Hello, I’m Christopher! Learn my introduction to be taught extra about me and my foolish Russian Blue cat, Olga.
I didn’t know a lot about Russian Blues till I adopted one, however after watching Olga remodel from a psychotic kitten to a pleasant, mischievous, middle-aged woman, I’ve discovered loads. Her bodily traits, like her blue coat, gentle inexperienced eyes, and 10.06-pound weight, appear to observe the breed customary.
Olga is a rescue cat; I’ve by no means had her DNA examined, and I’m not an professional at figuring out felines, so she might be purebred or combined. I feel she has loads of Russian Blue blood pumping in her veins and shows a lot of the behavioral traits that made the breed well-known.
Russian Blue Habits
She was aloof and violent as a younger cat and affectionate with out being clingy. She’s smarter and extra coordinated than I initially gave her credit score for and may open and shut doorways, catch paper balls like an outfielder, assault me after I sleep late, and detect after I’m having a nasty day.
Nonetheless, some Russian Blue folklore makes me snicker after I take into consideration Olga. Even the nicknames Archangel Blue and Maltese Blue aren’t correct representations of her. If something, she’s extra of an anti-Christ than an Archangel. Russian Blues supposedly have “Mona Lisa smiles” due to their upturned mouths, however Olga’s seems extra devious and just like Lizzie Borden’s.
Archangel Folklore
There’s a fable that Russian Blues watched over infants whereas they slept and guarded them from the Nineteenth-century model of Freddy Kruger. If solely the children on Elm Avenue had a colony of felines, so many murders might have been prevented, so long as they didn’t have cats like Olga.
She’s no match for an evil spirit, poltergeist, dream murderer, or holographic vacuum cleaner. I can rely on her to dispatch bugs, however the rest, whether or not pure or metaphysical, causes her to dash in worry. Olga is a stealthy runner and grasp at mixing in with the shadows, and an intruder in my house wouldn’t know I’ve a cat until they stumble over the litter field.
Olga the Courageous (Meek)
She’s fierce when confronted by stuffed mice, paper balls, and flies however runs when she hears a helicopter flying over or a pyrotechnic explosion. Olga isn’t a guard cat and will not be one of the best babysitter for youths, however I like the concept that cats in northern Russia protected sleeping infants as a substitute of stealing their breath or cursing them, as different superstitions recommend.
Olga’s ancestors traveled with sailors to different European nations after leaving Arkhangelsk, and it’s attainable that their seafaring methods and tolerance of water had been retained in Olga’s genes. She’s by no means been on a ship or seen the ocean, however she isn’t afraid to play within the bathe water or assault me on the uncommon event I’m within the bathtub.
Earlier than I discovered to hold the lavatory door locked, she tried to swat at me by way of the bathe curtain, and some years in the past, after I was within the tub, she knocked a shampoo bottle into my head after casually taking a stroll on the slippery edge.
I remind visitors to lock the door earlier than they get within the bathe as a result of I don’t need my pint-sized Norman Bates to wander in and scare them. I’m happy with Olga for being intelligent and relieved she hasn’t discovered how you can deal with a butcher knife.
