Cooper and Truman - Cool Cats of the Month

by Dan Siegel 

Meet Cooper & Truman 

I am obsessed with my cats, Cooper & Truman. Named after Sheriff Harry S. Truman and Agent Dale Cooper from Twin Peaks- a show I admittedly still need to finish (please don’t tell me who killed Laura Palmer)- these sweet little orange tabby bros have brought me so much joy and comfort over the last four years. 

Unfortunately, not everyone loves my kitties as much I do. And once upon a time (specifically ten months ago), that included my girlfriend, Andrea.

First Date Disclosure 

On our first date, Andrea and I sipped drinks over a candlelit table, and kept laughing as we repeatedly blew out our candle from leaning in too close with excitement. I was super into Andrea and didn’t want to mess things up. But then it came time to break the news…    

“I should probably mention- I have two cats.” 

Andrea looked horrified. Like I had just told her I had terminal foot warts. Or a snake had just crawled out of my eye socket. Although my dating profile featured a picture of me holding Cooper, Andrea had somehow convinced herself that this cat must be somebody else’s- perhaps a friend who let me borrow their pet for a disingenuous photo op to make me look sensitive and nurturing. Anyway, Andrea was very surprised to learn I had not just one but TWO of these furry little felines. To this day she teases that if my dating profile had been more transparent, she never would have swiped right.    

Meet Mabel 

Back then, Andrea was mostly indifferent to cats. She didn’t have a reason to actively dislike them, but she was infinitely more interested in her pet dog, Mabel. To be fair, Mabel is the best dog ever- a corgi pitbull mix who lives to eat, sleep, and guard Andrea (kind of like my cats except for the useful protection part).    

MOVING IN 

Welp, in spite of the double cat surprise, I somehow had enough decent qualities to redeem myself and win over Andrea. Which was exciting for us! But maybe not so exciting for our animals…

In March 2020, after months of back and forth visits to each other’s respective apartments and pets, I moved into Andrea’s one-bedroom cottage along with Cooper & Truman. And although Mabel normally slept in the bed, Andrea graciously allowed my cats to take over her bedroom as a sanctuary away from the dog. It was a stressful time. Not only was there the outbreak of the coronavirus and lockdown order from Governor Newsom… but Andrea was also now sleeping directly next to a litter box. 

And if there was one thing that Andrea truly hated… it was Cooper & Truman’s litter box.    

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PRETTY LITTER PRETTY MUCH SAVES THE DAY  

Before I moved in with Andrea, I was accustomed to using clay litter. But no matter how many different brands I tried that promised to be odor-free, those wretched clumps of cat urine always REEKED (so much so that I almost got evicted- but that’s for another blog post). 

And although I believe that my nose had gradually become desensitized to the smell, Andrea’s nose was still firing on all cylinders. She told me that if I was going to move in, I had to change the litter AT LEAST two times a day. But even then, clouds of clay dust were plaguing our bedroom and gross bits of clay were turning up in the sheets. 

Andrea was rightfully mortified.  

So I talked to one of my close cat friends about the situation, and they had just started using PrettyLitter. They loved the crystals and recommended I make the switch. Andrea was very much onboard with this plan- something desperately needed to change. 

Luckily, by the time our PrettyLitter arrived, Cooper & Truman were getting along quite nicely with Mabel. We had to sync their AM/PM feeding on opposite ends of the bedroom door (their cat/dog version of Love is Blind), so they associated the reward of food with one other’s company. 

But even more amazing than our pets co-habitating was the fact that the PrettyLitter crystals ACTUALLY got rid of that horrible ammonia smell! And because I no longer have to scoop endless clumps of urine, cleaning the litter box is faster and easier than ever.   

So did PrettyLitter save my romantic relationship? That might be giving it too much credit. But did it significantly help? Most definitely.