Cat Lovers Thread

[Overmind One]

Oh wow...a FIRST! The cats actually ate together for the first time today! For anybody who has followed the long introduction process I have been describing with my three lions, you know that my two original cats Siete and Dante are friends and have been since before I got them from Sherry. Even though Dante had been banished to the outdoors by Sherry before I moved in, Siete would seek him out when let outside and hang out with him. Here is their relationship:

Fisher is not part of their brotherly clique yet, and they still have not allowed him to hang out on my bed with them. But today I decided to try feeding Fisher in the same room at the same time as the other two cats. have tried this before, but Fisher refused to eat near the other guys out of fear. But today, lo and behold:

This is a major development! Remember, this shit is all new to me so I am very surprised to see this. This time last year everything was so bad between the two resident cats and Fisher that I considered re-homing him. All it needed was time, and in this case that means about a year. In another year, they should all be friends I would hope. The screaming fighting cat balls stopped months ago, and Fisher is noticeably less fearful now. Siete stalks him less and they are able to pass each other with a minimum of growling or hissing. Dante doesn't seem to give a shit what Fisher does, except allowing him to snuggle next to me when I am on the bed in which case he will yowl and chase Fisher off the bed.

 

[Overmind One]

Another first! My two original cats had forbidden Fisher from entering the "Daddy Zone" of my bed. He would be chased off by Dante who is usually on there, or by Siete whenever he entered the bedroom and saw him even TRYING to get on the bed. But I go in the kitchen to make some tea, and I came back to find this (just taken):

Ear language (in relaxed pose) and the absence of tail lashing means they are all calm and not agitated. One full year for this to happen...damn, cats are really choosy about their friends, huh?

 

[Overmind One]

I was just watching the final episode of Star trek TNG: All Good Things, and noticed for the first time that the future Data had like...10 cats in his mansion at Cambridge! They were on his mantle, on the furniture and chairs. LMAO.

So, Reg and Data were the cat lovers along with the original Spock. Other famous male cat lovers:

http://rulingcatsanddogs.com/cats-famous-cat-owners-celebrities-pets-celebrity-feline-lovers.htm

From that same site:

Miscellaneous Note Difficult as it is to believe, not everyone loves cats. Genghis Kahn was a famous cat-hater and so were Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar. It may be that men with dreams to dominate the world can’t get used to the idea that cats won’t submit to them. The same streak of ailurophobia (cat hate) affected the personalities of Napoleon Bonaparte, Benito Mussolini, and Adolph Hitler.

Interesting! Im still new at this, but I can definitely confirm the understanding that cats own their people. If they were raised with a dog, they will also own the dog by using the dog's own pack mentality against it. Their interactions between other cats intrigues me. They have preferences for everything they do.

 

[Gatefan1976]

Pack VS individual.

Cats are dumbass libertarians, dogs are dumbass conservatives

 

[Overmind One]

Pack VS individual.

Cats are dumbass libertarians, dogs are dumbass conservatives

Its really interesting to me...like you said, dogs are pack animals so it is easy for them to organize in groups and conform to a pecking order once established. But cats...they are not pack animals, so when they live with other cats in a confined area (like inside your house or apartment), they form a "cooperative" with the other cats. My three neutered boys are still hammering out their agreements. Siete and Dante already have theirs in place, but Fisher has forced them to make concessions and make allowances for him. Its slow, but it is happening. For the last three days, I have awoken in the morning to find all three cats on my bed, with Fisher sleeping right next to me (and next to Siete). This means they have granted him more privileges.

 

[Gatefan1976]

Cats don't need 200 years to sort out their differences

 

[Overmind One]

Cats don't need 200 years to sort out their differences

Very true! It has taken a little over a year for Dante and Siete to allow Fisher to even get on the bed at all. For 4 months, he was not even allowed in the bedroom. Now, starting about 4 days ago, this is the morning crew on my bed:

Siete (alpha) and Fisher are still are getting into minor scuffles (stalking, hissing, posturing), and at least one good fight last week. But evidently they are agreeing on some things. I expect a fully integrated cooperative between these cats by next year.

 

[Gatefan1976]

Hint
Kick them off your bed!!!

