She is the first on this page because she was our first, when we were two 21-year-old students living in a basement suite, and she is the beginning of Feline Future. Freya was the spark that lit the fire. Her long-lasting impact makes her a legacy cat.

We don’t know how old she was when she entered our lives in the most memorable way one winter day in 1994. She wasn’t old and had already been spayed, but she wasn’t a kitten either. As we passed one of those Victorian-era homes in the Kitsilano neighbourhood during a walk to admire the Christmas lights, she bolted towards us from a front porch and followed us. We were concerned that she would get lost and tried to shoo her back home. To no avail. She followed us all the way to our basement suite, slipped through the door, and slept under the covers with us that night. She was home. Ads in the Lost & Found newspaper column failed to find her owner.

Freya’s spark created a raging blaze. Things grew exponentially from there. Within the following five years, Feline Future cared for a study group of 19 cats, which Freya had difficulty adjusting to. We parted with her, believing a new home would be best for her, but she wanted to be with us. She was rehomed again, and we do not know what became of her.

Today I know that a good home doesn’t need to be a perfect home, and that solutions can arrive when given time. I wish I could write this chapter recounting how she lived to 20 with us on beautiful Salt Spring Island.

Undoubtedly Feline Future’s most memorable cat, Charlie has graced the flagship premix, TCfeline Original, with this iconic image since 2017. Before that, he often appeared as the feature image on the TCfeline homepage or online store.

Born on August 14, 2005, he was the first cat I acquired from a breeder. I had always been partial to Siamese cats, and this one time I wanted to choose the cat rather than have the cat choose us. He arrived at 7 weeks old, and his larger-than-life presence soon dominated everyday life, as it would for 20 years.

Charlie had an outgoing, indomitable personality and was an exceptionally beautiful and impressive cat. He derived his name from “Charlie the Lonesome Cougar”, a role he naturally filled. He loved perching on human shoulders, something the breeder had noted in his ad, and one of the last things Charlie did in life.

Colourful, cheery, life-loving Katja joined us at the last minute. We were days away from moving when she found herself a lost kitten in our Kitsilano neighbourhood. She caused quite the stir because she was as cute as a button. We gave her temporary shelter while the whole neighbourhood tried to locate her owner. That owner was never found, and on moving day, Katja came along with us.

She became mother to two litters of kittens born at Feline Future, providing our first opportunity to observe the raw meat cat food formula through normal gestation and lactation. Eight kittens were born to her and Chetak and came to be known as the Feline Future Kittens. They were beautiful, healthy cats who remained in the study group until the end of their lives at around 18 years of age.

Katja lost her life on Salt Spring Island after we relocated Feline Future to Three Gables Farm. For a while, there was a plan to retire the study group and allow the cats free access to the outdoors on the farm. One afternoon, on her way home, Katja was struck by a vehicle and could not survive her injuries.

None of the study group members ever regained unrestricted access to the outdoors after that day. Feline Future constructed its large outdoor enclosure using Purrfect Fence and named the new structure “Katja’s Garden”. Her death left Feline Future with a strong conviction that unrestricted access to the outdoors is not in the best interest of domestic cats, their caregivers, or wildlife.

In February 2025, Feline Future began searching for two purebred cats of known origin for a new phase of the study, observing gestation, birth and growth of another generation of Feline Future kittens. A Traditional Siamese male kitten and an Oriental Shorthair female kitten were chosen, in part for their respective breeds’ ability to live sociably with other cats. Two different breeds were selected deliberately to increase genetic diversity rather than reproduce within a single breed.

A year later, their kittens delivered a complete surprise. Three developed unusual charcoal-like tabby colouring, with the only male kitten, Cairo, being especially striking. His dark face, pale silver-grey body and strongly contrasting markings were unlike anything I had encountered before.

None of this has any bearing on health outcomes or the nutritional observations these kittens will be part of. But the unexpected appearance of such an unusual cat is thrilling to a lifelong cat enthusiast, a gift to a photographer, and has made Cairo a natural poster boy and ambassador for Feline Future.

There is one more coincidence that makes Cairo especially memorable to me. He was born on February 03, 2026, exactly one year after Charlie’s death. Charlie had been Feline Future’s ambassador for much of his 20-year life. Cairo arrived at the beginning of a new generation and, almost as if by design, seems ready to pick up Charlie’s torch.