So two and a half years later...my roommate, the cat lover, skips out on her cats. But who could leave these babies so easily?

Even when I struggled for a year after she left, hardly ever seeing them, wishing I was taking better care of them, I could never give them up because I knew one day it would get better.
And a year later it did get better. I met someone who not only was NOT allergic to cats but also fell in love with them. He, like me, had never been a cat person but even more than that he thought he had no interest in cats. Hector and Rico won him over with their personalities: Independent, yet affectionate; Weird and so cute. He soon moved in and took the role of step-daddy. With two parents again and also the ability to be home more often, we started to notice something. We began to really question, "were Hector and Rico right for each other?"

I had been told in the past to maybe just give up one cat to lighten the burden, but not only could I not do it because I loved them both equally, I also was afraid of how they would handle being separated. But Rico was fat and Hector was too skinny. Rico kept eating until he threw up, and Hector wouldn't eat at all. They fought constantly, but I assumed that was just brotherly love. I should have seen the signs, but I was never home.

About a month ago I started taking care of my grandmother. She told me I could bring the cats whenever I wanted to, so one day I took her up on the offer to leave the cats with her while going away for the weekend. She became very attached, and asked to keep one. Since I would be taking care of her I could still see him everyday, and maybe a separation was just what they needed.

We decided to give it a try. Hector stayed with grandma (his great-grandma), and Rico came home with us...

...The change in both of them was amazing. Hector began to eat to his heart's content and even started to gain some weight. Rico calmed down a ton now that he was the center of attention again with no one to compete for affection with. He also began to eat a lot less and lose weight. I realized finally that he wasn't eating until he puked because he didn't know when to stop. He was really eating his bowl and Hector's bowl so that Hector wouldn't eat. He was being a bully and trying to show Hector his place. Hector also came out of his shell a lot at grandma's house. Though he is still a sweetheart, he listens, is quiet, and respectful, he has taken charge of his new home and taken on more attributes of an Alpha cat without Rico around. All this time I thought they would miss each other and be lost without each other, and they just thrived alone. Who knew these cats would do better without a companion, especially Rico with his jealous nature.

Have you ever known a jealous cat???