Zito & Maulder

Zito & Maulder

By Kathleen Barron

One Saturday morning in 2003 I was watching the morning show on channel 4 from San Francisco. There was a segment that featured Tony La Russa. He was opening a new animal shelter that he said would be different from others, he was going to find a home for every animal. He was holding a little girl kitty,  Henry Tannenbaum was holding a black and white tuxedo cat named Zito. Both kitties were adorable but I fell in love with Zito and became obsessed with him.

We had lost our old faithful cat, Pal, two years earlier, and even though Denny kept urging me to get another cat, I was still heartbroken and grieving after losing Pal after having him for nearly 18 years. But when I saw Zito, I wanted him for our home. 

I began calling the shelter and trying to get information about when and if I could adopt Zito. I was told he wasn't ready for adoption yet, but to keep checking back. I'm sure I was a pest, but luckily I didn't get the same person on the phone each time, as I called back often. I found out from one person that Zito was part of the first litter delivered in the shelter and that the kitties in that litter were all named after Oakland A's players, which is how I came to know him as Zito.

Finally I talked to one person that said I would have to wait till Zito was neutered and had all his shots. I tried to send in money to hold him for us, but that was not the way it worked, they said. And they told me to keep checking back. Of course, I did.  

Finally one day we were returning from a trip to Tahoe in a driving rainstorm. We decided to stop by the shelter, as it was on our way home. And, oh my gosh, there was. Zito, with his brother Maulder and his sister.  We stayed there filling out papers and and being interviewed to see if we were going to be good parents. 
We passed all the tests, thank goodness, and then we decided to take Zito and his brother Maulder. The sister had an eye infection or we would have had her also. 

Their first night with us was heaven.

A year later, they were still best buds.

From the day we brought the little brothers home in November of 2003, those two have been inseparable. They are often in such a tangle, you can't see where one leaves off and the other starts.

Early on, Zito showed an interest in learning to read. While Maulder just wants to hang out.

Zito even learned how to use the remote.....definitely a man's man cat!

Zito must have known I picked him too, because he became 'my cat'. He loves to sleep in my lap, while his brother Maulder has found a willing Denny to attach to, and follows him around the house, talking to him and giving him instructions, no doubt, on how many treats he would like next.

These two have added so much love and richness to our lives it's almost impossible to explain. As we and the cats are all getting older, we have formed the perfect little family.  And they never get tired of posing for pictures for us.

Nothing is better for your mental and physical well being than a cat sleeping on your lap.


-Kathleen Barron and Dennis Ferreira 














Editor's Comment: This is the third in our series of "SVPP Adopter's Stories" about how their adopted pet came into their family and changed their lives. We encourage all of our adopters to share their stories with us by contacting us at info@svpetproject.org.