Mine!

 

 Ava and Sofia are pretty sure they need some of what I'm eating...

Morning! Oof, it's hot. Well, it's sticky anyway. I'm sure the cats are holding me personally responsible for this, given the glares I've been getting as they melt into puddles on the floor, the bed, the sofa and pretty much anywhere else they can find. It hasn't sweetened anyone's temper either, and Sofia and Indigo have had a few run ins over the past few days.

I've been going through old posts and labelling them properly, over the last few days. When blogger changed its design (grr) it became less easy to do this, or rather, it isn't hard, but the label setting is hidden and you have to click on it, which I rarely remember to do. It's not hard but it is a good deal less instinctive, I suppose I am saying. Anyway there was about 18 months worth of labelling to do.

Which of course took me right through the whole reintegration shenanigans, thinking Indigo couldn't possibly stay here, as things stood, and Ava getting thin as a rake with all the stress. Many times I was ready to give up... but nearly a year on, we've reached, touch wood, a more or less peaceful existence. And Ava, I think, is a normal weight. She hasn't been weighed for a while, but she looks normal for her- skinny rather than anorexic.

So a few cat fights isn't likely to bother me. Indigo is off the Ovarid now though, and we're waiting for it to leave her system so she can go into heat. That always provokes a few fireworks (and pees... or worse... grr) so we'll have to see how the shaky truce bears up.

Slurp!

Then she gave me a wash too. Heh.

Boxes, Boxes

 

 

We're still overrun with them. The cats love them so much I haven't had the heart to cart any to the recycling, although I will have to soon as we are running out of space!

 

Ava especially is a boxoholic, and the snugger the better. This one is perfect. Low- sided enough so as not to obscure vision (important with a bratty little brother lurking ready to pounce) yet high enough to feel nice and enclosed.

 

I HAVE FINISHED MY COURSE!!!! Yay! Oh my word, I'm pleased of the break. Of course, it's too rainy to do much allotmenting (soft Southerner!) so I have just been curling up with a book and a cat instead, and it's been lovely. Nothing like a soft purry furry animal to relax you- but I don't need to tell any of my readers that!

 

Fingers crossed for some sunshine. You all have a good week. x

Chaos

The teenager's bedroom is currently being redecorated. He is sleeping in the living room, which is, still, a living room. All his stuff, however, is in my bedroom. As you can see.

This includes the cats. The teenager doesn't like cats in his room, and given that it is his room, I am not going to insist (although I do occasionally let the better behaved cats in for a break if things get a bit tense.) We've also had the walls in the kitchen and bathroom bleached and repainted with anti mould paint (damp... sigh) so those rooms have been out of action too. The hall is full of mattresses and not yet put together furniture. So they really have been all thrown together in the one room.

It's been interesting really. Six months ago, I couldn't have considered it, of course, Indigo would have had to go to a cattery. Now... well they have all coped. Remarkably well, actually.

It hasn't been ideal. Poor Ava has found herself out in the hallway at night as Indigo won't let her near the bed, (which she naturally insists in being in ALL NIGHT, under the bedcovers, and my goodness, how comes one normal sized cat takes up about 75% of the bed?) I have quite a long scratch from Indigo as she launched herself at Ava one evening whilst having a cuddle. There have also been several 2am yowling matches with Sofia, and Theo has taken to spraying the door, just to let everyone know it's HIS room, actually. It's upset their little equilibriums (equilibrii?) enough to say Indigo won't be getting full time bedroom access any time soon.

 It's funny to think I used to have to keep the two sets of cats totally separate. It seems a long, long time ago, but it wasn't really. I'll still be using a cattery for holidays away- they all get along, sort of, if I am there to referee, but I dread to think of the shenanigans that would ensue if I wasn't about. But still, it's promising.

Little bit o nip...



 

Indigo trials the catnip banana...

 

 

... while Ava gets high on the chilli pepper

 

 

It's ridiculous really. The cats have a bajillion and one toys, most of which they totally ignore, but still I find myself incapable of going onto a pet store and not picking a new one up. This time it was brightly coloured catnip toys. 'Cosmic Catnip'. They are apparently filled with 100% strong, American nip, and true enough, you could smell it in the pet shop

 

The cats could certainly smell it. The moment I got home they all woke up, sniffing, eager to get at what was in the bags, and I immediately regretted only buying two- Ava and Theo had to wait for their fix. I bought a pepper and a banana, but there were four more in the set, which doesn't bode well for future spending! But they weren't too expensive- £3- £4 each I think, so we might find a fish, or a carrot, or whatever joins the collection some time soon.

 

The nipfest is, for now, over, temporarily at least, the toys are limp and drool-sodden (urgh) and all four mogs are sozzled. Recommended!

