Pet Thread

[eselle28]

This is the place to ask questions about pets, or to share pictures or funny stories about them.

[eselle28]

Okay, so while I tried to make this a general thread, I have...really, it's probably more a desire for comiseration. I'm trying to introduce two adult cats to each other. Both have a history of getting along with other cats. Both have similar temperaments. It should go well, but unfortunately, I am living in a smaller space than the one where I previously introduced animals. There's a smallish room where there's a place for a littler box, food, blankets, a toy, and so on, but it's obviously not as nice as the rest of the apartment...and both cats know it. They're both clingy, even the new one who just met me, and neither likes being stuck in a room knowing the human in the household is elsewhere. They're also both vocal, so the one who's in the smaller room can raise hell and rile the other one up. (They don't seem to hate each other and neither seems likely to attack, but there's some hissing, and hearing each other makes them both tense.)

The first day's the hardest. Right? Right?

[reboot]

Perfect timing! I was just about to post a rant about my fuzzy ball of evil (aka cat). He has always had a tendency to bat things off of surfaces, but since my surgery it has gone into overdrive. You see, I cannot bend over to pick things up because of the stitches, so have to lower myself down and sit/kneel/lay on the floor to pick stuff up, so I am in max knead and pet zone. Kitty Evil has figured this out and is maximizing advantage by batting things off every flat surface.

[reboot]

As for your question, try letting them out when you are present and break up any fights that involve physical contact with a water bottle. In my experience, you get a few days of cat opera as they wail out their woe, some hissticuffs and then they settle into détente or friendship

[eselle28]

Perfect timing! I was just about to post a rant about my fuzzy ball of evil (aka cat). He has always had a tendency to bat things off of surfaces, but since my surgery it has gone into overdrive. You see, I cannot bend over to pick things up because of the stitches, so have to lower myself down and sit/kneel/lay on the floor to pick stuff up, so I am in max knead and pet zone. Kitty Evil has figured this out and is maximizing advantage by batting things off every flat surface.

Oh no! That sounds kind of miserable! Situations like that make me wonder how on earth people think "smart" is a desirable trait in a pet. I love my furballs to death, but sometimes I wish they were a little easier to trick and a little less adept at figuring out how to manipulate me.

As for your question, try letting them out when you are present and break up any fights that involve physical contact with a water bottle. In my experience, you get a few days of cat opera as they wail out their woe, some hissticuffs and then they settle into détente or friendship

Yeah, that seems like the best course of action. I've generally kept pets apart for longer periods of time on the theory that it avoids negative interactions, but that was when I had an upstairs and a downstairs and the second cat wasn't as eager for affection as this new one is. Separating them in the morning before work is still something I think I need to do for a little while, but there might actually be better will between the two if they don't view the other as the reason they're stuck in the laundry room instead of on the sofa or in front of the window. Also, I'll eventually need to use the room to do laundry.

[Caffeinated]

Hissticuffs! *keels over in a fit of giggles*

[eselle28]

I started giggling at "cat opera"! I'm hoping to avoid any incidents of amnesia, long lost identical twins, or mysterious pregnancy.

[eselle28]

So we've had some cat opera over the last three hours, both of the drama and the musical kind. Maybe some progress too, though? I at least got a read on the dynamic. Jasper is the initiator, but not the aggressor. He's very curious about Lily, but mostly with neutral body language, generally sitting a few feet away. She reacts with a combination of defensiveness and cowering. If I sit close to both of them and talk to Lily, we can make it 5-10 minutes without any hissing. I'm not ready to leave them alone together, but I'm glad I didn't try a few more days of complete separation.

Oh, and along with the gripe, here's Jasper, with his crazy tail and his mitten like paws:


.

[reboot]

I totally wish I could claim credit for both hissticuffs and cat opera, but alas that wit belongs to other friends

I want to post pics of the beasts but need to get to an actual computer to do it.

[eselle28]

Oh for fuck's sake, Humane Society. Anyone can tell the kitty has some Maine Coon or Norwegian Forest Cat heritage. That's why I asked all those questions about whether he was done growing yet. You had him in your care for 6 months and I believed you when he said he was. According to the vet - who I consulted because he eats like a starving thing but still is thin as a rail under all that fur - he is 2 but is also an inch longer than he was when his foster took him for shots in June. Apparently he's "just a teenage boy" and needs to be fed like one.

[Conreezy]

My bros

[eselle28]

Oh, they're so handsome! How old? Names? (If neither is too personal.) And props to you for mastering the art of photographing house panthers. My older cat, Lily, looks a little like the fellow on the left in size and shape, and I really struggle to get a picture of her that conveys her personality.

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