If your cat is a total couch potato, you’re going to look upon them with dismay as they lounge on the sofa after reading about Bodhi.
Bodhi is known as an adventure cat, for good reason. The 14-month-old Maine Coon absolutely loves venturing outside the house, joining his owner for everything from a three-day biking tour through the Canadian Rockies to a paddleboarding trip (he wore his own life jacket, don’t worry).
Owner Michelle Gagnon, 50, has been teaching Bodhi all sorts of adrenaline-packed pursuits for the last ten months.
Michelle, a retired hiking guide, of Canmore, Canada, said: ‘An adventure cat is a term I made up 18 years ago when I got my old cat Bugaboo.
‘An adventure cat comes along with you on adventures whether that means he’s sitting in a bike basket or walking alongside you or sitting on your shoulders.’
Training a kitty to become an adventure cat takes time, effort, and patience.
Thankfully Bodhi is a bit of a natural, but he still required some help from Michelle.
She said: ‘Cats have this real desire to keep themselves safe and they have a very high instinctual survival mode.
‘They have to be in control of everything and training a cat is about getting them used to everything outside, like wide open spaces and walking on sidewalks.
‘I’m putting in lots of hours in training and getting Bodhi to walk as much as possible.
‘He is now way better with wide open spaces and walking on a trail and understanding that wildlife moves around him.’
Michelle got Bodhi in December last year and immediately began taking him cross-country skiing.
He walked behind her in the snow then curled up on Michelle’s shoulders as she skied down.
Michelle’s shoulders are a ‘safe spot’ for Bodhi, so he knows he can always climb up there if he gets tired on a hike.
He’s keen to try anything new and thrives on adventure.
‘He has done stand up paddleboarding,’ says Michelle. ‘He wears a little life jacket when he’s on his paddleboard.
‘He has gone a couple of big bike tours and we have biked some of the most scenic roads of the Canadian Rockies.
‘One was two-days long and the other was three-days long. I made him a special basket for the front of my bike. We did 100km a day.’
Their joint adventures mean Bodhi and Michelle have a special bond.
‘Bugaboo was definitely my baby and when he died last November, I felt like I had lost a child,’ she says. ‘Now Bodhi is like my next child.
‘I want him to have positive experiences on all of our adventures and build his confidence. You have to make it interesting for them.
‘I try not to use treats as then they just want more treats. I try to use a lot of positive encouragement.’
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