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I love animals. Always have, always will. From my first pet cats, with whom I will always remember growing up, as they were practically my siblings being an only child, to my grandma’s cows. Loved ‘em all.
I’m a pet owner, as many have been or are, and I’m proud of it. There’s a bond one forms with a pet after a short period of time, and it’s a bond of sorts that’s very welcoming and a unique change compared to the bonds we experience with humans. 
I love cats and dogs equally. Some of you out there are partial to one or the other, but I’d have tons of each if it were reasonable. However, being a college student and a pet owner at the same time is complicated, and I’ve sacrificed my desire to adopt a dog for awhile — or at least until I find a permanent place to live with land on which one could roam around. I opted for a cat instead, which I’m a little more partial to anyway. I’ll put the puppy training at 3 a.m. in cold weather on hold for a few more years.
For now, I just have Loki, a kitten I adopted from my aunt and uncle in the spring of 2007 as a sophomore in college. He was born in March, and I took him home to my little apartment that summer. He was and still is an adorable little guy, and I knew it from the get-go. He’s gray and white in color with long hair and a cute nose. He’s also a very unique cat in that he has seven toes on his front two paws and five on his back two, when cats normally have five on the front and four on the back.
They’re officially known as polydactyl cats and are also referred to as “mitten cats,” because their paws resemble mittens. They’re also referred to as “Hemingway cats,” because famous classic author Ernest Hemingway was particularly partial to them. Hemingway’s house in Key West, Florida, now a museum, houses 60 cats, half of them being polydactyls.
Polydactyl is Latin for “many digits” and the cats that develop this interesting trait do so from a dominant gene passed down from one of their parents. The trait is actually considered to be a fault in breeding and is frowned upon by breeding registries. The cats have quite a history, being well received in Boston when ship crews would keep them on board because they were better hunters and climbers, and many believe they originally came to the U.S. from England, specifically Wales.
Whatever they say, I consider myself very fortunate to have him. He can be very vocal at times, but when he realizes I’m trying to do some reading or get some sleep, he usually crawls into bed with me and passes out — on his back, mouth open. He’s also pretty good at fetch when he wants to be. Yes, a cat that plays fetch. He has quite a few toys that I’ll toss the length of the house, only to have him politely drop the toy at my feet for another go-round. I’m probably biased when it comes to thinking he’s more intelligent than other cats — but that’s only because I love him like he’s my kid.
We didn’t always get along this well, with him greeting me at the door every night when I come home late, which is the reason why I named him Loki.
After bringing him home to my apartment while in college, I still hadn’t named him. I’d taken him to get shots, gotten him toys, food and treats, but he still didn’t have a name. I wanted to feel out his personality before committing to such a permanent thing. It didn’t take long.
After waking up many times a night to his constant meowing or scrambling up and down the stairs (luckily I didn’t have a roommate at this time) I knew he was a mischevious cat. He sealed the deal when I awoke one night to a warm sensation on my leg and realized he’d made me his new bathroom post. “Loki” was the name of a mythical god from Norse mythology who caused mischief among the other gods. I’d heard it referenced in my Western Civilization class and knew it was suitable.
He’s pretty tame now, and I always look forward to his greeting when I come home.
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