Herd your cats here

[mamselle]

local no-skill shelter

You meant "no-kill," right?

M.

[OneMoreYear]

local no-skill shelter

You meant "no-kill," right?

M.

Thanks, mamselle! Yup! no-kill :)  They are very skilled in finding homes for the kitties and teaching the scared ones that humans might be good things.

[FishProf]

(what will the kitten's fora name be?)

Novizio?

[Parasaurolophus]

I just stepped on the red cat (accidentally, of course). I don't think I'd put my weight down much at all before I noticed it, but he was utterly silent, and utterly silently sped off and now he's hiding from me (despite treats) and my heart is broken. Poor love.


Update: an hour later, I was provisionally forgiven. But he's made it clear that I'm skating on thin ice, and need to work to rebuild trust.

[smallcleanrat]

Having some difficulty sorting through the jumble of cat happenings I've wanted to share.

The biggest thing is that Maestro seems to have really taken to the role of elder brother. There's been some hissing and possessiveness, but all from the kitten so far (and even this isn't too frequent). Maestro has been nothing but gentle with the little one, even when he boldly tries to shoulder Maestro aside to eat his kibble (although there have been times Maestro's turned a pleading look to SO or me as though to say "Are you really going to let him do this?").

Oddly, the kitten seems more independent than the Maestro. He enjoys play and cuddles, but doesn't seem to feel the need to come seek them out. Maestro at the same age was always following us around or perching himself somewhere he could stare at us creepily; he still does this to a certain extent. Even if he's not in a cuddle mood, he prefers to be near at least one of his humans. Both at once are even better.

After that first night, the kitten's been sleeping on his own in the living room by his own choice. Maestro, on the other hand, has been glued to my side at night. In Maestro's kittenhood, he often slept nestled under my arm, lying next to me lengthwise with my shoulder as his pillow. As an adult, he preferred a little less contact during sleep-time, opting to curl up between my shins or at the end of the bed. Now he presses his whole body against mine, and snuggles right in when I put an arm around him. It's like he's gone back to his own kittenhood.

SO says Maestro's been a tad clingy since the kitten arrived, wanting more lap-time on the couch. Of course, we're both happy to give him any extra attention he wants.

Still, on the whole, Maestro seems quite happy with his brother. They play together a lot, and during quiet times, Maestro likes to lounge in a spot where he can see the kitten. He also bathes the kitten morning, noon, and night. Since the kitten only puts up with this for a few seconds before trying to escape the washing, Maestro has taken to waiting until kitten is eating or drinking to groom him.

It's pretty funny to see the kitten start to take a drink when Maestro dashes over to snag his opportunity. He once used a little too much force when licking the top of the kitten's head, and the little one's face was pushed into the water. There was a little scuffling after that, but they were friends again soon enough.

I'm still struggling a bit to settle on a fora name for the new kitty.

[Puget]

Very cute SCR! Cats certainly have different personalities. It makes sense that Maestro needs a little reassurance he hasn't been forgotten right now, just like human older siblings when a new baby appears.

We're currently having a thunderstorm after a very hot day, and I've opened all the windows. The cats are surprisingly OK with the thunder, and seem to be enjoying the cool breeze

[Harlow2]

I'm impressed with how well the brothers are doing, SCR!

[Larimar]

How sweet! Maestro is a really good big brother. Thanks for sharing.

[the_geneticist]

SCR, you have the best kitty stories!  I think there is some rule in cat society that adult cats are not allowed to smack tiny kittens.  The cat dynamic in our house changed when Izzy grew from tiny, fuzzy kitten to round, floofy cat.  Puck will now wrestle and box with her instead of just pushing her away.

Maybe call the new one "Crescendo" or another musical term - spotted coat is like music notes & plays well with the Maestro.

[OneMoreYear]

I think there is some rule in cat society that adult cats are not allowed to smack tiny kittens.

SO's previous cat, FloppyTail, did not know this rule. SO tried to do an emergency foster of a little blue kitten that had been found wondering down his street.  However, FloppyTail would not have it. When he brought the kitten out to introduce them, FloppyTail growled at the kitten, smacked it, the chased it under one of the kitchen cabinets and stood guard, daring the kitten to make a move.  Obviously, little blue kitten was moved to a different foster home.

It's wonderful to hear about the continued adorableness of Maestro and his little buddy.

[Larimar]

First sighting today of the feral kittens born in April to one of the colony cats who we've been feeding! Four orange ones and one gray tabby. They're toddler stage, and they've been hanging out under my car most of the day. Mom let them hang out and took a nap right near our doorstep, then crawled under the car and flopped to nurse the kittens. It was adorable.

[AmLitHist]

The catnip plant in my herb bed is growing huge--I'm amazed, with the number of cats that used to be in the neighborhood (though now that I think of it, I haven't seen many in recent months).

Fela has hoisted her plump self into the raised bed a couple of times when I haven't given her a leaf first. She has me trained by now to offer her some before she has to go to all that trouble.

[smallcleanrat]

Maestro continues to astound me with his caring behavior toward the kitten. Kitten also seems to be warming up to Maestro, now treating him more like a buddy than a giant toy. I have seen him give the Maestro cheek nuzzles and make a few perfunctory attempts at grooming. He has also largely stopped resisting the frequent baths Maestro insists upon.

Their play has progressed to some roughhousing, which I found a bit alarming, but after some yowls and hisses were exchanged they seemed to come to an understanding of boundaries quickly enough.

The other day, I saw the kitten snuggle up to Maestro for the first time. They napped together on the windowsill all afternoon.

I've been kicking around the idea of calling the kitten Il Divo on the fora or some other opera-related term (or maybe a character). He has an impressively clear, piercing mew, and he holds it longer than any cat I've ever heard. Meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeew! It's almost like singing.

[mamselle]

Tosca.

M.

[Larimar]

Maestro continues to astound me with his caring behavior toward the kitten. Kitten also seems to be warming up to Maestro, now treating him more like a buddy than a giant toy. I have seen him give the Maestro cheek nuzzles and make a few perfunctory attempts at grooming. He has also largely stopped resisting the frequent baths Maestro insists upon.

Their play has progressed to some roughhousing, which I found a bit alarming, but after some yowls and hisses were exchanged they seemed to come to an understanding of boundaries quickly enough.

The other day, I saw the kitten snuggle up to Maestro for the first time. They napped together on the windowsill all afternoon.

I've been kicking around the idea of calling the kitten Il Divo on the fora or some other opera-related term (or maybe a character). He has an impressively clear, piercing mew, and he holds it longer than any cat I've ever heard. Meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeew! It's almost like singing.

That's good news. It is a joy to see kitties snuggling together.