Ava is showing the world how capable rescue cats are.

We asked her mum, JoAnn to tell us all about them.

Tell us the story about how Ava came into your family

My husband and I (at the time newlyweds) had just moved to Kansas. I had brought with us my turtles and hedgehog, but they just lack a certain cuddle-able aspect. It was hard to remember a time when my family didn’t have a cat and so now, far from any family, here we were: catless. And my husband was allergic to cats. A little bit of a quandary. 

However, working at a vet hospital, I knew there were hypoallergenic cats out there. And so the search began. There were purebred Siberians, Siamese, and Bengals, but I wanted to adopt. Now, I’m saying “I” a lot because my poor husband wasn’t quite planning on a cat for quite a while! And, one random morning, I told him we were going to see some cats right after work.

I had found the one. 

Well, rather, I had found two. A black male, or his sister, a tortie. They had been marked as Oriental Shorthair mixes and oh the hypoallergenicity of that breed! Once in a blue moon! 

The shelter was across town, and we squeezed in through the doors 10 minutes before closing time. We pleaded with them to let us see these two kittens and, with a huge sigh because I’d already filled out application papers, let us in to see the kittens. 

And they were ADORABLE. 

My husband fell for the black kitten, but I fell in love with the tortie. She just fell limp in my arms, and kept batting at my hair. What heart I had left just melted. 

But.

After springing this surprise on my husband, we had decided that while I wanted the cat, he would have to choose the cat. And he was quickly falling in love with another cat! Finally, just before we had to leave, he asked to switch kittens (the black one was such a dear). Within a few moments of him holding the little tortieshell kitten, she reached up and smacked him on the nose! He looked up at me, his eyes were huge and just said:

“We’re getting this one.”

And that is how we got a cat.

Tell us the story behind Ava's name?: 

Nothing too crazy here, unfortunately!

Her name given to her at the shelter was Ava, and it just seemed to suit her!

Over time, however, her official name has become “Avakin Skywalker”, very fitting when she gets moody!

What is Ava's favourite thing to do?

Probably getting in the car and travelling with us for hours.

Short trips are great, but she absolutely enjoys the long 6-10 hour drives. She’ll stretch out in the back, belly up, and snore for HOURS.

Also, she gets super lovey and will walk up to the passenger seat, sit on whoever is there, use you as her chin rest and angelically conk out. 

At home, her favorite thing to do is to get close to the humans and lie just a hairbreadth away and do more snoozing.

Playing is fun, but being close - but not that close! - is her thing.

What kind of cat adventures do you like to go on?

Camping, hiking, road tripping!

And of course, she binge watches Netflix with us.

Tell us about your most memorable adventure.

So many!

But probably most memorable was her winter camping trip with us.

We had ditched town and headed to Colorado, and we figured why not take Ava with us?

It was October, and winter was coming to the Rockies. We camped near a stream just 20 miles south of the National Park and Ava wore two sweaters to stay warm. She was swaddled in blankets every night, and went to the Rockies with us during the day.

When we got back to our campsite, it was raining and then snowing while we were there, she would make a straight line from our tent to her litter box and just SIT. Never moving from it until we were ready to travel again or hit the hay. That was her one dry spot and she happily stood in her dry unused litter until we were done!

She waited for three days till we got in the hotel. We put out her litter box and she went to TOWN. Litter went everywhere, and Ava was ecstatic.

She zoomed all around the hotel because she had done her business, she was back in civilization with a proper toilet, and she didn’t have to deal with any more stinking rain or snow. 

Why did you decide to train Ava?

For a few reasons, but one was to have company on walks, another was to break stereotypes for what cats can or can’t do, but especially to share what rescued cats are capable of.

Everyone we meet asks if she’s a “special” breed of cat, but are always surprised that her origin story is as a shelter kitten. They’re capable of so much if they’re given a chance.

Finally, the adopting shelter’s terms were that all cats adopted were to either be indoor cats - or go outside on a leash. So option 2 it was! I had trained/rehabbed dogs growing up, so a cat was a good challenge!

For a few reasons, but one was to have company on walks, another was to break stereotypes for what cats can or can’t do, but especially to share what rescued cats are capable of.

Everyone we meet asks if she’s a “special” breed of cat, but are always surprised that her origin story is as a shelter kitten. They’re capable of so much if they’re given a chance.

Finally, the adopting shelter’s terms were that all cats adopted were to either be indoor cats - or go outside on a leash. So option 2 it was! I had trained/rehabbed dogs growing up, so a cat was a good challenge!

For a few reasons, but one was to have company on walks, another was to break stereotypes for what cats can or can’t do, but especially to share what rescued cats are capable of.

Everyone we meet asks if she’s a “special” breed of cat, but are always surprised that her origin story is as a shelter kitten. They’re capable of so much if they’re given a chance.

Finally, the adopting shelter’s terms were that all cats adopted were to either be indoor cats - or go outside on a leash. So option 2 it was! I had trained/rehabbed dogs growing up, so a cat was a good challenge!

How did you train Ava?

We just started right from the beginning.

We treated it as normal to wear a harness, and later a leash.

She got used to riding on my husband’s shoulders, and then going for short walks with me.

I kept the same attitude as when training my other dogs: I’m going for a walk and you can tag along.

And, she so wanted to be with us all the time that that part wasn’t hard to do!

What has been the most rewarding part of having a catexplorer?

Being able to see the world through a cat’s eyes.

Our adventures are just that much more interesting with her around.

What has been the hardest?

She is so used to travelling with us that boarding is just difficult for her.

