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The Cat’s Pajamas
We are such animal lovers. We love cats. We love dogs. They are and have been part of our lives; they are and have been part of our amenities. My wife and I run a bed and breakfast on Cape Cod, and our pets have been a part of that enterprise as long as we have.
Because of the possibility that a guest may have allergies, we keep our animals in the inkeepers’ quarters, but they are available by request for a little ‘fur therapy’. They are requested often.
The old hands at greeting are our canine contingent — Gus, our Golden Retriever, and Harry, our Chocolate Lab. They are well known locally and are quite popular with our guests. They will happily sit for you while you stroke them, and a trick or two for a treat is not beyond the bounds of reason.
Until last year, we had a third greeter. Her name was Gwen, and she was a Champion Champagne Mink Tonkinese Cat. She shared her life with us for an astonishing 16 years. Sadly, she is no more. We sorely miss her presence. Although we cannot – and would never try to – replace her, it became clear to us quite quickly that we (and Gus and Harry) were missing a feline presence in our lives.
We mulled over our options for several months. We adored our Tonkinese cats and, in fact, were breeders for about 10 years. For those of you who may not have heard of them, the Tonkinese are a blend of Burmese and Siamese. The Siamese markings are clear on a Tonkinese cat. The Burmese part is a true lap animal. They are quick to learn and extremely loyal, very trusting of people and often beat their owners to the door to greet guests. Burmese are often described as ‘doglike’ because they tend to follow their owners from room to room. And, fortuitously, they tend to get along well with their canine cousins.
So, in making our final decision, we chose to take a slight detour. We’ve gone back to one of the origins of the Tonkinese — to the Burmese breed — not a far cry from Tonkinese roots. We have two new residents to add to our household and to our pettable amenities: a delightful brother/sister pair of Burmese kittens named Troilus, who is Platinum in color; and Cressida, who is Champagne in color. Troy and Sid have brought new sparkle and laughter to an already fun environment. Gus and Harry and our two rescue cats (Tristan and Isolde) have welcomed them into their lives and, so far, it would appear that the kittens are in charge. Troy and Sid can amuse themselves with absolutely anything including my socks (we have no idea where some of those have got to), pieces of newspapers, and dogs’ tails.
Thank goodness things are back in balance.
We invite you to join us on Cape Cod. To see a complete list of our amenities, including our pettables, please visit us on-line at http://honeysucklehill.com/pettables.html where you can see our dogs, Gwen, and the new kids. We are a year-round facility. Cape Cod is a wonderful destination all four seasons. The historical aspects of the peninsula are many and are not seasonal, and we will be more than happy to be your hosts (along with a few pettables).
