We live in the country in the middle of what used to be a one hundred and fifty acre farm, which has since been subdivided. So, it is fair to say that we have had our share of field mice. A year ago March, when I found a mouse in my jetted bathtub, I said “Enough!”

I put out the word that we were seeking a mouser, and we were wanting a good one! A friend showed up with a cat promising our mice problem would go away.

Formerly an outdoor cat, it took only a few days for Sophie to warm up to the idea of coming inside. It was a cold, frosty March and while the garage was about fifty five degrees, it wasn’t the toasty seventy degrees of the house. Soon, we had a inside cat. (Turns out, she’s not really a mouser at all. Although she did get one once!)

Come about August, that same friend contacted us about taking another cat, which also happened to be the Sophie’s sister, Lulu. We contemplated adding another animal, but ultimately decided to when we found out she was a special needs cat. Plus the fact that they are sisters.

It didn’t take long to figure out that Sophie doesn’t like her sister AT ALL. Not even in the slightest. That first month we found ourselves in quite a pickle. They cannot be in the house at the same time or outside at the same time because Sophie goes after her. We were quite torn about what to do because we were already attached to both of them. And, we didn’t like the idea of what Little Bit would learn if we gave one back.

This is where the disagreeing cats becomes a life lesson for me. Sometimes others (animals or humans) just do not get along, related or not. I think about my parents who had two teenage daughters at the same time! Wonder if there were days they thought the same thing!

While it would’ve been easy to say “forget it” and give a cat back, we didn’t. We figured it out. We adapted around their disagreements and ultimately, we do what works. Just like parents do. Just like families do. Just like friends do. Is it commitment? Oh my yes! Is it inconvenient sometimes? Definitely. Do they keep us on our toes? Every single day. Is it worth it? It is absolutely worth it.

We have had those disagreeing cats for over a year now. We still have to keep them away from each other. But, we do it because we love them both. I think it’s a bit funny now when I look back on those beginning days. There were moments I wanted to throw my hands up in the air and just welcome the mice back!

Little did I know that whole scenario was a lesson in the making. Little did I know what the gift of two disagreeing cats would be!