Ava's Got Talent

 

She can stick her tongue right up her nostril...

Bad Girls, Bad Girls...

 

Ava looks THRILLED doesn't she? Hehe.

 

Yes, I have all three girls in one picture. For about 30 seconds. The camera never lies they say, but it can be deceptive. This is how it happened.

 

Indigo got into bed with Ava.

 

Ava made some not very happy, growly noises.

 

Sofia sidled up, sniffed Ava, and settled down on her other side (not in the bed though).

 

I took a photo.

 

Sofia thought better of it, and sidled off.

 

Ava decided she wasn't happy either and stood up.

 

Then Indigo bit her in the leg, and it all descended into anarchy!

 

Oh well!

They're At It Again

 

Inds, looking very smug

My goodness. Seems the cold weather is addling my cats' brains somewhat as once again Indigo has climbed into a cat bed with Ava. I may have encouraged her a little, but she got in of her own accord. She even tried grooming Ava a little, but Ava said grrrrrrrrrrmeowwwwrrrrr so Inds backed off on that one. (yes, backed off, not thwapped her or growled back...)

Inds is purring.. Ava is... well, I suspect Ava is seething, she doesn't look too happy and the looks she is shooting Indigo are most unsisterly. But she hasn't moved and she can move pretty quickly when she chooses to. So, y'know... she's OK.

And they've been there for half an hour now.

Battling The Bulge

I went for a bridesmaid's dress fitting today. I've put on four or five pounds since the last one and... well anyway. The dress will have to be let out somewhat. The dressmaker announced to the bride and other maids that I'd eaten too many mince pies over Christmas... oh it was embarassing. Fortunately the bride, my friend J, loves me for me and not the narrowness- or otherwise- of my hips!!!

She said what now????

Indigo is also struggling to keep her weight down. Ok, I am, I don't think she cares one way or the other hehe.

In order to get Ava's weight up I've had to make sure there is food available for her at all times. She isn't a big eater and will graze rather than make a big meal. Unfortunately this means there's food around for Indigo all day as well. Indigo goes into the lounge overnight with half a sachet of wet food- which she gobbles straight away- and a dish of water, she has no other food until 9 or 10 hours later and absolutely no treats. She gets plenty of stimulation and is an active cat but even with all that reducing her seems an unattainable goal.

*sigh*... I know the feeling. Sofia now, she seems to have settled into a slightly plump middle age. 18 months or so ago she was really quite chubby, so perhaps there's hope for Indigo? Me, I think I am beyond redemption. Bring on the pies...

Speechless

Oh my. Oh my, oh my, oh my.

Entry written several days ago- have managed to upload photos another way but NOT COOL blogger, please to fix your upload function asap!

Yesterday, Indigo did this...

Nope... you aren't seeing things. Indigo was faffing around on my desk, tromping over the mouse and keyboard as she does and acting like she wanted something. I thought she wanted to go on the windowsill, which, being lazy cats, they find unable to do unless I hold the curtain up for them. Of course when I am out of the room they manage just fine without any help. Little... dears.

Anyway, that wasn't it. Inds then very carefully got into the cat bed whilst Ava was in it. They were actually touching. Truth be told. Ava looked appalled, and neither of them 'relaxed' as such. Inds was twitchy, they were watchful and their ears were alert- Ava's were somewhat flattened. I say watchful, they glanced round at each other regularly but were careful not to make actual eye contact.

They stayed in there for a good ten minutes. I suspect they might have been there longer if I hadn't needed the loo, Ava clearly wasn't happy about staying there if I wasn't there too! Plus there was a new cardboard box on the bed she hadn't investigated yet. So up she got, but again, there was no hissing or smacking.

As if that wasn't enough, Sofia watched the whole proceeeding with interest, and snuggled down a metre away on the bed!

 

Ava and Indigo used to be close. Indigo had a rocky beginning here as a kitten, it took a LONG time to integrate her but she did develop quite a strong bond with Ava, snuggling in bed with her and Ava used to wash her ears. Ava has a thing about ears.Then Indigo got big and bolshy and it all deteriorated from there really. Inds is nearly 4 now though, could she possibly be mellowing with age?

Hah- the way she'd behaved today, somehow I have my doubts!!!

And A Grumpy New Year

 

Ava would like to wish you all the best for 2013. And for me to get that darned camera out of her face.

Cooped Up

 

Rawr!

 

What?

 

I'm in the process of decorating my living room. Painting and decorating is not a skill of mine, so there has been much muttering and general chaos while I've blundered my way through it all.

