Tracy Auerbach

Considering substitute teacher Tracy Auerbach’s cheery personality and caring nature, it’s not a surpise that she owns many pets. All are cats, besides a few raccoons and opossums that come to visit, most of the animals live outside. She does, however, own three inside cats: Muffy, Pongo, and Yoda. 

Muffy and Pongo, sister and brother cats, were adopted around two years ago from a relative of Auerbach’s. Muffy, an extremely hairy cat with an “obsession” with biting, received her name as a result of her fluffy nature. “Fluffy Muffy,” is how Auerbach refers to her. 

Pongo was also named for his appearance, as his white coat and black spots reminded his owner of his counterpart from the Disney classic “101 Dalmatians.” 

Yoda, a younger cat with a past hobby of climbing curtains, was named as a kitten. Her ears look like Yoda’s from “Star Wars.”

Though very fond of her cats, Auerbach didn’t hesitate to mention the animals’ strange and sometimes even naughty behavior. “Muffy likes chewing on my robe. She’ll grab hold of it and won’t let go. [It’s] her pacifer,” Auerbach said. Muffy also has a fascination with drinking out of faucets, a peculiar hobby, but not destructive like Pongo’s habit of chewing up toilet paper.

All in all, Auerbach loves her cats, even calling them her “babies.” However, she has the occasional desire to adopt a dog. All the same, she doesn’t feel the amount of semi trucks that drive by her home is safe for a dog. If a stray dog just happens to show up at her house, “I’d probably keep it,” Auerbach said.