This gentle giant is named Teddy Bear. We usually just call him Teddy or Ted. When he gets in trouble, he is scolded with his full name. Teddy joined our happy family in June of 2008. My husband found an ad in the local newspaper for a male orange tabby cat. Orange tabby cats were always my favorite and it did not take much to convince me to call the phone number in the ad. I instantly liked the previous owner and we agreed to take Teddy Bear into our home.

Teddy Bear is about twice the size of a normal cat. His size, looks, and personality lead me to believe that he has some Maine Coon in him. He is very fluffy, especially his tail! When he stretches up for attention, he easily reaches your hips. When he first joined us, we quickly realized that all the hanging decorations on our walls had to be moved up another 12 inches to make them inaccessable to Teddy. It was a good thing we had a back-up wall hanging calender for the year, because he destroyed the first one. Teddy Bear is 3 years old and weighs about 16 pounds.

Teddy Bear has a very sweet, gentle and loving personality. His facial expressions are much more noticable than the average cat. You can definitely tell if he is happy or annoyed. He does have a bit of a stubborn streak, there's no pushing this big guy around. He has a problem with obedience and has to be told "No!" at least three times before he will listen. Yet, he is very patient and loving with other pets and children.

Unlike most cats, Teddy loves water and always tries to help me with the dishes. He walks slower than the average cat with powerful strides. Whenever something catches his attention, he sits up on his hind legs with his front paws curled under while sniffing the air. This odd sitting position looks exactly like a squirrel when it is startled and stops. Teddy is a very playful cat and never sits still for very long. Whenever the doorbell rings, he lets out a deep growl and dashes for the door. Once we open the front door and let the visitors in, he is all over them giving them loving attention.

Teddy Bear's favorite people foods are chicken and cheese. Unfortunatley, he is sensitive to chicken and is not allowed to have any. His favorite toys are milk jug rings. He also loves other light weight items including straws, twist ties, plastic wrappers, those plastic coil toys and the small toy mice. You can see more pictures of Teddy Bear and the other 8 cats he resides with at Lisa's Cat Lover's Pages

Lisa Brewer