Kelly Kyrik - Cupid's Cats

Cupid's Cats
By Kelly Kyrik
Published In Your Cat Magazine - Winter 2003

These lucky couples found lasting romance and true love with just a little help from their feline friends!

It’s not always easy finding the purrfect mate. But it can go more smoothly if you let kitty lend a helping paw. Just ask these three happy couples-they all met and fell in love because of their cats!

A Strange Breed

Ann Langer, a veterinarian in Battle Ground, Washington, remembers her first impression of Andy Hertzel. “I wasn’t sure what to make of him,” she recalls. The quirky man with the odd sense of humor had brought in a recently rescued stray cat, Jake, for treatment. “He was acting strangely and the staff and I couldn’t figure out whether he was trying to impress us or trying to be funny!”

But his dedication to Jake, who needed numerous follow-ups visits, was obvious. “A lot of people think ‘Oh, it’s just a stray,’” Ann says, “and that usually means they don’t want to spend a lot of money.” But Andy was different. “I was impressed when he kept coming back for appointments,” she remembers, and he soon became her favorite client. “I looked forward to his visits because he would ask interesting questions, plus he was just such a sweet guy.” Andy, however, looked forward to their appointments for another reason.

“I knew she was the one as soon as she walked in the door,” he says now, although it took him a year (and two more cats) to ask her out. By then Ann had grown rather fond of his admittedly strange sense of humor, as well as his affinity for animals. “One of my friends calls Andy the “Cat Whisperer,” she says, “because cats just seem to take to him.”

Luckily, Ann took to him as well, and the pair married in September, 2002. “We still thank Jake for bringing us together,” she says with a smile.

A Package Deal

“I hated cats,” Cindy Carlson says, referring to the farm felines she’d known as a child. “They were nasty, hissy, spitting, wild creatures that lurked around in the dark corners of the barn.” Still, at age 28, she landed a job working for a veterinarian. There she discovered that not all cats were alike. “They were nice!” she says now, of the resident kitties at the clinic. “They liked me! And I was beginning to like them, too.” She grew especially fond of Mr. Hastings, an abandoned and badly injured kitten that she’d lovingly nursed back to health.

Even though she kept the crippled, one-eyed cat at the clinic-due to her apartment complex’s ban on pets-still she considered Mr. Hastings “her” cat. But as her love for the clever kitty grew, she began to fret.

“How can I ever afford to get an apartment where I can properly take care of my Mr. Hastings?” she wondered aloud to the doctor one day. He joked that he would have to find her a house-owning husband so that she and her cat could have a home.

Soon after, he remarked to client Gary Carlson - a “nice man” with a love of animals and his own house - that Mr. Hastings was looking for a home. The good doctor also teased that whoever took the cat had to marry the cat’s owner.

“Three weeks, several dinners, and many late night phone conversations later we were married,” Cindy says. Now twelve years into their marriage, with one son and many more cats to show for it, they’re still happy. “When asked by others how we make our marriage work,” she says with a laugh, “we tell them that we stay together for the cats' sakes!”

Must Love Cats

Ned Muhovich was looking for love. So, like many others, he turned to the personals. “I sat down with a friend and we very carefully chose pretty much every word,” he says of the ad he wrote. And as the proud owner of Hank–who Ned describes as a “mutt” cat–he purposefully included the phrase ‘cat lover’ to describe what he was looking for in a woman. “It was different than ‘pet lover’ and ‘animal lover,’” he explains, “because I have a particular fondness for cats.”

His attention to detail paid off because it was just that phrase that caught his future bride’s eye. Kerry Muhovich, Animal Behavior Education Coordinator at the Denver Dumb Friends League, was intrigued. “Generally, when people say ‘animal lover’ they mean animals like dogs,” she says. “They don’t really mean cats. But the fact that he said cats, that pretty much clinched it.”

Ned’s love of cats became more obvious after they started dating. “I came to realize really quickly that Ned’s even more of a cat nut than I am,” Kerry says, noting that within a week or two of their first date, Ned’s other cat, Gordie, turned one-year-old. “Ned switched him over to adult food at that time and then went out and got him a present; ‘big boy’ bowls, for his new food!”

Touched by his devotion, Kerry married Ned less than a year later. “People always think I’m the cat person,” she says now, “but when they meet Ned they realize it’s him. He really, really loves the cats.”

Let Kitty Be Your Guide

These real-life romances prove that finding the love of your life doesn’t have to be a struggle. Just open your heart and let your cat show you the way!

SIDEBAR 1

Meet The Purrfect Mate!
Or
Looking For Love In All The Right Places!

Wondering where to find your own cat-loving mate? Make it a point to shop, work and play in cat-friendly environments and you’re sure to meet other like-minded people.

Shop
Shopping for your cat is a breeze at chains like Petco and PETsMART. But don’t go alone. Bring kitty along with you to catch the attention of others who share your love of cats.
Play
Take in a cat show. Admire felines of all persuasions while also rubbing elbows with other cat-loving spectators. Check out www.TICA.org for a show close to you.
Work
Mix your passion for cats with your career. Get a job (or volunteer) at a veterinary hospital, the Humane Society, a pet store or a cat rescue organization and spend eight hours a day with people dedicated to helping animals.

SIDEBAR 2

“Boyfriend-O-Meters”

“Cats make great ‘boyfriend-o-meters,’” claims Clea Simon, author of The Feline Mystique: On The Mysterious Connection Between Women And Cats (St. Martins Press, $22.95.)

“As we cat lovers know,” she says, “cats are extremely sensitive to nuance and tone, so they can pick up on a lot of signals that we don't.” She suggests caution if kitty has a negative reaction to your new boyfriend. “Cats are a lot less likely to fool themselves than we humans are!”

In addition, Simon notes, cats also represent independence and autonomy. “So if a man says he hates cats,” she warns, “watch out! He may really be saying he doesn't want any creature near him who doesn't come at his beck and call, and he may not be a supportive mate.”

SIDEBAR #3

Meet The Cat

Eventually your cat and your new love will meet face-to-face, which can be a challenge for all concerned. Here are some tips to make that first “date” easier.

For Your Mate
Don’t let your expectations force him into a hurried-up intimacy with your cat. Allow him to go at his own pace, let him take his time getting to know her.

For Your Cat
She may be jealous and even a little hostile toward the newcomer at first. Give her plenty of attention during the visit; reassure her that she’s still number one in your heart.

For You
Relax. Don’t panic if things don’t go as well as planned. Understand that bonding is a process that takes both time and trust, so be patient.