Cheeto is a charming 13 year old female Orange tabby, a classic cat breed. Orange tabbies are probably the most iconic image of tabbies, however, this hue is rare in female tabbies. About 20% of orange tabbies are female, while a whopping 75%-80% are male. Cheeto may seem like more of a masculine cat, but she is indeed a girl, if more of a tomboy at heart. Not only does she have a rare golden-orange coat, but she also has blue eyes. Only 3-5% of cats have blue eyes, and from an evolutionary standpoint, this is because any species with blue eyes also has substantially worse vision than a creature with brown or black eyes. Since cats are carnivorous hunters and the hobby requires sharp vision, the species primarily have brown or green eyes.

Despite Cheeto’s supposedly poor vision on account of her starling turquoise optics, she has an eye for the right type of pet-owner. Cheeto is from a rescue shelter in Texas called the Austin Animal Shelter. The couple were already cat people, so there was no debate about choosing a cat. However, they decided to get Cheeto because she stuck her paw out of her kennel and pawed at Rob longingly, showing the two of them that she was undoubtedly the pet for them. Since that fateful day, the couple has had Cheeto for 11 years.

Some of Cheeto’s favorite things are yogurt, kibble, laying in the sun around the house, and visiting neighbors. But it is undebatable that her favorite thing in the world is dogs. Yes, it is strange that she is a cat who likes dogs, but she’s also very doglike. Unlike the aloof air and rudeness that a cat holds on most occasions, Cheeto is more happy-go-lucky and loyal, just like a dog. She loves to hang around dogs so much that she might as well be one of the pack. One of her best friends is a canine companion that lives across the street.

The only thing that sets her apart from dogs, other than biology, is her love of hunting. She’s an absolute machine around rabbit season, and adores bringing her parents little gifts from her hunting expeditions. It is unclear to her that Lauryl and Rob don’t like her springtime presents as much as she does, if at all. While she’s prowling around outside looking for prey, she also likes to socialize. She visits all of the neighbors, and when she sees someone doing lawn work, she makes a beeline for them to see what they’re up to. While the couple are away in New Mexico, Cheeto likes leaping and bounding across the flat adobe roofs and rousing all of the residents in the process. She’s a very adventurous and fascinating cat.

While she likes exploring people’s lawns, sometimes she takes things a bit too far, and decides to take a turn around her neighbor’s houses. She constantly breaks into people’s homes, accidentally gets stuck in people’s garages, and once she was stuck inside an open house. There was a house for sale on Lauryl and Rob’s street, and she went in to take a look. All of the people visiting assumed that she was part of the installation somehow, to help sell the home, and the realtor was not aware of her presence in the home. When the realtor locked up the house for the night, Cheeto was still inside. When the couple went looking for her, they heard her incessant meowing from inside the house, found a way to get in, and took her back home. Cheeto still isn’t any more wary about breaking and entering, but it’s safe to say that Rob and Lauryl will not let such a debacle happen again.

Rob and Lauryl’s advice for pet owners is that “Pets are a lot of trouble, and are expensive, but they are worth every penny.” It’s evident that Cheeto is worth every nickel, penny, dime, and more. Even throughout her burglary stunts and neighbor meet and greets, her kibble addiction and mouse slaughtering escapades, it’s clear that she’s a charismatic and outgoing cat. She feels instantly comfortable with the neighbors of Maple Ridge, and it’s easy and safe for her to traverse from garden to garden, making Maple Ridge the purr-fect home for her!