Mondays With Merlin: Introducing Cats

Another week and here I am trucking along at 20+. Not too shabby for a stinky old meezer. My mom Layla is threatening to bathe me again but we live a big old drafty house, and we’re waiting for the arctic blast to pass. Personally, I think bathing is over-rated, and to think you humans do it every day is shocking. And you wear deodorant and perfumes to cover up your natural smells. What’s that about? I confess to loving the aroma of my dad’s dirty t-shirts and undies and no, I’m not gay or weird. Lots of cats enjoy our humans’ smelly shoes and unmentionables. Our sense of smell is king and rules our world.

Speaking of smell, I have nothing major to report but I get a whiff of the new foster GIRL CAT here and there. I still rule the roost but I heard from Domino and Odin that she has designs to take over. Those darn women worming their way into our lives! She’s a poor foster waif and we’re suckers for sob stories since we’re all rescues. So there she is mute from shock but no doubt giving the humans a pleading look. Oh woe is me, look at me with one eye rescued from a hoarder and lived forever in a shelter cage. Before you know it, the one we call NOU NOU is prancing about all la dee da like she owns the place. Do I smell “Failed Foster” already?

Within two days she finds her teeny chirp of a voice, escapes from her safe room and my dad calls her endearing. Endearing! Well, I don’t know about that since I’m blind and can’t see what the fuss is about but apparently she’s cute if you like kitten-sized young adults who like to gallop like a herd of elephants. Who can blame her for wanted to gallop after living in a cage her whole life? Her three far more perfect litter mates are still languishing in their cages DESPERATE for foster homes or a permanent adoption. Ask about Pablo and his gray sisfurs at NewRochelleHumaneSociety or share his Petfinder.com profile.

So, all of a sudden a new girl scent is in the air. We were all curious. Me not so much. I’m old and in my own world mostly. Domino is exceedingly gentle and low key except when our neighbor’s Maine Coons stroll by. An indoor only cat might pee out of the box as a way to act out territorial aggression but Domino deals with it by staking out the porch and peeing on certain trees. Before getting neutered he’d get into fights but no longer.

I don’t have much to do with Nou Nou and as long as Layla keeps me company in bed for hours, I’m happy. This is my favorite place these days.

However, the little feline whippersnapper did the most shocking thing. During cold weather Odin has one sacrosanct lair called a Neko Napper placed on a radiator cover in Layla’s dressing room. There’s a great view of the garden and hot steamy air blasts up into the plush cozy nest aka kitty heaven. Well, who moved in like the queen of Sheba but Nou Nou! She of the stubby legs who didn’t even know how to jump onto a chair until last week jumped up and in and claimed it as her own. She moved right in without even paying rent or a deposit. Cats do a form of time-sharing of space and I hope he got a good deal. She does not like being photographed so Layla is respecting that and working to gain her trust. She put an old sweater smelling of her into the bed and that’s helping.

You’d think there would be hissing or forceable eviction from Odin but not. The truth is he has a thing for her and she is besotted with his one-eyed charms. More shocking, I found them lolling together in a duvet valley in my guest room. The gray-furred vixen has intrigued older boy Domino as well. They were seen on the primo napping spot in the bedroom cheek to jowl. This is not to say all is purrfection. Harmony takes effort.

Introducing new cats is a delicate art.

Every situation is different. Most cats won’t take to each other instantly on day one as Merlin did when Odin and Gris Gris arrived. Some cats can take days or weeks to acclimate to a new home and family. Introductions are best done gradually and incrementally but so much depends on the personality, ages and relationships between the cats, other pets and their guardians. Layla spent 24/7 monitoring Nou Nou for the first week adjusting to every nuance. She writes and documents the progress every day but all behavioral advice has exceptions to every rule.

While an accidental intro happened early with barely a hiss, you don’t need a fur flying frenzy to mark potential problems down the road. Cats are supremely territorial with layers of complicated boundaries,pathways and hierarchies mostly invisible to you mere mortals. Things can be going swimmingly and then whammo, it’s cat from hell time or we do something so surprising, you think we’re magic. We like keeping you on your toes.

Us cats mark what’s ours with scent and that’s pretty well everything including you. Cats that lives together, whether it’s two or twenty have a group signature scent. Ours is called “Eau de Cat Wisdom 101”.Just kidding, but when cats greet each other with head butt, groom or snuggle with each other we transfer and mingle our scents. It makes us feel secure and happy to be part of a tribe like you belonging to Facebook or other group. When a new cat shows up they smell different and it’s rare to instantly “like” them. We don’t care whether they’re pretty or purebred or what color they are. It’s all about territory.

Obviously an unneutered male will like an unspayed female but that’s a lesson for another day. Suffice to say you will want to avoid that combo unless you want a litter of kittens. Keep in mind about 4 million cats, many of them kittens are euthanized in shelters every year.

Odin is a lover not a fighter and has never had any altercations with other cats but he is a mama’s boy and jealous. It’s best not to coo sweet nothings or pet the new one in front of the resident cat until introductions have succeeded without WW3 breaking out and a new group scent established. Some behaviorists will say to wash your hands and even change clothing if the new cat has scent-marked it. I say phooey, you can’t pull the wool over our eyes, we know there is another cat, but don’t go overboard. Some days Odin gives Layla the hairy eyeball but his sulky days are fewer. He also sneaks into Nou Nou’s safe room to eat her food and use her litter box. She does the same to him so they’re even. There’s also an extra litter boxes and having a large space makes it easier to give everyone their own territory. It also helps having two people who work at home and do daily reports on who saw what.

Layla tries not too wax poetic within Odin’s earshot and but cats have supersonic hearing (not to mention we’re psychic). He heard her praising her and saying, “Good girl! You’re so pretty.”

Poor Odin felt insecure and alternated between wanting to go outside not matter how cold and snuggling under the covers for extended mommy time. Layla talks to him every day about him being #1 boy ( I know that’s not true), how handsome he is (not as handsome as me) and how much she loves him ( surely she loves me more?). She gives him all the extra attention he needs playing, snuggling and giving treats and all is well for now. Balancing the well being of multiple cats can feel like a Cirque de Soleil juggling act, but we’re worth it.

The emotional landscape of human and cat lives can change on a dime. Having happy and healthy cats means homework for you humans. Stay prudent and aware of any changes in the wind. Notice what your cat is doing and not doing. Notice what you’re doing.The more you take time to notice, the more you’ll notice. We’re subtle but we give warnings. Trust me, by the time we piss in your favorite shoe, you’ve missed the clue.

My cat secret of the week: Unplug more to stress less.

Love,

Merlin