Scratcher of heads, rubber of bellies
My first picture of Boo, taken July 6, 2013, the day after we adopted him. He was terrified and had been struggling at the shelter so I didn’t want to scare him any further, waiting until his second day when a quieter camera arrived to take his first picture. He’s sitting in the cardboard cat carrier we brought him home in, his very first Boo Box.
In this edition, under the bed in the guest room of our rental house here in Arizona.
Boo in 2013 on the day we gave him his first free reign of the house. He’d flop over in the kitchen when he got a little overwhelmed, close to the basement where he could retreat to a more comfortable place. He rose to half-alert with his eyes fully focused on Emma, our oldest cat who was not happy about his arrival. At this stage we only gave him limited time in the full house as he still needed to work on his confidence.
From 2013, this wasn’t technically the first time they met but it was the first time after we let Boo out into the house at large. The brothers both flopped onto their sides in submissive gestures, getting Sam to accept Boo was not going to be an issue.
We adopted Boo about five months after the death of Scout, another black-and-white cat. Their patterns were different enough that most of the time it wasn’t hard on me but in the early days at some angles I’d draw my breath in as he reminded me so much of her. The hardest time for me was when he was getting comfortable in his new home, even though in general it was a great relief as we were concerned the other two cats and the dog would be too much for the terrified little fellow. He started curling up in the cat bed beside me and for a couple of weeks I’d see him out of the corner of my eye and think it was Scout and feel a pinprick of grief before having it washed away with joy that Boo was home, and knew it.
On the day we gave Boo his first taste of freedom in the house, I grabbed my camera to document the event and laughed when I saw what was awaiting him at the top of the basement stairs. He had already met Ellie and got along with her from the start so it isn’t as imposing as it looks.
As he scrambled up the stairs, he assumed a submissive pose as he did with all the other pets, as Sam and Emma were at the top of the landing watching him. He sized up Ellie but of course he had nothing to worry about. Ellie has been a sweetheart with both of the young kittens we’ve adopted and the three cats we had when we adopted her.
Probably a sneak attack is best.
From 2013 after we adopted Boo, we kept him in isolation for a couple of weeks to let him build up his confidence and give the other pets time to adjust. The night before letting him into the house for the first time we let the other pets come into his room. Boo was eager to impress his older brother. Fortunately he did not follow through on his instinct to jump on Sam from behind.
Scout loved sleeping under blankets as a kitten but outgrew it and only did it in her later years if she was upset, for example if there had been sustained loud construction nearby. Boo frequently does it because, well, he’s Boo.
This Boo Box was a long thin box from (I think) a new vacuum cleaner.
Boolie 