Meet the cats behind Caversham Kitties

We adopted Rowley from Cats Protection in Newbury on the 30th January 2014. This gorgeous boy came from a multi-cat household where he and his siblings were essentially left to fend for themselves. When we first met him at the shelter, he was scared and exhausted. We went into his pen to reassure him, and he soon showed us his true, wonderful colours and we could see the gorgeous boy within.
Rowley took a few days to settle when we first brought him home, but he soon warmed to us and it wasn’t long before he was snuggled up on his daddy’s lap, his favourite place for the next 10 years.

We noticed early on that Rowley had mobility issues, and after around a year in our care, he was diagnosed with arthritis in his back legs. For this, we treated him with anti-inflammatories and supplements, which gave him a much better quality of life.

Rowley kept us on our toes throughout his life: his sensitive tummy would often flare up resulting in towels being placed all over the living room for him to sit and lay on, but we never minded cleaning up after him.

Before his mobility started to slow him down, Rowley would often venture beyond the garden, hopping over the fence and forgetting how to get back, and even scaling a very tall tree (and forgetting how to get down, cue a rescue mission by mummy to retrieve him!)

Sadly, years of medication eventually took their toll on Rowley, and he suffered liver failure. Rowley passed away, in the arms of his mummy and daddy, on the 23rd December 2023 at Castle Vets, Tilehurst, after a short illness. Our tabby prince, we miss you everyday bubbadub ❤️

Dora the explorer leapt into our lives on the 30th January 2014 when we adopted her, alongside Rowley, from Cats Protection in Newbury. We instantly fell in love with her big, expressive eyes, and knew she was the little girl for us.

As soon as we got her home, Dora claimed the entire house as her own. She was adventurous, chatty and playful, often making appearances on work Zoom calls during lockdown, and making her presence known at all times with her loud meows!

Dora was no stranger to the vets, suffering a luxated patella within her first year with us which required surgery and six weeks of crate rest (which she HATED!), and a diagnosis of eosinophilic granuloma complex, an allergic reaction which saw her on steroids and a specialised diet, as well as plenty of visits to her favourite person at Oakley Vets, Jess.

Dora was always a food-driven cat, so when her appetite started to decrease following Rowley’s passing, we initially put this down to her being a solo cat and calming down around food. But as the months wore on, we noticed her eating decreasing and decreasing, with multiple trips to vets culminating in a diagnosis of lymphoma. Dora’s illness was brief, and she passed away, smothered in kisses and cuddles from her mummy and daddy, on the 25th June 2024 at Oakley Vets in Caversham.
You were our special little girl Dinky, and we love and miss you everyday. The house is so quiet without you. ❤️