 

The cats have had no access to the living room, and... well I am more than ready for that to change. They've all been more or less living in my room. Indigo has been getting very possessive of me at night- none of the other cats have dared to get on the bed, because Indigo curls, troll like, under the covers, waiting to see off any interlopers as noisily as she dares. Indigo is perfectly Ok having less space and not being sequestered in the living room overnight, in fact she probably thinks it's brilliant to be in my bedroom at night, I don't think she misses her own space one bit, but none of the other cats are happy with the arrangement. And I'm definitely not happy with 3am yowls and howls, they seem so much worse than daytime ones for some reason.

 

Poor Ava is also getting the raw end of the deal, as she isn't getting a break from Indigo. She's just been keeping out of her way, which means she's been keeping out of MY way too. I've been making a point of seeking her out for some fuss, but then along comes Indigo and off runs Ava. Although they are currently within a metre of each other and not fighting.

 

All in all though, I'm pleased at how they've all managed- plan B was to take Inds to the kennels for a few days, they would have space this time of year, but that hasn't been necessary. Which is good, really! Much better than where we were last month, anyway.

 

I was speaking to a friend of the boyfriend the other day. P has a couple of Bengal cats. One is a very dominant personality, much like Inds, the other shy and nervous, much like Ava. He asked how many cat toilets we had, which is 6 so we're OK there, but also how many feeding stations. We have two, plus seperate water, which I thought was OK for 4 cats given three of them eat happily from the same bowl (and then there's Indigo. lol) but he suggested adding another. Interesting, I may try that. Worth a go eh?

Just About

returning to the land of the living. Yesterday was the first day in about three weeks where my brain has actually felt like a brain, and not a tangled mass of unravelled knitting.

We've been ill, and it's all been rather unpleasant. 'Something viral', including protracted snuffles and- er- bathroom issues. To be honest I always feel a bit outraged when I succumb to anything like a vomiting bug, I always think surely I'm too old for this malarkey? It's like getting a spot- such things should be relegated to the realms of childhood and adolescence and not be allowed to spill over into adult life!

Anyway enough of that. There's been exciting times for the cats. I have two biggish rooms, side by side, those who have had a kitten from me will have been in the biggest room, which used to be my living room. The smaller one next to it was my bedroom. Well, I've switched them over. The new living room is empty, or rather at the moment it is full of boards as a plasterer does his thing- it's had soundproofing put into the ceiling. There's going to be a point to this ramble, so bear with me...

 

Sofia and Indigo shooting hate rays at each other... but at least they aren't fighting...

The hope is that this will cut down on any potential noise issues with the neighbours. The new lounge is surrounded by my bedroom and my L-shaped hallway, it does not border onto anyone else bar at the ceiling, which now has a false ceiling and a nice thick layer of rockwool in it to mop up sound. Frankly, I couldn't afford to have the room soundproofed properly, such an undertaking would have cost many thousands of pounds, and it isn't as though I plan on using it as a studio or anything! Furthermore, this new living room is under the upstairs neighbours' living room, meaning that when Indigo howls at night, the noise won't be in their bedroom nd disturb their sleep.

And now I come to the point: this has all been rather disturbing for the cats and they've all reacted in their own way to it, but the cat it has possibly made the most difference to is Ava. Once I'd opened up my bedroom to Indigo, Ava had taken to living in the hallway, she wouldn't have come into the living room, 'Indigo's room', at any cost, and for a while it looked as though she'd been ousted from the bedroom too, except at night. But switching the rooms about has had the effect of wiping the slate clean, terratorially. All the cats, including Ava (eventually) now use both the bedroom and the living room.

Indigo has felt the loss of 'her' territory, and has been a bit difficult, but rather less bumptious, which is altogether a Good Thing given that none of them currently have access to the living room at all and have to put up with each other 24/7. Once it's ready, Indigo will be put back in the living room at night though. She's in my room currently, and while she isn't fighting all night as she would usually have done, she is being a little territorial and yesterday left me a little 'gift' on a pile of clean towels. She absolutely knew what she'd done though, and ran and hid when I shouted and pointed and stomped my feet- she hasn't done it again.

So there you go... all you need to do to bring peace into a multi cat household, at least temporarily, is totally rearrange your living space, or alternatively move house. Simple eh? *rolls eyes*. I wonder if the peace will last?

 

bwahahahahah... you've got a hope, lady!

Ignore The Mess

... but there are FOUR cats in this picture and no-one is attempting to murder anyone else...

Can you see them?

Ava and Indigo on the bed, Theo in the cat tree 'hammock', Sofia up the top. I am absolutely astounded. What is more, they've been like it for over two hours now...

I've never quite lost hope for Ava and Indigo, you know. They used to snuggle, before Indigo got big and bolshy, and Ava used to call to Indigo a lot when they were seperated. I've seen them sniffing each other a lot recently. I've also seen Inds being an outrageous bully so I don't set that much store by a few sniffs, but it wasn't long ago when Indigo would shriek and posture on the merest sight of any other cat (bar Theo) so we have moved on. Somewhat. Ava would love to be friends I suspect. We'll see.

