When I was 17, my cat, Suzy arrived at my house. She was quite playful and I bonded with her fast.
After playing with her I helped feed her, I thought it was cute how small she was, when she sat down she was asleep short as my ankles.
When I first saw her eat food, she made cute noises kittens make when she ate, which made me smile, but I always smiled when playing with her.
There's quite a few photos of her as a kitten, including sitting on my shoulders. My life was much more enjoyable the first day she arrived at my house.
I learnt how to have more fun, and love more. But also had such a strong bond with Suzy that my heart felt warm, especially when interacting with her.
It was shortly after when I used to relax in my living room that she slept beside me. And then later she started sleeping on a bunk bed I had which was the top bunk.
She was quite clever how she got to the top bunk at first, she used to jump to the bottom bunk, then the window sill, and to my bed.
She didn't just sleep beside me, but sometimes between my legs. As she got older she started walking on my chest, purring, and kneading. But she also used to knead most times she slept by me.
She's still alive and is 15 now. But it's been a while since she's slept on me, she's mostly an outdoor cat now. But I still have time for her.
Something I thought would be good to bond with her is to hold her by my heart when I pick her up.
Because of my cat, even though as a child I loved animals, but I learnt to love all animals more because of Suzy.