Getting the whole kitten-caboodle: Eastern baseball players discover they are also connected through their feline pets

Eastern High School baseball players Clarke Horowitz, Spencer Perez and Davis Schneider discover that they have more than just baseball in common: they also adopted cat siblings

Joan Horowitz was sleeping when her neighbor, Ann Genovese, tapped on her window at midnight in April five years ago. Her neighbor had taken in a stray cat a few weeks ago, and it seemed like it was in distress: the cat was making strange noises in her closet.

Over the winter, Genovese noticed a skinny cat that kept coming to her door. She felt bad for it, so she started to feed it and tried to get her to come inside. Finally, the cat settled into her new home. She was skittish, but seemed happy until this night.

Horowitz came over and arrived to find the cat, now named “Mommy,” giving birth to six kittens. Genovese raised the kittens until they could be adopted. Horowitz and her son, Clarke, adopted a kitten — “Chester” — and the rest were given to friends in the area. They brought Mommy and Chester to the Animal Welfare Association to be fixed and to get their vaccinations.

The AWA is a private, nonprofit organization and the oldest and largest low-cost spay/neuter clinic, adoption center and no-kill animal shelter in South Jersey.

Clarke Horowitz is now a sophomore at Eastern Regional High School and is pitching for its baseball team. He’s made plenty of friends on the team, but he couldn’t have anticipated the connection he’d find with two of his senior teammates.

Over spring break this year the Eastern baseball team went to California for a tournament, Horowitz was rooming with Spencer Perez, a senior pitcher, when they discovered their cats were related.

Perez had adopted his cat after hearing a third teammate and longtime friend, Davis Schneider, had a brother who had just adopted a cat. Schneider helped Perez get in contact with Mommy’s owner, and Perez adopted his cat.

Even though the cats are siblings and look the same, their personalities couldn’t be any different.

Schneider’s cat, “Bagheera” or Kitty,” is not the most affectionate cat.

“He doesn’t really cuddle much,” Schneider said. “He will rub against your leg.”

Perez’s cat, however, is much friendlier.

“She’s chill. She loves to be pet. She loves to cuddle. She loves food,” Perez said. “Food is her favorite.”

The Horowitz’s cat, “Chester,” is somewhere in the middle.

“He’s playful but kind of shy. Kind of a mix,” Clarke said.

The boys have been happy to make this extra connection among the three of them, in addition to their shared love for baseball.

Next year, Schneider will be attending Rutgers to play baseball. Perez will be attending Rowan College at Gloucester County to play baseball. Clarke looks forward to two more years with the Eastern baseball team.