About Us

Hi there! We are so glad you’re here.

Welcome to our furry family at askmycats.com – we are a bunch of 5, with 3 furry babies, Simba, Oreo, and Snowball, their coolest cat dad Ricky, and me – Abigail, the crazy cat mom.

I’m sure you’re wondering why we’ve created a whole blog dedicated to our feline family. I mean, we’ve all heard of crazy cat parents, but how crazy does one have to be about cats to create a whole blog around them?

But yes, that’s exactly what we are – cat parents who are crazily in love with our little feline babies.

So, why don’t you grab a warm cup of green tea, snuggle with your furry babies, and read along to read our story?

I promise you it will be worth your time. Because like any cinematic story, our journey of going from an ordinary couple to parents of a couple of cats has its own grand flair.

There are exciting travels, some twists and turns, a heart-wrenching sad detour, and an inspiring recovery.

Where Did It All Begin?

Ricky and I “officially” live in North Carolina, USA. I say “officially” because that’s where our house is, but more often than not, you’ll find a board on the door that says “Gone Exploring!”. We spend a lot of time traveling with our 3 cats.

In fact, quite a bit of the articles you’ll find here were written from a cozy room in Milos, Greece.

When Did We Find Our Furry Babies?

While both Ricky and I have been animal lovers since the beginning, we honestly did not have any hard plans of adopting any pet anytime soon.

We had just been together for a year and were still figuring out our life as a couple.

But sometimes, some happy accidents happen – life presents itself in front of you, and the best thing you can do is to embrace it with open arms, despite the uncertainties and fears.

It was in 2017 when Ricky and I decided to spend my birthday month in New York City.

NYC, with its hustle and bustle, bright city lights, and crazy nightlife, was a very welcome change for us as we had spent a whole period of 6 long months cooped up in our houses doing nothing.

We were café hopping in NYC that day when on one of our stops, we found a small cardboard box with 4 little kittens in it. It was very chilly that day, and we didn’t have the heart to leave them unattended.

We asked at the nearby café if anyone has abandoned their pets, or will their mommy cat return any time soon?

But the owner said that those kittens were orphaned. Their mother had been in an accident, and nobody seemed to want to adopt or even foster these kittens.

So, Ricky asked if we could foster them – and I readily agreed. I mean, those kittens had barely opened their eyes – how could we leave such small beings alone on the road?

We fostered them for the rest of our stay in NYC and posted a lot of ads looking for someone to give them a permanent home. We even talked to vets and shelter homes – but we had no luck anywhere.

Eventually, when it was time for us to return to our home in North Carolina, we decided to take them with us and become their permanent family.

That’s how we became cat parents to our four babies – Simba, Oreo, Snowball, and Rodeo.

Then, in the April of 2018, on our 5^th anniversary, Ricky asked me to move in together! I was elated, and without a moment’s hesitation, I moved in with him. And so, Ricky, I, and our four babies came even closer as a family.

Together, we traveled a lot. I love hopping cafes, Ricky loves hiking, and our 4 babies loved being cuddled up to us no matter where, or in which part of the world, we were.

As long as we were sticking together, our cats had no problem traveling – which was a happy surprise to the two of us, as we had known cats to be introverted creatures who love staying indoors.

Wait a Minute … 4 Cats? The Introduction Mentioned 3!

I know, I know. This is where things get a little grim.

Back in the December of 2019, when we had just returned from a trip to Bali, we noticed something odd in Rodeo. He had lost his appetite, and he was suffering from acute diarrhea. Initially, we thought it must be some gastrointestinal problem.

So, we rushed him to the vet, got him checked, and immediately started the course of medication.

After 3 days, his condition seemed to have improved. We were relieved. But that relief was very short-lived, because the next day, Rodeo was down with severe fever.

No medicine seemed to be working. We even had him admitted to the hospital for about a week – but there was no improvement.

Ricky and I were very scared and very confused. We wanted answers. We wanted to know why our little baby was showing no improvement in health. We wanted to know why we were losing him day by day.

And then came the worst day of our lives as cat parents – Rodeo’s medical tests revealed that our little baby was suffering from Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV) disease, one of the deadliest diseases with no definitive cure.

Our hearts sank. Why was it happening to us, we’d ask each other night after night as we saw our baby suffer.

Here’s the thing about FeLV – in its initial stages, it shows almost no symptoms. It is typical for cats to show no indications of illness in the early stages of infection.

However, over time (weeks, months, or even years), an infected cat’s health may worsen or he/she may endure recurrent cycles of disease and relative health.

For more in-depth details about FeLV, check this out.

We tried as many therapies as we could. We did all we could to reduce the amount of FeLV in Rodeo’s bloodstream. But the recurring illnesses were draining him.

