Longtime dog boarder is convinced cats are a mystery, until a bold 5-month-old kitten chooses him and starts a new life of adventures together: 'After only one week, [he] has made himself right at home'

Blake Seidel • Managing Editor & Brand Manager

Aug 14, 2026 4:45 PM EDT

From shelter hold to harness training, Lionel Richie is owning his new adventurous life in the Pacific Northwest like the champion we always knew he was.

I can relate to this new pawrent for a couple of reasons: Before making my transition into being a cat purrson, I was a dog guy. In my house growing up, we had a plethora of dogs rotating through at all times. Rescues would come in and out as they found furrever homes, and we always had at least one or two dogs of our own to keep the pack stable and manageable. I always thought I would emulate the life my parents raised me in: one full of wagging tails and slobbery tongues.

But then, I met my first cat. She was a tiny kitten, so helpless and smol, and I took her in, and never looked back. She convinced me that cats were really the pets I wanted all along. She walked with me in a harness outside, slept next to me at night, and the best part was that it all came so naturally. I didn't really have to train her, she just went along with whatever I was doing because she wanted to do everything with me.

Some cats are just like that, and Lionel Richie is one of those cats. Our new pawrent was a professional dog boarder for 10 years. He went to the shelter one day to adopt a senior doggo, but Lionel Richie, a 5-month-old black tabby kitten, stole his attention (and his heart). He convinced his future pawrent to adopt him, and their story sounds a lot like ours did. Lionel Richie goes on harnessed walks, attacks his toes at night, and is showing him that cats aren't so meowsterious after all.

Are they different than dogs? Absolutely. But are they inferior to dogs? Absolutely not. It all depends on where you are in life and what you want. A good cat will give you the best parts of a dog without most of the downsides of dog ownership, and with just as much, if not more, love, straight from one soul to another.

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I've been boarding dogs for 10 years... finally went to adopt a dog myself, and ended up with this guy

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Friend, we have something to tell you - your cat is more than “kinda unique” - Lionel Richie is what we call a “ghost tabby”, which is uncommon among cats. The real test will be if he carries these markings into adulthood, where they are more likely to fade away (except when basking in the sun, which allows our hooman eyes to see more differences in the shades of black and grey).
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These pictures of him snoozing with his head rested against the pillow are simply too cute. He looks like a little man who fell asleep while watching TV. Awwdorable!
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