Waiting for new kittymate

Dear Fisher,

I’m a former alley cat and regard my battle scars as a matter of honor. But after leaving my best dead snakes on their doorstep, I was adopted by a neighborhood couple and transitioned to an indoor cat. After a year of being queen of the manor and having all the laps, petting, and prime sitting spots to myself, my humans are now talking about getting me a sister! They can’t decide if an older, mellower cat or a kitten would be less threatening to me, but I’m not sure I want a sister at all! Maybe it’s my fault. I do get bored while they’re at work, and I’ve started shredding their mail to amuse myself, but I don’t know if another cat is the answer!

Bella

Dear Bella,

You are certainly presented with a dilemma. On the one paw, you rule the manor but you are a bored with it. On the other, your position might get challenged by the introduction of another royal feline. After all, we are all royals, are we not?

The responsibility for whether or not you find yourself sharing the manor with another cat is all yours. Your humans may want more cat company, or they may be tuned into your need for amusement and want to make you happy. It could be as simple as their preference for reading un-shredded mail versus your presentation of shredded mail. The root cause of the idea comes directly from your behavior. It is up to you, then, to make the best of it – whatever the final decision.

Some things to consider when adding a second cat to the fold:

1) Are you mellow yourself? A kitten could give a new energy boost to the manor.
2) Are you uptight and anxious? A senior cat with a more mellow personality could be a calming effect on all of you.
3) Are your humans adopting the new cat for you, or because they would like a second cat? In either case, their decision should be made according to the results they expect from adding a new kitty – young or old.
4) Some people think that other people who get bored are boring people. Are you a boring cat? A kitten could spice up your personality a little.
5) Are your humans willing to take on this most important responsibility? Whether a cat or kitten moves in, there is a tad more daily upkeep of the manor.

Many more ideas on asking another cat to join your little family are found at the San Francisco ASPCA site San Francisco ASPCA site and look under resources for cat owners.

Just remember how you came to live in the manor in the first place. If dead snakes on the doorstep led to your loving new family, perhaps some shredded mail will lead to your new best friend.

Your friend,
Fisher


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Dear Fisher,

We are very loving, happy kittens and we love each other very much. We cuddle with each other a lot. But, when we are all in the same room together, we don’t like to cuddle with our human or even let her touch us at all. When we are separate we cuddle with her all the time and are very friendly. She thinks this is very odd. Do you have any idea why we would be this way? An explanation could help us all.

Harley and Honda

Dear Harley and Honda,

Your behavior is not bad behavior or the type that can or should be trained out of you. The fact that you are very loving cats comes out loud and clear in your letter. Life must be very good at your place, except for one little oddity. Cats in general have a certain responsibility to do something odd occasionally or even perpetually. That is one of the things that make us so lovable.

After much research on this subject, I found there is no real research. However your letter did bring to mind two cats I have known named Burt and Boomer. They cuddled together a lot. They never sat together on their human’s lap, but the minute she stretched out on the couch, they were both on top of her. Boomer was always closest to her head – obviously the alpha cat. Neither of you seems to have alpha cat tendencies. At least they are not overt alpha tendencies.

I listed my thoughts on why you may behave the way you do and I invite my readers to send me some of their thoughts. One good idea might help your human understand. Here is my list:

1. Her lap is not big enough for both of you to cuddle on at the same time.
2. You are both peace-loving pacifists and determined not to create any rivalry.
3. One of you likes scratches under the chin, and the other likes petting behind the ears. You both know she is not ambidextrous.
4. You have a private bet going on as to which of you is the most independent.
5. Each of you is covertly working toward alpha cat status and will not reveal your intentions until the real alpha cat comes out to play.

In the meantime, your human might try something odd herself. She can get a new, very flashy cat toy, sit on the floor and begin to play with it. Let us see how serious you are about staying aloof when the three of you are together in this situation!

Your friend,

Fisher

My favorite email of the week

If I Didn’t Have a Dog or a Cat…

I could walk around the yard barefoot in safety.

My house could be carpeted instead of tiled and laminated.

All flat surfaces, clothing, furniture, and cars would be
free of hair.

When the doorbell rings, it wouldn’t sound like a kennel.

When the doorbell rings, I could get to the door without
wading through fuzzy bodies who beat me there.

I could sit on the couch and my bed the way I wanted,
without taking into consideration how much space
several fur bodies would need to get comfortable.

I would have money and no guilt to go on a real vacation.

I would not be on a first-name basis with 6 veterinarians,
as I put their yet unborn grand kids through college.

The most used words in my vocabulary would not be: out,
sit, down, come, no, stay, and leave him/her/it ALONE.

My house would not be cordoned off into zones with
baby gates or barriers.
I would not talk ‘baby talk’. ‘Eat your din din’.
‘Yummy yummy for the tummy’..

My house would not look like a day care center, toys
everywhere.

My pockets would not contain things like poop bags,
treats and an extra leash.

I would no longer have to spell the words B-A-L-L,
F-R-I-S-B-E- E, W-A-L-K, T-R-E-A-T, B-I-K-E, G-O, R-I-D-E

I would not have as many leaves (or pine needles) INSIDE my house as outside.

I would not look strangely at people who think having ONE
dog/cat ties them down too much.

I’d look forward to spring and the rainy season instead
of dreading ‘mud’ season.

I would not have to answer the question ‘Why do you have
so many animals?’ from people who will never have the joy
in their lives of knowing they are loved unconditionally by
someone as close to an angel as they will ever get.

How EMPTY my life would be!!!

What would you do without cats and dogs in your life?