Our once-joyful ball of sunshine, who loved to jump around and steal his brothers’ food and climb on Ricky’s shoulders, had been reduced to an ill, fatigued body that had absolutely no energy, no appetite, and no joy. There was just pain in his eyes.

When, after months of trying, we couldn’t help improve Rodeo’s condition, we were faced with a very difficult decision: do we keep trying? Or do we put Rodeo out of his pain once and for all?

It was not an easy decision.

But we had seen Rodeo’s health worsen over the past couple of months. He was in pain, and all those injections were just adding to the pain, with no results in return. He was weakening by the day, and his eyes had lost the shine they once had.

I still remember his last celebration with us – our anniversary in the April of 2020. We stayed in with him; I cuddled him while Ricky played his favorite mouse and squirrel videos.

A few days later, we had to take the final call.

Just like that, our Rodeo was gone. There was some sense of peace knowing he was finally out of his pain. But his absence has left a void in our lives that cannot be filled.

Why AskMyCats?

After Rodeo, both Ricky and I had stopped traveling. We seemed to have lost interest in going anywhere other than Rodeo’s favorite room.

But one day, we saw Simba and Oreo play in the open kept suitcase that we’d carry during our travels.

It felt as if, through his brothers, Rodeo was telling us to stop mourning him, and instead start honoring his life by giving his brothers the life they deserved.

That day we decided that we’ll begin traveling again. And that day we decided that we will help other cat parents avoid the mistakes we made in our journey.

That’s how askmycats.com happened.

Today, Ricky and I travel the world with our 3 babies, and our Rodeo in our hearts. We spend our days exploring places and our nights coming up with helpful articles for both new and experienced cat parents.

Launched 2 E-Books

When I started askmycats.com, I never thought that I would ever write any book in my lifetime.

But that’s what is written in destiny and here are 2 e-books that I have launched.

What’s Our Mission?

Our mission is very simple – prevention is better than cure.

A lot of the health and lifestyle problems that our feline babies suffer from are actually largely preventable.

So, by spreading knowledge from our experience and research, we want to reach as many cat parents as we can, to help them avoid the avoidable mistakes and prevent the preventable problems.

What’s Our Vision?

Our vision is to not let any cat face what Rodeo did, and not let any cat parent be in the position we were in. It erodes you a little from within when you have to stand there at the clinic, and make a decision to put your cat to sleep.

It erodes you a little when you stand there holding your baby’s face gently in your arms, as he slips into a permanent deep slumber.

We have been there. We have felt that pain. And we wouldn’t wish it upon anyone else.

Our vision is one where we see cat parents being diligent, alert, and caring. We visualize cat parents enjoying long years of good health and happiness with their feline babies. We visualize a happy, complete family with a healthy furry baby.

We’re so happy you’re here. We’re so happy that we get to be a part of your journey with your cats. Stay tuned with us as we bring more fun, informative articles that help you be there for your cats in a better, more comprehensive way.

Pawsome Team Of Writers

Our team is made up of writers who have a strong understanding of cat behavior, nutrition, health, and more.

We are dedicated to providing our readers with informative and engaging content that will help them better understand and care for their cats.

Want to check more details about our purrfect team? Check it out!

Veterinary Expert Panel

We know that finding trustworthy veterinary advice online can be difficult—the internet is full of misinformation or personal opinion masquerading as fact.

To make caring for your cat easier, we launched The AskMyCats Expert Panel, comprised of top board-certified vet professionals.

Our goal is to provide you with well-researched, fact-checked information so you can keep your pet happy and healthy.

Want to check more details about our expert panel? Check it out!

Our Expert Panel

Editorial Guidelines

At AskMyCats, we take great pride in the quality of our content. We create original, accurate, engaging content that is free of ethical concerns or conflicts.

If you ever come across an article that you think needs to be improved, please reach out by emailing [email protected].

To learn more, please see our full Editorial Policy and Standards page.

Contact Us

Thanks for dropping by! Whether you have a comment or suggestion to share, we look forward to hearing from you.

We are always looking for passionate cat lovers to join our team and share their knowledge and experiences with our readers. If you are interested in becoming a part of the AskMyCats team, please visit our “We are Hiring” page for more information.

For more general feedback, you can submit your feedback here or feel free to reach out by emailing [email protected] as well.

Important Disclaimer

Please note that all the content I put out here on my blog is a result of my personal experiences and in-depth research. Ricky and I are just a couple of cat parents sharing knowledge from the experiences we have faced, and through what we have learned over years with our furry babies. We are NOT vets, and while we do our best to provide articles only after very thorough research, our blog is NOT a substitute for veterinary advice. Always be in regular touch with your vet and consult them before making any changes in the diet or lifestyle of your pets. Your vet knows the exact medical history of your pets and will be able to provide accurate and customized guidance suitable to your cat’s needs.