Introducing the Wednesday Cats of Catster: Ivy, Milly & Raphael

Hey there, Catsters! Today, we're introducing the new Wednesday Cats of Catster, a rotating series featuring three amazing cat-and-owner pairs. Scroll down to read more about Crystal & Ivy, Isabel & Milly, and Wes & Raphael. And stay tuned next Wednesday for more of their fun adventures!

Crystal & Ivy

Hi Catsters, I’m Crystal. I work in the marketing department for Catster. You may have seen some of my posts on our social media and listened to some of my tales on our YouTube channel.

I’ve always considered myself to be a dog person. However, there is no longer any doubt that I am, in fact, a cat person!

Adopting my first cat opened my eyes in so many ways and taught me the true meaning of having a soul connection with an animal.

I can‘t imagine my life without my kitty, Ivy, and her daily antics. It’s been a rough ride, but a beautiful one, and she has enriched my life in so many ways.

As every cat parent knows, cat ownership doesn’t come without its own set of unique hurdles and challenges…

I’ll be sharing some more of my life with Ivy - the good, the bad, and the ugly - on Catster.com in the weeks to come!

Isabel & Milly the Tabby Cat

Hey Catsters, Isabel here, you might recognize me from the Catster YouTube channel! I’m the marketing director here at Catster.com and I look forward to writing some fun and interesting cat-human interest stories every month!

I will be sharing some of my experiences as a lifelong cat lover and owner and what it’s like to be the cat mom of a sassy little tabby cat called Milly, who you also may have seen on the YouTube channel. Milly is the apple of my eye, the source of my happiness, and even though she can make me very mad sometimes, I love her with all my heart.

She’s a 6-year-old white/tabby cat that I rescued as a 4-week-old, unwanted kitten in a very small town where I studied. She was born in a bar of all places! We became best friends the moment we met, even though it took a while for her to trust me because she was feral, she knew I was there to save her.

Since then, we’ve had some wild adventures together. We moved from Johannesburg to Cape Town, she flew in a plane, lived on a golf course, became a YouTube star, and even got her own designer jacket (which she refuses to wear). I look forward to sharing our beautiful little life with all you Catsters!

You can read more about how I met and rescued Milly in my full introduction post coming soon!

Wes & Raphael the Russian Blue

What do you call a cat-obsessive who spends all day working on solutions for cats of the world, and all evening cuddling with a cat of his own? Well, a Catster of course!

Howdy reader, my name’s Wes. By day, I’m Director of Hepper (Catster’s sister ecommerce brand). By night (and sometimes by lunch), I am the loving protector of a fierce monster called Raphael the Russian Blue. Ok, fair enough…he’s really MY protector, and truly, the only monster he’d count as is one of the ‘cuddle’ variety.

At this early stage, there are two things you need to know about Raphael. First, he is without a doubt, the hungriest cat you’ve ever encountered. There are rumours (as yet unconfirmed) that he entered an eating contest in the summer of ‘23, and bankrupted the company that put it on. When asked for comment on the scandal, he was reported to have responded “meow”.

The second thing to know about Raphael is that the only thing he loves as much as a hearty meal is a fulsome cuddle. Raphael will get on board the snuggle train when we’re on the sofa, in bed, working at the desk. In fact, dear reader, I hope it won’t concern you too much to know that toilet time is often intercepted with a cuddle break if the door is left open. All cats have different personalities, of course, but it doesn’t stop me from telling myself during every cuddle that it means I can’t be doing THAT badly at looking after him.

I always think the most interesting part of pet ownership is that it is both intensely communal and utterly individual. We all have exactly the same experiences and totally different ones. If you’d like to share your journey with Raphael and me, to laugh at his shenanigans, and smile at how he reminds you of your own loved ones, read and comment along. We’ll be waiting for you!