For those of us who choose to raise pets in Beijing, our animal friends are a truly important part of our lives. They bring us fun and joy, but they also mean we have to walk them, pick up their poop and lint-roll our clothes and furniture. We found six Beijing pet owners to tell us about how they found their furry (or feathered) friends, and why all the extra responsibility is worth it.

My Cats: Ivy Leung on Sheila and Brett

"I saw Sheila, this tiny, skinny kitten the size of a mouse on a Friday night in Sanlitun. I wanted to take her back right then and there, but I wondered how my husband Tom would react to me bringing home a stray cat in the middle of the night! He would've freaked out! I said to Tom, “We have to go back and see if this cat's still there.”

And sure enough, she was. It was a hot July day, and she was close to dying. She had fleas, fungus in her ears, a broken leg and glue all over her fur. When we took her home, she was just so happy to get any food or water. We fixed her up at the vets, but she still had a lot of problems—like ear infections and digestive problems. Now she's all okay. One of her legs is larger than the other, but she moves fast and jumps so high. Sheila's a princess, despite where she comes from—she always has to have her own way!

At the ICVS Pet Christmas party, we met a lady with over 20 cats. One of her cats looked exactly like Sheila, so we wanted to help her out, if we could. I got in touch with her, but she said, “Why don't you help my other friend who's got 50 cats?” We picked up our other cat, Brett, on Christmas Eve. He was lovely and very tame. You hold him, and he just purrs—the exact opposite of Sheila. She'll come to you if she wants to, but when she's had enough, she'll run off.

Brett found it hard to adjust, and he hid behind the toilet bowl for two days. Sheila didn't like him of course—we were introducing Brett into her territory! Then, Sheila got into heat—but Brett's had his operation! So he couldn't really do anything, but Sheila just kept howling. We got her operation a week later. They get along well now, like an old married couple."

Commitment factor: 4/5

Why it's worth it: “Sheila's a sassy cat. She made it, from being close to death to becoming normal … well, semi-normal. Brett is so consistent and great as he is.”

My Chipmunk: Ma Xiaoxia on Nuts

"Once I went with my husband to the Dongjiao Market, and we saw squirrels and chipmunks being sold. I thought the way they were eating things was very cute, and people say that it’s easy to raise chipmunks, so we took one home. We named him “Nuts,” because we hope he can be as sturdy as a nut and live to a ripe old age, even though Siberian chipmunks generally only live for five or six years. He can eat a lot—in addition to whole grains, fruit and vegetables, we also give him bread and worms for a change of flavor. It doesn’t require too much energy to tend to the chipmunk. All I need to do is provide enough space, a safe home, exercise equipment, food and water. I hope he does not get sick—it would upset me, and also most pet hospitals have little or no experience with chipmunks. The only thing I don’t like about Nuts is that there’s no way to get close to him. Once my husband tried to hold Nuts, and he was bitten twice. We can only look, not touch."

Commitment factor: 2/5

Why it's worth it: "The thing I like the most is the way Nuts uses his two hands to eat things, how his movements are focused, and his cleverness."

My Birds: Mr. Gu on his birds

"I’ve been raising birds for 50 years, and I come to Ritan Park every morning at 8am to give them fresh air. This morning I’ve brought three of my birds to the park. These are Siberian rubythroats, and I also have bluethroats. They’re related to nightingales. For food, I give them fish and cucumbers. I enjoy raising birds, but I don’t hatch them myself—I buy them when they’re young. They enjoy being out in the park because they need friends to talk to, but they go their whole lives without having a girlfriend. If they have a girlfriend, then they don’t sing anymore."

Commitment factor: 2/5

Why it's worth it: "I stay in the park for an hour or so every morning and have a chat with my other friends who raise birds. It puts me in a friendly mood for the day."

My Cats: Candice Yu on Whoopie and Wesley

photo by Greg Boyd

"I was feeling cat-deprived in Beijing. My friend's co-worker's aunt's cat had five kittens. Four of them looked just like Wesley—little tiger cats. It was the Year of the Tiger, so those were popular cats. Nobody wanted Whoopie, but we wanted to take her. We weren’t planning to take Wesley, but the co-worker came out with a bag and out popped Whoopie's head … then out popped Wesley's head. “Aren't they cute together? Would you mind taking both ... they're good together,” she asked us. We realized it was better having two cats—they keep each other company. We can't imagine not having Wesley now. Whoopie's cute; Wesley has personality. Whoopie's dainty; Wesley likes roughhousing. Whoopie loves water—she'll hear the water running and jump in the shower with you. Together, they like wrestling around the house, cage-fighting! Some cats you have to touch in a certain way or they won't like it, but with these cats, you can do whatever. They're so well adjusted."

photo by Greg Boyd

Commitment factor: 4/5

Why it's worth it: “When we've had a bad day, we just think: Ah, there are still kittens in this world!”

My Dog: Hong Nyugen on Lini

"We found our dog Lini at an outdoor market. When we first took her home, she was very playful and liked to run around in figure eights—frapping it's called (we looked it up!). She's almost 3 now and a bit milder, but when she's crazy, she's crazy! I never had a dog before, so I had no clue what I was doing. Lini was naughty—she'd pee on the couch. It was so annoying! She doesn't bark, and is a good guard dog in terms of alertness, but she is afraid of people. She'll come and bark at you then run away. We potty trained her [in a litter box] and it's much better for us than taking her out. She's rough when she plays. It's a little scary for some people. She'll play with my mother's Rottweiler, and they think the rott is trying to eat her. It doesn't look like they're playing. Lini likes to have us home. My husband and I work six days a week, but we feel bad because we don't want to leave her alone. So Sundays we have dinner together and go play in the park. Hopefully, when we move out of the city, near the mountains, she'll be able to run around and explore more."

Commitment factor: 5/5

Why it's worth it: “I love to play with her. Although sometimes she won't play and will just go flop on the couch! But she'll always want us there.”

My Rabbits: Catherine Sampson on Lily and Domino

"We thought we had two female rabbits who were just very good friends. Lily started acting strangely, digging a deep hole and making a nest. She covered up the nest and we thought nothing more of it. Four weeks later, eight rabbits suddenly appeared! We knew then it was Domino and we took him to the vet to be neutered. We got to see the baby rabbits in their cute phase—not the hairless pink version, and we let them run around the enclosure. But tragedy struck. We don't really know what happened—maybe a stray cat or a weasel—but all the babies vanished. What we didn't realize (because she kept them underground) was that Domino made Lily pregnant all over again.

Rabbits are social animals—if you have the space, get two and they'll be much happier. Once we got two, they spent half the time cuddling (we should have known!). They are very curious and love to explore. If you make an effort with them, they are very rewarding pets, very friendly and gentle animals. You need to give them space to be themselves.

When we had a rabbit before, we kept it in a cage and it never went out. Now we feel a bit guilty. They just aren't made to sit in a hutch. You can train them like cats to use a litter box and keep them inside, but you have to be careful because they like to chew through electrical wiring. Balconies with a decent amount of space are good. You can even put them in a harness and take them out for walks."

Commitment factor: 3/5

Why it's worth it: “They are very, very cute. We love cuddling and spending time with them!" (Call Catherine Sampson if you'd like to adopt one of Lily's babies: 138-0113-6497)