The first musical I ever saw on Broadway was Cats — I used to listen to the soundtrack (on vinyl) over and over. There’s a song about the naming of cats that I still can remember the lyrics for:
The naming of cats is a difficult matter
It isn’t just one of those holiday games…
You may think at first I’m as mad as a hatter
When I tell you a cat must have three different names.
The song goes on to say WHY a cat has three different names, including the secret name that they only tell to other cats. But the name I’m most concerned with is the name that comes from the human owner.
In my work at the cats only boarding facility, I have run into some VERY interesting names for cats. Some cats with more traditional names, like Tiger, Princess, or Spot. Some cats with human names, like Oscar, Jessica, Chuck, Marnie, Cliff, and Nina. We’ve got multiple Oscars and a few Calvins who come to stay at the boarding facility on a regular basis. I once confused a Marnie with a Marley and nearly gave the wrong cat to the wrong owner!
And then there are the cats with the unusual names. We’ve had a few cats named after celebrities, like Charlie Chaplin and Elvis. We’ve had a few clever parodies of famous names, like Elvis’ kitty sister Purrcilla and the mysterious Count Catula. Some of my favorite guests have had some really off-the-wall names, like Waffles, Squad Car, and Flasher.
We’ve also had guests with matching names, like Roxie and Rosy and Marlin and Mason. The former were sisters in name only; the latter were twin boys from the same litter. The only way to tell Marlin and Mason apart is by the shape of their eyes — one has almond shaped eyes and the other has more rounded eyes.