adoption fast track
The adoption process has taken an unexpected turn. Just as we were waving my parents in law goodbye after three wonderful weeks together, a little black and white kitten ran onto our terrace and demanded that we love her and keep her for ever and ever. Our neighbour, Manuel, and I both think it is a strange welcome gift from the man who owns the ruin to which our house is attached, and who has been working here mysteriously every day for the last couple of weeks. They had exactly the same happen to them......
"Vous êtes fait pour l'adoption" said Manuel.
She is cute, with a hundred decibel purr, and a mad woman's screech when she is eating, but perhaps that is because she has been starved of both food and love. She is sucking on my jumper trying to find a teet. (She doesn't have to look far!). She seems most content with her nose rammed up my armpit. She has already nuzzled Julian's used thermals and drunk from my wine glass so I guess she feels at home with the Merrow-Smiths.
Not sure how Oscar and Manon will take it. They are cautiously sniffing and dancing around each other, defending territory, trying to make friends......Right now she is in and they are both out - in disgust? rejection?. I couldn't bear to lose either of them.
(Do any of you cat folk out there have experience with this situation?)
posted by ruth at 7:28 PM
9 Comments:
When I was a young girl, we had a big black and white cat that we'd had since he was born. Somehow we ended up with a black kitten. At first they were wary of each other, but within a week or two, they were thick as theives and sleeping together in one bed. I bet they'll all adjust.
She is a cutie.
Ordinarily they work it out, eventually. It's easier with kittens, because cats are very hierachical, and kittens automatically are at the bottom of the pecking order. With older cats, they'll have to establish who's boss. (I've never understood why, because they don't seem to really want to boss each other around, but apparently they need to know.)
No cat experience here - just a comment that your terrace looks great! What a lovely nest you're creating - for cats, musicians, artists, and soon - a baby!
Anne
Are you sure that new kitten is a she? Looks rather masculine to me. Either way, it will probably grow bigger than either of your cats pretty quickly, so I hope he/she is not too old to be integrated with the current occupants; it depends on how old and set in their ways they are - and it is easier with a very young kitten.
Good luck!
No direct experience, but common sense and soft heart dictate that you keep loving up the other two at least as much as the new one. After that it's up to them. And, incidentally, we get a good view of the new terrace, which looks just perfect and hopefully feels worth the time and grief :-)
thanks everyone, and yes i thought i would sneak in the new terrace and see if anyone noticed!
lovely to see you jean! i think about you often.
yes, she is a gal, and yes we are loving the other two up (not hard as i often wonder if i could ever love anyone as much as i love them). apparently it's too late aven after a day, but you can get a pheremone spray that makes them all love one another instantly. we'll just let them arrange it amongst themselves!
more tips welcome!
D'après la dernière photo, Oscar a l'air méfiant...mais c'est normal...est-ce qu'ils ont fait mieux connaissance ?
Vous aussi vous avez 3 chats maintenant, et comme chez nous, un gris uni , un tigré et un autre black and white! !c'est rigolo, non ?
j'espère vous voir très bientôt avec toute la petite famille de félins...
Speaking of the lovely terrace....I was wondering what the structure over the top will be - a roof or pergula of some sort? And the furniture made me laugh, as over here in the States, the new thing is the "outdoor room" and the catalogs are full of plush cushioned couches and whatnot that are fully weatherized. Your backs must be much stronger than ours!
here is an example:
http://www.restorationhardware.com/rh/catalog/category/category_collections_gallery.jsp?navSrc=leftNav&navAction=jump&navCount=1&categoryId=cat1544017
hi jenna, the structure is typical for provence and is called a 'tonelle'. we will grow a vine, clematis and honeysuckle over it. as for the furniture - it fetches a bomb here that hard core provencal rustic distressed back breaking stuff, but it does well for lunch! i haven't yet bought my lounger but looks like something in your catalogue would be swell. by the way - liove that brolley. would be great for outdoor painting...
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