Karen told Bored Panda that Sansa loves following her and her husband around the apartment and “never fails” to claim her spot on their laps. Sansa is also very smart and knows how to get exactly what she wants (some would say she’s a bit meownipulative).
“When she’s hungry and wants to be fed every evening, she will make sure to lay herself stretched out right in the middle of the hallway to block our way to the kitchen, staring at her empty food bowl,” the owner revealed. “In the morning when she wants breakfast, she’ll meow nonstop and if we don’t wake up, she’ll jump on our nightstands and start knocking objects off one by one till we wake up!”
Karen said that Sansa absolutely loves treats and will model for them. “That’s how I get my photos of her!”
Karen and her husband adopted Sansa in July 2016 when she was 1.5-years-old from an adoption event at a Petco in Manhattan. “We were told that she was abandoned by her previous owners, but we don’t know the reason why. She is now 5 years old, turning 6 on December 1 (her guesstimated birthday since she had no records),” Karen said that this is Sansa’s guesstimated birthday since she had no records. The couple has no other pets, so Sansa is the queen of their household!
According to Karen, it took Sansa several months to adapt to life in her new home. “She was extremely fearful and timid at the start—whenever one of us opened the front door, she would bolt and flee into the closet or behind the TV console. She started to trust us after a few months and slowly started chilling closer and closer to us.”
The owner continued: “She started off by placing a paw on my leg. A few days later, she would get more comfortable and place her head on my leg. When she eventually found the courage to sit on my lap the first time, I literally cried!”
While Sansa still has anxiety now, it’s not at the same level as it was before. “She is still jumpy and gets scared by thunderstorms, unexpected loud sounds, dogs barking outside, etc. She will creep away and hide in a dark corner. Whenever we need to take her to the vet, she completely shuts down in her carrier and we can feel her body shivering. She has come so far though!”
At the cat adoption event, Karen was drawn to Sansa’s seemingly-empty cage (the cat was hiding under her bed) because it had a sign saying the cat suffered from anxiety after being abandoned in the streets of NYC. Karen felt an immediate bond with Sansa because she herself suffers from anxiety.
Besides anxiety, the cat also suffers from feline hyperesthesia, a type of seizure disorder that can cause episodes of agitation and even self-harm. Karen gives Sansa pet CBD oil which has helped curb her episodes.
Now, Sansa rules her home with an iron paw, demanding that her servants-- errr owners rush to feed her. Karen and her husband, Jack, hope to raise awareness about adopting special needs and genetically different cats like Sansa. The cat’s Instagram page that documents her daily life is their way of doing just that.
