Luka is our elder statescat. His full Cat Fanciers’ Association name is Velva’s Luka Get Off the Table. He lives up to that moniker on a regular basis. He’s also a serious lap – and shoulder – cat.
We got Luka as a kitten from a breeder in Ohio. We’d just lost our first Russian Blue male, Jasper, to cancer. Phoebe, his sister, was inconsolable. Luka arrived at the airport in the wee hours of August 15, 2007. I went to the airport alone because Julian wasn’t feeling well. Luka didn’t make much noise on the drive from the airport, but he bounded out of the carrier ready to play when we got home. He hasn’t stopped since.
Luka’s naturally curious. This trait nearly cost him big time. Several years ago we were packing up the car for a day trip to Mount Rainier with friends from Houston. Luka decided to make his escape. He was on the town for nearly 24 hours. Nobody noticed he was missing when we got back from Rainier. I woke up the next morning and noticed he wasn’t in his usual spot at my feet. After I got dressed, I walked through the neighborhood twice looking for him. I went out one more time and asked my neighbor, “Have you seen a lanky gray cat?” He said, “He just walked that way.” I caught up with him in front of another condo in the complex. It’s a miracle he didn’t wind up as coyote or eagle chow that day.
Luka didn’t read the part of the Russian Blue manual that mentions being shy. He’ll snuggle onto any visitor. When we have friends over, he’ll go from lap to lap hustling head scratches. Unlike many of my previous cats, he doesn’t go to the person who’s most allergic or averse to felines first. Luckily, most of our friends are indulgent of his affections.
Luka as shoulder fungus
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