Results Say...

She hasn't got anything... no FIV, no FeLV, no coronavirus... essentially she's a healthy cat, thank goodness :)

Her white blood cells are still too low though. But there isn't anything nasty going on that could cause this. Possibly stress... but the vet said that even rehoming her may not solve the problem as she'd pine for her sister- probably for me, too, she's rather attached to me. And rehoming her seems terribly drastic.

So I don't know what to do about that really. It's a four cat household, so..? The vet said 'I'm guessing she's the one at the bottom of the pecking order?' and yes, she is, she always has been, I guess I underestimated how stressful that was for her. But even now I know, I don't really know what to do about it.

We've got Feliway plug ins and plenty of places to hide and snooze... Anyone got anything else to suggest?

Say Cheese

The blood tests have gone off, but I do have some good news. Despite not having eaten anything for 12 hours (for the blood test), Ava is still showing a weight gain on last time and is now nearly 6.9 lbs... almost at the bottom of the 'normal' range for a cat her size. Whoop! Really pleased, all that sneaking her extra cheese and cat treats is paying off. Yes I KNOW that isn't exactly healthy for a cat, but frankly I don't care- I don't think obesity is a big concern for her right at the moment!

Anyway two lots of blood are packaged nicely up and by tonight will be winging their way to two seperate labs, one locally to look at her white blood calls, and one in Glasgow, I believe (!) to rule out the big cat 'nasties'- FeLV, FIV and coronavirus.(FIP) Results back in a week, I hope.

OMG!

Ok, it's a rubbish photo, but I would like to draw your attention to the fact that I have three cats- Indigo, Sofia and Theo, in close proximity and no-one is trying to murder anyone else...

This state of affairs won't last. Indigo is in heat, and is currently wandering restlessly around howling her whiskers off- she can be SO noisy, this kitty. And that is all she is focused on. Sofia could not exist as far as she is concerned. All she can think of doing is shouting her head off and grabbig the attention of all the intact Toms (and some that are not, eh Theo??) in the neighbourhood, who then proceed to pee up my wall in an attempt to woo her. Tell me why I have cats again? Horrid beasts!

Sofia is totally baffled by this and has taken to following Indigo about, staring at her, trying to provoke her into doing something... and Inds won't, she's off on some higher plane (or down in the gutter thinking filthy thoughts more likely given the way she's flirting and presenting at Theo) and isn't playing ball.

It's all absolutely hilarious. I'm sure Inds will go back to her usual posturing in a few days, but it sure is nice to have a break from their usual 'disagreements'.

Ava is back at the vet tomorrow. I don't know when I'll have the results as this lot have to go off to another lab... but I'll be sure to let you know as soon as I can.

Bony Cat

Is still looking bony. Vets next week, and I can't wait to get this next test done and maybe get some answers...

She's looking like an abject little scrap isn't she? But you have to believe me when I say she is still her sweet, cuddly self. She doesn't seem ill. She obviously is though, must be, she looks like a skeleton  :'( It's apparent she isn't eating much now, her poops are small and she doesn't get excited and rush to the food bowls at wet food time. She'll eat out of my hand though (yes, I am a sucker) and I've been trying to slot high cal treats into her when the others aren't looking

I wonder if she'll eat kitten food? She never has before... She's never been one for the boiled chicken either but perhaps she will now? If I sprinkle it with cheese she might, she loves cheese and yes, I KNOW that's people food and not cat food, but look at her!!!!

She won't eat alone either. Sigh. I can see all my other cats are going to get super obese...

Ava The Brave

 

Ava enters the room with caution- will a whirling dervish appear out of nowhere and see her off?

 

 

 

Ava decides all is well, and comes into the living room! Hurrah! Scuse the sock on the floor...

 

 

She's getting very brave. The pictures do show off how skinny she's getting though, and I know I keep saying it but she's quite fluffy as well, so even skinnier than she looks. :( I'll be glad to get that second test done.

Winning

 

I'm still in charge...

Things are calmer on the whole integration front. There are still multiple bust-ups per day but they are shorter lived and far less likely to turn nasty.

The moggy sisters' boundaries have extended. Sofia will come into the living room now, and I've even seen shy Ava in the hallway. Admittedly she's most comfortable, they both are, when Inds is in her room for the night, when they don't have to watch out for a nasty look or a spitting face off, but they are all shaking down together nicely.

It feels like we are winning, slowly but surely.

Theo, on the other hand, is indulging in a veritable spray-fest, so I must target him for some particular attention. On that note, I'd best take him out for his walk as the skies are looking grey.

......... and I thought I'd posted this already! Skies now blue and sunny! Another walk, Theo?