black-and-white cat – Page 28

Boo vs. Emma

I thought that when we adopted our dog Ellie in 2009 it would be our most difficult introduction, as our three cats were not used to dogs, but it turned out to be our easiest. Our toughest would be in July of 2013 when we adopted a shy little kitten we named Boo. When we met he was so terrified he literally shook so we took his introduction to the other pets even slower than normal, keeping him isolated for a couple of weeks, then slowly allowing him more and more time in the house at large.

With the slow introduction Boo gained confidence each day, which was fortunate, as we fell in love with the little black-and-white cat rather quickly. But one hurdle remained: Emma.

I spent most of that first month with Emma while my wife was with Boo, as Em was not happy with the arrival of the little fellow. Em had become my little buddy after Scout died early in the year and that bond helped when we started giving Boo short stints in the house at large. She’d follow him around everywhere he went, staring him down, and hissing if he got too close. You can see her in the background of the picture above, watching Boo from the base of the cat tree, while he plays with one of her beloved strings.

We’d let Boo out until you could see on his face that he was getting a little overwhelmed, and then we’d take him back into his secluded room where he felt safe and then Emma (and to a lesser extent Sam) could feel comfortable in their space too. A few days later and she was still staring him down, while he was mostly trying to avoid eye contact, but desperate too to fit in. When it was time for Boo to go back to his room, I’d shower Emma with as much attention as she could tolerate, and she relaxed a bit more each day.

A few days after the above staredown Boo and Emma were sleeping on my couch when Boo came in and nestled in between them, and I was delighted to see Emma not get up. By the end of August, a few weeks after Boo was given full run of the house, I came into my office and saw Boo using Emma as a pillow. She had long let Sam do this but it was a first for the brave little Boo (I apologize for cutting off her foot at the edge of the frame, but I was shooting quickly while trying not to wake her).

But my favorite moment of their introduction was in October when Emma had been sleeping beside my legs as she so often did. Boo came in and at first just curled up beside her, then he got a little more bold and put his head on her. But I was startled when he suddenly put his arms around her and just buried his head in her stomach. This woke her up and I was sure she was going to get up and go into the other room, but instead she stretched her arms down his back and cradled him. He turned his head for a little air and she spooned him and they fell asleep together.

That was our Em.

World’s Biggest Cat Toy

Boo does his best E.T. impersonation, hiding out in the toys.

The Endlessly Bendy Boo

This is Boo at the end of August, he was about 9 months old and had been with us for just under two months. His sleeping position didn’t look comfortable to me but it was one of his favorites. He was skinny enough then to pull it off but it’s not so easy now that he’s grown to full-size.

The Bed Thief

While Sam would occasionally sleep in one of Ellie’s beds, particularly the homemade one, the thieving of dog beds began in earnest in late July. Coincidentally, this is also when Boo was given free reign of the house. This is Boo on his first day out after a couple of weeks in isolation in my wife’s office in the basement. That week began his gradual introduction into the house at large, we’d let him out for a while but at night or when we were away we still kept him isolated.

Boo was shy and nervous when we adopted him and you could see on his face how exploring the house and meeting the pets was both exciting and exhausting for him, so we paced his introduction even slower than normal. Several times on this first day he’d go up and explore the ground level and meet the other pets and then come back down to Ellie’s dog bed for a little rest. The bed was right outside my wife’s office so he could enjoy a taste of his newfound freedom and yet easily scoot back in to his comfort zone if needed.

He showed little fear of Ellie from the start, and for her part, she was nonplussed by the arrival of the little fellow. So when he stole her bed, she laid down beside it on the hard floor, making life a little easier for the kitten as he began to understand what it meant to be home.

Spooning

Peace, love, & understanding.

HypnoCat

Don’t look directly into his eyes!

Anxious

We kept Boo isolated from the other pets in his first days with us by putting him in my wife’s large office in the basement and, since it doesn’t have a door, blocking the large opening into the room with a long piece of plywood. These pictures are from his second day with us, up top you can see him sleeping under the far corner of the futon, which for him was progress as he spent much of those early days hiding completely out of sight behind the desk.

Boo was already anxious and stressed from his weeks at the shelter and adjusting to a new home wasn’t going to be easy for the shy little fellow. But he was anxious in another way too — anxious to meet the other pets. The plywood blocked the exit but he could still hear and smell the pets on the other side, so right from the get go we had to be quick when entering or leaving the room, as a little black-and-white shadow might follow underfoot.

Flippity Floppity Boo

We have a cat for M. C. Escher, so why not one for Salvador Dali too? Taken one day shy of his one month anniversary with us, still skinny enough that he could pull off poses like this when he slept.

That Last Step is a Doozy

After we adopted Boo in early in July, we kept him in isolation for a while in my wife’s office in the basement. After a couple of weeks we allowed him limited time upstairs with the rest of the pets. He was eager to meet the others and explore the rest of the house but after a while the shy little fellow would get overwhelmed and retreat to the comfort of the basement. At times you could see the conflict writ across his face as he hung out in the landing between the basement and main floor, screwing up the courage to climb that last step and venture forth.

Scout & Boo

While Boo’s black-and-white coat resembles Scout’s in some ways, it was his early attempts to get up into the ceiling and ducts that reminded me most of her. Up above you can see a board above the circuit breakers, placed there when we moved in over a decade ago to keep Scout out. It was a constant battle in those early days, we’d block off access to one spot and she’d find another. She was crafty so it usually took multiple attempts to block her out for good.

Scout was already full grown when we moved in so skinny little Boo was able to find one spot into the ducts that we hadn’t blocked off but that was soon rectified. He got dirty during his foray but we had learned from past experience to let him clean himself. I didn’t use to believe in superheroes, ordinary people one moment who in a flash could transform into something greater. But one day after sneaking into the ducts Scout came out looking like a furry little coal miner, so I gave her a bath in the same utility sink Boo is standing in above. The moment the water hit her fur, my sweet little girl grew ten legs, each ending in a paw with a hundred claws. Some sought for purchase as she tried to wiggle from my grasp, leaving the others free to flail wildly and attack whatever they could. She dug into my hands, my arms, my chest, and rather painfully into my nose.

That’s me below holding Scout after her bath, drying her off with a towel. Fortunately Scout couldn’t hold a grudge, not even for a moment, so she quickly forgave me and we never spoke of it again.

I hold our cat Scout as she grooms herself after getting a bath