Happy Tail: Oreo (formerly Checkers)
Meet Oreo, a cat that didn’t beat the odds so much as magically bend them towards his will to ensure a triumphant outcome.
Though the black-and-white boy’s former street life is a mystery, we do know that Oreo knows how to make an entrance. As foster Jenny tells it, one day in 2024 Oreo was scaling the roof of a house that was being renovated.
“He fell through a skylight into the house,” she says. “The family was stunned and didn’t know what to do. They tried to chase him out using a noisy vacuum. The poor guy was so scared. The family eventually got hold of a rescue, not sure which one, and he was assessed. Then ACR took him in and he landed with me.”
In Jenny’s experienced orbit — she has also fostered for Home at Last and Toronto Cat Rescue — Oreo, then named Checkers, quickly blossomed into a sweet, social boy. “He liked pets right from the beginning,” recalls Jenny, who had the cat for about two months before his adoption in autumn 2024 and whose own cat roster includes furballs Cooper and Brooklyn.
“After a while you could pick him up, cuddle him, he would sleep on the bed. Jumping everywhere.”
That made Jenny think Oreo might be a perfect fit for Emily and Andy — who she knew through the board game community — and their kids Abby, 14 and Evan, 12. There was just one problem: Emily’s mother Judy, who lives with the family, was notoriously cat averse.
As Emily explains, she was surrounded by pets growing up. “We had a dog, gerbils, hamsters, rabbits, guinea pigs. But my mom drew the line at having a cat because they are unrestricted in their vertical movements and can jump up on shelves.”
Still, once Abby and Evan had seen Jenny’s pictures and video of Checkers/Oreo at a casual gathering all happened to be attending, Judy was targeted for submission. “I was sure my mom would use all the excuses she had used with me for not getting a cat,” Emily says. “Instead, she said all these positive things to Evan. This reversal was just so strange, so I told the kids we’d sleep on it.
“The next day my mom was still very encouraging. The only condition was that she didn’t want the cat to go into her living space. No problem, we’ll keep the door closed. Now that Oreo is here, she lets him go downstairs where she lives. She gives him a daily snack. And she got him a stocking at Christmas,” Emily laughs, speculating that pressure from the grandkids was the deciding factor in Judy’s turnaround.
But there was one more hurdle before Oreo’s happy ending took shape. About six months after his adoption, the family discovered Evan was allergic to cats and suffered significant side effects. “The allergist told us to get rid of the cat and to medicate.
“But then I discovered [allergen management solution] Pacagen. We started using that spray and Evan hasn’t had to use his medication for months. It made all the difference,” Emily says, adding that she isn’t evangelizing for the product, just sharing her own experience. “It meant we didn’t have to say goodbye to a pet we love.”
These days Oreo is king of the household. “He goes on tables, countertops, everywhere. He’s very friendly and no longer scared of visitors which he was at first,” Emily confirms. “We love Oreo so much. We see him watching the snow falling and we say, ‘Oreo, you don’t have to be out there anymore. You’re inside with us!’”
-Kim Hughes
