My parents owned a house next to a rental property that had people in and out of there yearly, we never knew who our neighbors were. My little brother and I (4 and 3 yrs old at the time) would eat our lunches outside in the backyard. This little black and white tuxedo cat that looked like a kitten with his whiskers cut short and had no meat on his bones kept coming over to our backyard and steal the Doritos chips off of our plates. Instead of going for anything else or any meat on the plate he always took the Doritos. This happened a few times to the point and my mom knew the cat was the neighbors and went next door to see what’s going on, and found the house with no furniture inside and a litter box full of dirt on the front porch. Oreo was left behind. We already had a kitten (Elmo) at this time so my mom took Oreo in under one condition, he has to get along with Elmo and he did. Oreo absolutely hated all other animals, it’s like he knew he only had to get along with Elmo to stay. Oreo adopted us.

A veterinarian estimated his age to be 4 yrs old in June of 2006. The cats ended up being outdoors in the backyard only, they never left the fenced area. Oreo lived in Utah, California, and Washington with us. Due to being a senior when we moved to Washington, Oreo retired into an indoor cat once again living the best retirement any cat could ever get. But with conditions of getting along with other animals. Oreo tried his best but there were times that he would box our dog Nala if she got too excited. Oreo out lived Elmo, Nala and other pocket pets. The last six years of his life Oreo was diagnosed and treated with Kidney Disease, hyperthyroidism, and arthritis but acted and played like a young cat. He was food obsessed, he woke everyone up at 3 or 4 am with his howling to be fed, got a piece of turkey lunch meat anytime the fridge was opened, and of course would get anything he wanted especially his Doritos. Oreo also known as the bathroom butler, his bed, litter boxes, and food were all in the bathroom so he spent most of his time in there. He always welcomed you with this chirp sound he made anytime he sees you, liked to sit under the shower curtain while you shower and talk to you, climbed in your lap while your using the toilet to pet him. He always had to butt his head as hard as he can when he rubbed against you. He sounded like an old man who smoked with his raspy voice. He could hear the fridge open from a different floor level and always met you in the kitchen screaming and pawing at your leg if you were not paying attention or feeding him enough. Oreo loved to sit in dark areas and stalk you. He also would “escape”(couldn’t run and wasn’t fast or sly, but he thought he was) out the front door when it was left open and walk around the perimeter of the house and eat the dead plants and roll in the dirt when the sun is out. Oreo wasn’t allowed in my parents bedroom so his goal every day was to sneak in under their bed. He wasn’t allowed on the couches so he would come up to you and ask for attention and slowly make his way onto your lap acting like it’s to be cuddled so he can sit on the couch.

Oreo is bomb proof, you could do anything with that cat. I became an LVT and worked in a vet clinic, everyone knows and loves Oreo, he would always talk to the staff. Oreo would let me draw his blood and give his injections by myself. Oreo started to develop cataracts, kitty dementia, and multiple cysts forming. In 2026 he developed a mass on his face that was causing to narrow one side of his nasals. This caused his quality of life to decrease. Oreo had made it clear for the last ten years that he is immortal and will outlive all of us no matter his situation. He adopted many nicknames being dust bones, ancient, dinosaur, legend, and OG. I had to make the hardest decision to let him feel at peace on 2/26/2026. Near short of 20 years of Oreo in my life with his estimate age of 24 years old. He basically with me my entire life. Oreo is definitely my soul animal.