It was Malaysia Day in 2018 when sisters Mazura Illani (Illani) and Masliza Manshoor (Liza) found a female kitten outside their house. It was raining hard and they couldn’t bear to leave her out in the cold.
They ended up giving her a fur-ever home and named her Mel Flora. “Mel is short for ‘Malaysia’ because we found her on Malaysia Day,” 49-year-old Masliza, or Liza, told FMT.
And because she would “clean up everything on her plate”, they decided to add the word flora, after the waste management company, Alam Flora.
Then, on Christmas eve the following year, the sisters found a male kitten outside their house. He looked timid as he hid in a tree, and it didn’t take long for the sisters to adopt him too. They named him Reese Kal-El.
According to Illani, the colour of his coat reminded them of Reese’s peanut butter.
“Since he sleeps as though he is flying like Superman, we added ‘Kal-El’, which is Superman’s real name,” Liza added with a laugh.
Today, Mel and Reese, who are five and four years old respectively, are living purr-fectly happy lives with their doting humans.
Reese is a very affectionate cat who simply adores hugs. The feline is quite the charmer and knows how to “win his humans’ hearts” by ensuring that he gives them both enough time to cuddle him!
“We also call him ‘handsome boy’. Since visitors to our home are always complimenting him, he knows he is good looking,” Liza shared.
In fact, an owner of a pet store once offered to buy him because she was so taken by him!
As for Mel, she simply enjoys sleeping. “We can have an appointment in the morning, and she’ll still be in the same spot sleeping when we come back in the evening!” Illani, 52, shared affectionately.
In fact, the sisters were once so concerned that she was sleeping too much that they consulted a veterinarian, only to learn that it was perfectly normal for cats to sleep for hours.
Mel also adores going on car rides and jumps in as soon as she sees her human opening the car door.
Liza described her as a “queen” – and for good reason: the posh feline likes to eat on a stool!
And when it’s time for her meal, she knows how to get her humans’ attention. “She will jump on a stool and look at us, as though saying ‘feed me now’. If there is nobody there, she’ll wait, knowing that somebody will come into the kitchen,” Illani shared.
Both cats enjoy eating fresh boiled mackerel and dry food daily, although the former is their absolute favourite!
Although they don’t spend much time playing with each other, Reese knows how to search for his big sister if she wanders too far when she is outdoors.
And after he finds her, he does something sweet. “He makes sure that she goes in the door first,” Liza shared with a smile.
Unsurprisingly, both cats have a special place in their hearts. “They are very much part of our family and it’ll be very quiet without them,” Liza said.
“They bring such joy and laughter, and I don’t know what I’ll do without them,” Illani concluded.
This article was written by Sheela Vijayan @ FMT Lifestyle. Read more pet stories here.
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