, but has a hard time coping with the summer heat

Mmmm, whatever!?

Pukkie, hiding in the bushes

Paco likes to play & sleep in cardboard boxes

Could you please leave me alone, I'm trying to get some sleep!

Paco likes to be rolled up in a small rug and play with a string

When life is really good, Paco sleeps on his back

Just like Snuffy and Satchmo, Pukkie and Paco are space travelers. Their name is etched in a microchip aboard NASA's InSight Mars explorer (launch: March 2016), and a "selfie" picture of them travels on the second LightSail spacecraft of The Planetary Society (launch: 2016).