Vella Lovell Slowly and Carefully Introduces a New Cat to an Old Cat

Episode 155

11th February 2026

The hilarious actor Vella Lovell is a put-upon director of an animal control precinct in the sitcom Animal Control, a role that involves much more animal contact than one would expect for an office job. Turns out Vella, who also played the neighbor Heather on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, has a natural knack for helping animals calm down. This was evident in her long process of introducing a new kitten, XX, to her household, which already included a veteran resident cat, YY. Sleepyheads, the process took weeks of gentle, gradual exposure under highly controlled conditions, and we’re pleased to report that it was a complete success. XX and YY are, today, best buddies. We think you’ll be fast asleep before you ever get to that happy friendship moment but maybe you’ll sleep a little better knowing that it turned out so well.

Episode notes

The hilarious actor Vella Lovell is a put-upon director of an animal control precinct in the sitcom Animal Control, a role that involves much more animal contact than one would expect for an office job. Turns out Vella, who also played the neighbor Heather on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, has a natural knack for helping animals calm down. This was evident in her long process of introducing a new kitten, Tequila, to her household, which already included a veteran resident cat, Marlo. Sleepyheads, the process took weeks of gentle, gradual exposure under highly controlled conditions, and we’re pleased to report that it was a complete success. Tequila and Marlo are, today, best buddies. We think you’ll be fast asleep before you ever get to that happy friendship moment but maybe you’ll sleep a little better knowing that it turned out so well.

Catch Season 4 of Animal Control on hulu and the previous three seasons on Netflix.

Hey Sleepy Heads, is there anyone whose voice you’d like to drift off to, or do you have suggestions on things we could do to aid your slumber?

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  • Vella Lovell

About the show

Getting to sleep can be difficult sometimes. Now you can achieve that urgently needed rest by taking advantage of our most precious natural resource: celebrities. Each week on the slyly humorous and reassuring Sleeping With Celebrities, host John Moe talks with a different guest from the world of entertainment about something they know a lot about. The conversation is guaranteed to be just interesting enough to draw your attention away from your own swirling anxieties but never interesting enough to keep you awake. No startling revelations, no dramatic screaming confrontations, but plenty of low-key dialogue, intricately laced deadpan comedy, and a ticket to dreamland.

Podcast art by Stefan Lawrence.

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