Valerie and Wendy Woofie, Elliot, Gracie Mae, Gerald, Tweedy, and Roger are the names of the Mattingly family’s six cats. They have such a deep love for their small family, and for some time now, they have had a burning desire to provide their cherished kitties with a human sibling of their own. They had multiple unsuccessful IVF efforts over the course of two hard years, and throughout the whole process, their kitties were right there by their sides.
Valerie Mattingly told The Dodo that her cats would climb on her back as her wife gave her IVF injections. “The cats would climb on my back while my wife gave me my IVF shots,” “Every once in a while, they would give the alcohol wipes a whiff while pulling a goofy face. They were a wonderful source of encouragement for us during this difficult time.”
When the happy couple found out for sure that they were going to be parents, they immediately realized that they couldn’t keep their cats out of the pregnancy announcement. Their furry children had been participating in the process up to that moment in such a significant way. Why should we stop now?
Everyone was surprised and overjoyed when the couple revealed the news that they were expecting a child. This was true not just because of the impending birth of the child, but also of the cats. The photograph of the announcement, in which all six cats are seen placing a paw on their mother’s pregnant tummy, has left everyone wondering how the pair was able to pull off the snap.
Mattingly noted that an unexpectedly high number of individuals had inquired about the process by which they may replicate it. They believed that there were six persons on the side holding cats, therefore they requested that we take shots from a farther distance.
So, how exactly did they manage to pull it off? A little of originality and a mountain of perseverance are required.
“We set our camera on a tripod and took a timed photo of just my belly and our hands,” Mattingly said. “The only other subjects in the photo were our hands.” “At that point, I removed the dress I was wearing, placed it on a pillow, and, while my wife took pictures, I held each cat’s paw out against the pillow,” she said. “Then I took the dress off.” After that, my wife put the pictures together in Photoshop. Let’s just say that there are around one hundred images of cat paws now stored on my camera.
The cats were nevertheless very much engaged in each and every phase of the process, despite the fact that the shot was not the product of one single, very chaotic photo session.
“When we were taking photos of my belly, all six of them were right beside us,” Mattingly said. “We couldn’t have asked for a better backdrop.” They were attempting to knock the camera over by climbing on the window ledge where it was placed. They are highly attached to you! They showed a bit less enthusiasm when it was their time, but they were still eager to participate. The girls were the most themselves while they were being photographed. Two of our orange males seemed to be perplexed, while the third orange boy did not appear very enthusiastic. If you look very carefully, you will be able to see his furious thumb paw clenching the cloth.
Because Wendy Mattingly is a graphic designer, putting the finishing touches on the product was not an overly challenging task. However, even the specialists acknowledge that she performed an especially wonderful job in this regard. The Photoshop component of it all most certainly succeeded in fooling everyone.
The fact that the couple will soon be able to fulfill their lifelong ambition of becoming parents has brought them indescribable joy, and they can’t wait to present their first human kid to their other six children who are animals.