In hindsight, what would you do differently?

Done a lot more store and boarding conditioning with her!

She’s fantastic with almost any situation, but just gets too stressed out in places like pet stores and and boarding facilities.

What advice would you give other humans training their catexplorers?

Treat it like it’s normal.

Cats are built for the outdoors, and they take their cues from you.

Stay calm and assertive, especially in what they may perceive as scary situations.

Is there another Catexplorer that inspires you?

@tunatheadventurecat @jackhikes

Follow Ava's adventures on Instagram (@acatcalledava)

We asked her mum, JoAnn to tell us all about them.

Tell us the story about how Ava came into your family

My husband and I (at the time newlyweds) had just moved to Kansas. I had brought with us my turtles and hedgehog, but they just lack a certain cuddle-able aspect. It was hard to remember a time when my family didn’t have a cat and so now, far from any family, here we were: catless. And my husband was allergic to cats. A little bit of a quandary. 

However, working at a vet hospital, I knew there were hypoallergenic cats out there. And so the search began. There were purebred Siberians, Siamese, and Bengals, but I wanted to adopt. Now, I’m saying “I” a lot because my poor husband wasn’t quite planning on a cat for quite a while! And, one random morning, I told him we were going to see some cats right after work.

I had found the one. 

Well, rather, I had found two. A black male, or his sister, a tortie. They had been marked as Oriental Shorthair mixes and oh the hypoallergenicity of that breed! Once in a blue moon! 

The shelter was across town, and we squeezed in through the doors 10 minutes before closing time. We pleaded with them to let us see these two kittens and, with a huge sigh because I’d already filled out application papers, let us in to see the kittens. 

And they were ADORABLE. 

My husband fell for the black kitten, but I fell in love with the tortie. She just fell limp in my arms, and kept batting at my hair. What heart I had left just melted. 

But.

After springing this surprise on my husband, we had decided that while I wanted the cat, he would have to choose the cat. And he was quickly falling in love with another cat! Finally, just before we had to leave, he asked to switch kittens (the black one was such a dear). Within a few moments of him holding the little tortieshell kitten, she reached up and smacked him on the nose! He looked up at me, his eyes were huge and just said:

“We’re getting this one.”

And that is how we got a cat.

Tell us the story behind Ava's name?: 

Nothing too crazy here, unfortunately!

Her name given to her at the shelter was Ava, and it just seemed to suit her!

Over time, however, her official name has become “Avakin Skywalker”, very fitting when she gets moody!

What is Ava's favourite thing to do?

Probably getting in the car and travelling with us for hours.

Short trips are great, but she absolutely enjoys the long 6-10 hour drives. She’ll stretch out in the back, belly up, and snore for HOURS.

Also, she gets super lovey and will walk up to the passenger seat, sit on whoever is there, use you as her chin rest and angelically conk out. 

At home, her favorite thing to do is to get close to the humans and lie just a hairbreadth away and do more snoozing.

Playing is fun, but being close - but not that close! - is her thing.

What kind of cat adventures do you like to go on?

Camping, hiking, road tripping!

And of course, she binge watches Netflix with us.

Tell us about your most memorable adventure.

So many!

But probably most memorable was her winter camping trip with us.

We had ditched town and headed to Colorado, and we figured why not take Ava with us?

It was October, and winter was coming to the Rockies. We camped near a stream just 20 miles south of the National Park and Ava wore two sweaters to stay warm. She was swaddled in blankets every night, and went to the Rockies with us during the day.

When we got back to our campsite, it was raining and then snowing while we were there, she would make a straight line from our tent to her litter box and just SIT. Never moving from it until we were ready to travel again or hit the hay. That was her one dry spot and she happily stood in her dry unused litter until we were done!

She waited for three days till we got in the hotel. We put out her litter box and she went to TOWN. Litter went everywhere, and Ava was ecstatic.

She zoomed all around the hotel because she had done her business, she was back in civilization with a proper toilet, and she didn’t have to deal with any more stinking rain or snow. 

Why did you decide to train Ava?

For a few reasons, but one was to have company on walks, another was to break stereotypes for what cats can or can’t do, but especially to share what rescued cats are capable of.

Everyone we meet asks if she’s a “special” breed of cat, but are always surprised that her origin story is as a shelter kitten. They’re capable of so much if they’re given a chance.

Finally, the adopting shelter’s terms were that all cats adopted were to either be indoor cats - or go outside on a leash. So option 2 it was! I had trained/rehabbed dogs growing up, so a cat was a good challenge!

How did you train Ava?

We just started right from the beginning.

We treated it as normal to wear a harness, and later a leash.

She got used to riding on my husband’s shoulders, and then going for short walks with me.

I kept the same attitude as when training my other dogs: I’m going for a walk and you can tag along.

And, she so wanted to be with us all the time that that part wasn’t hard to do!

What has been the most rewarding part of having a catexplorer?

Being able to see the world through a cat’s eyes.

Our adventures are just that much more interesting with her around.

What has been the hardest?

She is so used to travelling with us that boarding is just difficult for her.

In hindsight, what would you do differently?

Done a lot more store and boarding conditioning with her!

She’s fantastic with almost any situation, but just gets too stressed out in places like pet stores and and boarding facilities.

What advice would you give other humans training their catexplorers?

Treat it like it’s normal.

Cats are built for the outdoors, and they take their cues from you.

Stay calm and assertive, especially in what they may perceive as scary situations.

Is there another Catexplorer that inspires you?

@tunatheadventurecat @jackhikes

Follow Ava's adventures on Instagram (@acatcalledava)