Phred

Phred is a calico and, yes, a girl. I've never had a calico before, so I looked online for information about this color pattern that virtually always belongs to female cats. I found a page on the genetics of tri-color cats very interesting.

two cats curled up

March 26, 2004: Phred is now 6 1/2 and has become the sweetest, most affectionate cat I have ever lived with. She was such a terror for so long, we never expected this change in personality. She is now best friends with Chester, who seems to be the cat she was looking for all her life - someone to play with and curl up with every day.

Cat on deck

Phred is the only one of our cats who is allowed outside. She has supervised walks in the yard, just wandering around with us as we do yard work or sit on the deck. She gets this privilege because she and Pixel were both allowed to roam freely in and out whenever they liked, before Pixel was killed by a predator. Since then, we've decided that it's not worth the risk to allow our cats outside on their own, but we couldn't make ourselves keep Phred inside completely. If nothing else, she whines incessantly when not allowed out soon enough for her tastes.