“MY CAT GOES PADDLE BOARDING…”
When an outdoors-loving couple decided to get a cat, they hoped they’d find one who loves to adventure as much as they do...and they certainly did!
Meet the adventurous kitty who goes travelling and exploring with his owners.
While most cats can’t stand the water and hate to get wet, this handsome Maine Coon boy can’t wait to find his nearest source of water for a quick dip!
Fisher first came to live with Finn and Lorraine ‘Lo’ Williams in April 2019 after the couple were looking for a feline companion to join them on their adventures, travelling around the USA in their campervan.
Like all responsible cat owners, Finn and Lo did their research into the best breed to suit their lifestyle.
Lo said:“Finn was about to turn 50 and he wanted a cat for his birthday, so we did some research and found that Maine Coons would be best as they tend to like water.”
Initially the couple wanted to rescue a Maine Coon but found that homeless pedigrees were hard to come by, so they visited a local breeder who introduced them to “the biggest kitten he’d ever seen” — Fisher.
The enormous, red and white fluffy kitten settled into life with Finn and Lo straight away in Tierra Verde in Florida, and to begin with, they tried to set
some boundaries of where he wasn’t allowed, but he loves water so much he made a beeline for all the taps in the house!
“We made a rule that now the faucet in the kitchen is the only one he doesn’t drink from!” laughed Lo.
INTRODUCTION TO ADVENTURES
Finn and Lo started trying Fisher’s harness on him from a young age so he got used to wearing it, and he was soon able to start taking short car journeys with the couple.
“He’s game for anything now so we’ve never looked back,” Lo said. “Before Covid hit, we’d take him all over the place with us and he’s so unfazed by everything.
“When we take him out, people love him and give him lots of treats, which is great for his socialisation.
“We’re lucky that we live near the water in Florida and can take him out for walks around the neighbourhood.”
The couple bought Fisher his own stroller so that he could rest on some of their longer walks and Lo said he laps up the attention from people.
“We live in a neighbourhood where people will take roosters and pigs for walks on a lead, yet they still love to see a cat in a stroller instead of a kid!
“It’s a small community here and everyone knows him and they’re fascinated by him.”
Gradually, the couple started to introduce Fisher to some of their outdoor pursuits to see how he liked them.
“We did lots of research to see how to do it safely,” Finn explained.“To get him used to the water we bought a kiddie pool and put it in the living room with a bit of water in it.
“Fisher got his paws wet and shook them off at first, but then he slowly got used to it.”
They then took him outside to play in a larger inflatable pool and then once he was used to that, did the same with the paddle board, which they first had sitting in their living room on dry land.
Then once he was used to it, the couple put the board into the pool while he was wearing his harness to keep him safe in case he fell off, and his love of the water grew from there.