THE STORY OF PEPE THE RAGDOLL 

By Claudia

(Treviso, Italy)  lucky enough to share my life with two cats: Mia, a regal and incredibly intelligent Maine Coon, and Pepe, a 9 kg Ragdoll—sweet, goofy, and a bit less sharp. While Mia absolutely hates leaving the house, Pepe is more adventurous and has been used to a harness and leash since he was little. Because of his size, I had to buy a dog harness for him—camouflage, no less—which gives him a tough look… like a pit bull disguised as a fluffy cloud.

Another of Pepe’s defining traits is his innate laziness, which comes with dramatic huffs and sighs of annoyance no matter what he’s doing—from climbing onto the couch to walking over to check his food bowl (which he does several times a day). Naturally, he’s lazy outside the house too. After a short stroll, he’ll flop down on the ground, drawing the attention of passersby with his antics and meows. Since it’s not exactly practical to carry 9 kilos of limp cat in my arms, we went with the bicycle option—a nice wicker basket for long rides through the countryside.

In the summer, the whole human & feline family moves to the seaside, where Pepe discovered the beach—or worse, sand—and it was hate at first sight. I think the feeling of grains between his ultra-furry paw pads is pure torture for him. Still, we made an attempt, and there’s photographic evidence: a couple of shots where his expression leaves no room for doubt. Let no one say animals can’t make themselves understood! Since then, no more beach outings—unless he’s under the umbrella, lying on a towel and sunbed like a true vacationer.