Celica Rings In The New Year: Part 2

Celica was on her way from Moscow to her new home in the US. The plane, flight SU100, was due in at JFK at 12:30 p.m. The board noted that the plane was on schedule. 

At The Airport

The arrivals were in one general area, so it wouldn’t be hard to miss them as they came through. We chatted with a cute young guy who was waiting for his Russian fiancé; they hadn’t seen each other in a year and a half. Turns out he was a native of Cuba and worked for a printer in Virginia.

I wonder if anyone noticed that I was ready to jump out of my skin and that my eyes were spinning around in my head.

Finally, the passengers from the Moscow plane came through the gate. Vladimir had emailed me his photo and, yes, there he was. He was actually here, on American soil! I knew him right away – he looked very Russian, black hair, black jacket, I quickly snapped a photo and waved. He was carrying Celica in a carrier. I followed him around to the common area, where he placed the carrier on a table.

Celica Blue was bouncing around inside, demanding to be released from its confines after a very long 10-hour, 4,600-mile journey. Click here to read Part 1.

Vladimir took her out and I thought I would melt on the spot. She was quite small with very large ears and incredibly soft fur. We fussed over her, then realized that we needed the carrier I had left in the car, which I should have taken with me, so my friend ran to get that, while Vladimir and I chatted.

He was also delivering a British Shorthair kitten to its new home in Boston. He explained that he and his wife had nine rescue cats and started started their transport service when they needed to ship a dog to Germany and realized there was no way to do it. His English was perfect; he said he had lived in the US for 20 years.

My friend returned with the carrier. We placed Celica inside, and I hugged Vladimir good-by. I will probably never see him again, but I’ll never forget him.

Once in the car, I couldn’t believe I finally had my little Russian princess. She was curious, energetic, and beautiful. She surveyed everything with wide-eyed wonder and I couldn’t stop loving on her.

Staying in the carrier was not an option though she did play with the catnip toys with the lid open. I pretty much held on to her and petted her the whole way home, passing her every so often to my friends. I had brought some food from home, but she wasn’t interested in eating.

Once we returned to town, we transferred Celica to my car for the final couple of miles home to Branford.

Home at Last

I carried her upstairs and opened the carrier so the first thing she saw was the litter box. Knowing where the litter box is located is always a good thing.

I messaged Liliya right away that Celica was home and all went well. It was the conclusion of a diplomatic effort that would have put heads of state to shame.

Tekla and Mollie came around to peer. I can only imagine their thoughts. Kittens are relatively easy to integrate, plus I think Celica really needed to learn about her new household sooner rather than later and get comfortable in her new life. It was quickly apparent that she was a confident kitten. Tekla and Mollie sensed that.

My husband – he who had no idea how I managed to pull this off – came home shortly thereafter. He had followed the flight arrival online from work and quickly fell in love with Celica. He planned on taking the next day off to get acquainted with her.

That evening Celica stayed pretty much in the living room with us, alternating between my husband’s lap and mine, and a heating pad set on low on the end table. We took turns staying up to make sure she was all right. Mollie and Tekla kept a respectful distance.

The next day consisted of learning the household ropes. It must have been pretty hard work – she was asleep in my husband’s lap when I got home from work (he was also asleep).

Over the weekend, she discovered the upstairs and Monday night she learned that everyone sleeps together in the big bed, so of course she now joins us there. Under the covers in true Russian Blue tradition.

My big concern was accommodating her to our cats’ diet. Since she had been eating dry food, I dug up some Orijen, which she nibbled on. Then I finger-fed her a mixture of homemade and canned with some dry on top. And by the end of the weekend, she was totally on board and meowing for her chow! What’s more, a couple of days later she turned her little nose up at the $2.29 pouch of gourmet food in favor of the homemade. Go Celica!

I’ve had to get used to doing the kitten shuffle – one minute she’s nowhere in sight and the next she’s at my feet.

Like all kittens, she lives to play, and even plays fetch. Perfectly socialized and well mannered, thanks to Liliya, she purrs readily and she loves to snuggle. She’s still working out her relationship with Tekla and Mollie, but that’s getting better every day.

The other night she shared a chair with Mollie and took turns chasing and being chased by Tekla. In short, after only two-plus weeks, we’re still marveling that she flew more than 4,600 miles to be with us. At 4 months, she’s flown farther than most people I know.

Liliya, her breeder, has sent lots of kitten photos and I have her pedigree, which does have some American relatives … just to show you how international the cat fancy is. For a kitty that was born halfway around the world, I know more about her than Mollie, who we adopted a few miles from here.

Every so often, we need to follow our heart and do something unconventional. Never in a thousand years did I think I’d have a Russian Blue cat from Russia. But I do now. What an amazing way to ring in the New Year.
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