Everyone thinks he is a wild animal

So my friends came over yesterday to finally meet Simba. I've been talking about him for weeks now, probably annoying everyone honestly, and they wanted to see what all the fuss was about. The moment they walked in and saw him stretched out on the couch, I could see their faces change completely. One of them actually stopped in the doorway like he was about to back out of my apartment entirely.

'Is that... is that a wild cat?' Sarah asked, her voice going all high pitched. And I get it, I really do. He looks like a tiny tiger. The stripes are so defined, almost painted on looking. He's got that muscular build and those intense golden eyes that seem to follow you around the room. People always have this reaction when they first see him. But come on, he was literally sprawled out on my couch cushion looking like a fuzzy striped potato. Not exactly predator behavior.

Before I could even start explaining what a toyger actually is, Jake goes 'does he bite though?' And I'm standing there trying not to laugh because this cat has never so much as scratched anyone in the few weeks I've had him. He's literally the friendliest, most social animal I've ever owned in my life. But I guess the stripes are intimidating or whatever. Can't really blame them for being careful I suppose.

Anyway Simba decided to prove everyone wrong immediately. Like he could sense people were scared of him and took it as a personal challenge. He hopped off the couch real casual, stretched his little legs, and walked right up to Sarah who was still looking nervous by the door. And then he just started purring. Like full on motor running, you could hear it from across the room. Then he did that thing cats do where he rubbed his whole body against her legs, weaving between her ankles. She melted instantly. 'Oh my god he's so soft' she kept saying while reaching down to pet him.

I spent probably twenty minutes after that explaining what toygers are. They're just domestic cats, no wild blood at all, bred specifically to look like tigers. Its all selective breeding for the stripes and the body shape. Totally legal, no exotic animal permit needed, just a regular house cat who happens to look like he escaped from a nature documentary. Jake was still being skeptical until Simba flopped over onto his back right there on the carpet and started demanding belly rubs. Its hard to be scared of something that's wiggling around with his paws in the air making little chirpy noises.

By the end of the visit everyone was fighting over who got to hold him. Sarah even asked where she could get one and how much they cost. I warned her about the energy levels but I don't think she was really listening, she was too busy taking pictures of him. She'll find out eventually I guess if she actually gets one. But yeah it was really nice to see people's opinions change so fast once they actually interacted with him. He's not some scary jungle beast ready to attack, he's just a cat with really good stripes. A very loud, very demanding, extremely cuddly cat who happens to look exotic. With stripes. Very prominent stripes.