Herd your cats here

[apl68]

All good reasons why people don't let their pets have their own credit cards. 

(My dog actually received an application for one in the mail in her name some years ago.  It's a long story.  We didn't fill it out).

[the_geneticist]

I trapped the mama kitty, took her to the clinic & got turned away.
Twice!
First time was "oh, we cancelled for today".
Second time, the list is full.
There is a secret signup sheet I wasn't told about.  It's a paper list that gets taped to a gate at midnight.   I feel like I'm trying to join a secret society! Do I need to bribe someone?

[clean]

I mentioned that I have been in training To Serve Kitty  (I dont think it is a cookbook, but I am trained to serve food!)
This morning it was a bit cooler and there was a campus tour where kitty usually stays/naps/trains/holds court.  I dont know if kitty was touring the kittydom, getting some sun, or avoiding the early morning crowd, but as I walked up tot he building, my roller bag was recognized and kitty came bounding!   It was good to see him/her, though some have indicated he is more of a prince than a princess!  (the kitten that was noted with similar markings was reported to be from another cat (that had the kittens in view of another person's window!)

The dean's special projects person showed pictures of kitty entertaining a crowd of people from Wednesday's campus tour group!   (rubbing and being scratched by several of the participants!). 

[apl68]

I mentioned that I have been in training To Serve Kitty  (I dont think it is a cookbook, but I am trained to serve food!)
This morning it was a bit cooler and there was a campus tour where kitty usually stays/naps/trains/holds court.  I dont know if kitty was touring the kittydom, getting some sun, or avoiding the early morning crowd, but as I walked up tot he building, my roller bag was recognized and kitty came bounding!  It was good to see him/her, though some have indicated he is more of a prince than a princess!  (the kitten that was noted with similar markings was reported to be from another cat (that had the kittens in view of another person's window!)

The dean's special projects person showed pictures of kitty entertaining a crowd of people from Wednesday's campus tour group!  (rubbing and being scratched by several of the participants!). 

Well, that's one way of impressing a campus tour group!

So it's not a cookbook, huh?  Then I guess it doesn't have a recipe for arroz con gato.

[the_geneticist]

I mentioned that I have been in training To Serve Kitty  (I dont think it is a cookbook, but I am trained to serve food!)
This morning it was a bit cooler and there was a campus tour where kitty usually stays/naps/trains/holds court.  I dont know if kitty was touring the kittydom, getting some sun, or avoiding the early morning crowd, but as I walked up tot he building, my roller bag was recognized and kitty came bounding!   It was good to see him/her, though some have indicated he is more of a prince than a princess!  (the kitten that was noted with similar markings was reported to be from another cat (that had the kittens in view of another person's window!)

The dean's special projects person showed pictures of kitty entertaining a crowd of people from Wednesday's campus tour group!   (rubbing and being scratched by several of the participants!). 

Get that kitty a college sweater & hire it as a dean of outreach!

[Puget]

I mentioned that I have been in training To Serve Kitty  (I dont think it is a cookbook, but I am trained to serve food!)
This morning it was a bit cooler and there was a campus tour where kitty usually stays/naps/trains/holds court.  I dont know if kitty was touring the kittydom, getting some sun, or avoiding the early morning crowd, but as I walked up tot he building, my roller bag was recognized and kitty came bounding!   It was good to see him/her, though some have indicated he is more of a prince than a princess!  (the kitten that was noted with similar markings was reported to be from another cat (that had the kittens in view of another person's window!)

The dean's special projects person showed pictures of kitty entertaining a crowd of people from Wednesday's campus tour group!   (rubbing and being scratched by several of the participants!). 

Get that kitty a college sweater & hire it as a dean of outreach!

https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/animalkind/2024/05/20/max-the-cat-vermont-state-university-graduation/73735128007/

[Larimar]

A kitty crisis has erupted in the Larimar household.

The other night, OrangeGuy, right in front of Mr. Larimar and me, viciously attacked Twerp and bit her neck. It was unprovoked. She screamed. We rescued her, scolded OrangeGuy, and have kept them separated since then. We discovered scabs on Twerp's neck that suggest that this is not the first time he has done this, though we didn't know it until now. OrangeGuy has shown signs of wanting to be Alpha Kitty before, but this is a sudden escalation. All he's done before is once in a while take over his favorite spots with a few unfriendly-sounding meows.

We consulted a friend who does animal rescue work, and she suggested Feliway and treats that are medicated to calm cats down. We are trying both. In a couple of weeks, when we can be sure the Feliway should be working, we are planning a brief, supervised reintroduction to see how it goes. If it goes badly, then the plan is to call the vet. We've been alternating who is closed up in what rooms so that everyone gets approximately the same amount of time with their humans. We put Calico in the same room with Twerp because they are close. OrangeGuy has not attacked Calico that we know of.

Does anyone have any ideas about what could have caused this, or other suggestions as to how we can get them all to get along? The worst-case scenario is that we might have to rehome OrangeGuy, and I really don't want it to come to that!

Thanks,
Larimar

[the_geneticist]

Slow introduction.  Give them each their own special area to lounge.  Might need more than one food area or litterbox location. Try to minimize or remove any "high conflict areas" - things like a bookshelf in a narrow hall that allows one cat to jump scare the others.

[Larimar]

Thanks, Geneticist. I appreciate it. Luckily, we already feed them separately and have several litterboxes, so that makes keeping them separate for a while easier.

[the_geneticist]

We have one cat that LOVES to terrorize one of the other cats.  They have mostly divided the house into separate territories.  Izzy kitten gets the bedroom, two chairs, and the associated end table.  Lady Jane gets the kitchen cart, new couch, and top of a particular bookshelf.  The rest of the house is neutral-ish.
We also actively discourage Izzy if we notice her getting ready to pounce at Jane. Nothing violent yet, but mostly because Jane is reluctant to be near Izzy, let alone touch her or give her a swat.