Sometimes I have Facebook memories pop up from 10… 11… 12 years ago about how badly I wanted a Sphynx. I pined away for years. There’s an entire Pinterest board on my account of Sphynx photos, art, necklaces, t-shirts. While dating, it was a topic that would come up quickly, “I’m going to get a Sphynx one day, it’s non-negotiable”. We always had Siamese when I was growing up, but my dad isn’t a huge cat person, so it wasn’t going to happen while I still lived at home.
In 2015, a friend rescued a Sphynx from a bad situation. He was severely neglected with a laundry list of health issues and he spent days in the ICU at a veterinary specialist hospital. I went to visit him during his stay and, despite being mistreated, he was so friendly and affectionate. Skin and bones, but just wanted to sit in my lap and purr. We cat-sat him a couple of times, after he made a full recovery, and he was such a joy to have around. Food-crazed and outgoing. I was smitten and he solidified my need to have my own.
Within a couple months of moving into our house with my fiancé, I called Newt’s breeder to get on her waitlist. I wanted a boy. I said I preferred red, like my friend’s sweet rescue boy, but Hannah told me she tended towards blues. Color didn’t really matter.
I proceeded to message Hannah weekly, if not daily, for the next year with any stray Sphynx-related thought… and there were a lot of them. I started accumulating toys, clothes, a $300 cat tree… I was so ready. I had a name picked out 4 months before he was born – Newt, for Newt Scamander from Harry Potter and the Fantastic Beasts franchise.
And I waited. And waited. First, there was a singleton. Then, a litter of all girls.
I cried. I just wanted my sweet boy to be born.
When Hannah shared Newt’s birth, her comment was that he came out “kicking and screaming”. I told my fiancé that he was going to be the one. Par for the course that my animals are a little spicy. And being that my other heart breed is Bull Terriers – well, I needed a cat personality that would give them a run for their money!
But Newt also had two brothers and there was a boy in another litter, so I tried to keep an open mind. The benefit of waiting so long, I ended up being the first to pick.
Needless to say, I was a lost cause. He had me wrapped around his little paw the moment I met him.
Newt was worth the wait. He is a blue mink & white thermal – his color has really become a beautiful shade of blue. He turns 3 in April and he still has us wrapped around his little paw. My fiancé had never had a cat before – I think he would give up dogs and just have Sphynx! He is perhaps less sociable with strangers than many Sphynx, but still very sweet and affectionate.
We tried showing and did get his CHA, but he made it clear that he prefers to be a homebody. He loves plastic springs and brings them to us to throw for him… sometimes in the middle of the night. He’s fascinated with the outside and enjoys watching birds and squirrels through the window. Whenever his feet hit a soft blanket, he instantly starts purring. He never forgets a meal – butter and cheese are not safe! Every now and then, he enjoys taunting the dogs.
-Courtenay Morgan
Please follow Newt on instagram at www.instagram.com/naked.newt