You "OWN" them, don't let them try to own you

End of the bed, unless you are playing with them.

 

[Overmind One]

Hint
Kick them off your bed!!!

You "OWN" them, don't let them try to own you

End of the bed, unless you are playing with them.

I do, when I make up the bed which is every morning. I get up, shower and then come back in the bedroom to make up the bed and I kick them off when I do that. You can see my bath towel on the left, and the bed is not made yet. But the morning sun tracks across my bed so they usually get back on when I am done dressing and go off to work. Fisher usually re-locates to the cat tree where he is when I go to bed. Sometime during the night, he migrates to the place on my bed next to me and that is where he is when I wake up...next to the other cats too. This thing with the bed is just days old.

As far as owning them...yes, *technically* I own them. But they own me in their special way. I really feel for Fisher. He has tried so hard for all this time to just create a peaceful co-existence with the other two cats. He is friendly towards them, but they return hostility. At least the boss cat Siete does. Dante seems to be open to peaceful co-existence. Fisher is a brave little cat and I give him lots of one-on-one time to make up for the lack of cooperation he is getting from the other two guys. Things are improving over time. This is Fisher:

 

[Gatefan1976]

LOL!!
no.
Your room, your rules.
you respect their autonomy, they should respect yours.

 

[Overmind One]

LOL!!
no.
Your room, your rules.
you respect their autonomy, they should respect yours.

Ya know....I actually LIKE to have my cats on the bed. Unless I have a bed guest, the cats are welcome to share my large bed. Its nice to have Dante snuggle under my arm and knead me whilst purring his little heart out. . I draw the line at my freshly laundered clothes, my shoe rack, any surface at all in the kitchen (no cat land) or the top of my dining table. They respect that because if they dont, they will get the water spray AND the hissing compressed air treatment. I was able to break them of those zones last year. They also know not to love on me when I am wearing a suit or if I am bare chested (no kneading). I guess I have formed a cooperative with them as well.

 

[Illiterati]

In regard to cats vs dogs, both of my dogs were raised by cats, so its done interesting things to how my dogs think, I believe.

Yes, I'm 100% cat-owned and operated.

 

[Overmind One]

In regard to cats vs dogs, both of my dogs were raised by cats, so its done interesting things to how my dogs think, I believe.

Yes, I'm 100% cat-owned and operated.

My original two cats used to belong to Sherry Jackson, and Siete raised her yorkie Bella from a puppy. Siete groomed her, slept and played with her. I have video somewhere on my computer where they are playing. But Bella was NOT the alpha of the house, it was Siete. Bella was basically just one of Siete's non-feline pets, just like his humans are. Now that they are mine (and much better taken care of IMO), Siete must own every human he sees. My neighbors love him. He speaks to each and every one of them from his window next to my front door which is on the walkway.

Your dogs will always respect cats if they were raised by them. Most cats I find in people's homes with a dog present will have the same dynamic. The cat is the boss, not the dog.

 

[Illiterati]

My original two cats used to belong to Sherry Jackson, and Siete raised her yorkie Bella from a puppy. Siete groomed her, slept and played with her. I have video somewhere on my computer where they are playing. But Bella was NOT the alpha of the house, it was Siete. Bella was basically just one of Siete's non-feline pets, just like his humans are. Now that they are mine (and much better taken care of IMO), Siete must own every human he sees. My neighbors love him. He speaks to each and every one of them from his window next to my front door which is on the walkway.

Your dogs will always respect cats if they were raised by them. Most cats I find in people's homes with a dog present will have the same dynamic. The cat is the boss, not the dog.

Jeffrey the cat allows Abigail the dog to "win" in their daily wrestling matches. As he is considerably larger than she is, that means something.

The two of them in a quiet moment.

 

[Rac80]

I had a dog and a cat as a child- this was before I learned I am seriously allergic to cats- and the dog thought the cat was her puppy. the cat would go along with it for a while then she would swipe at the dog's nose (claws in ) and stalk off.

 

[Overmind One]

Jeffrey the cat allows Abigail the dog to "win" in their daily wrestling matches. As he is considerably larger than she is, that means something.View attachment 29007
The two of them in a quiet moment.

That pic is just adorable. The cat loves Abigail. I bet Jeffrey was purring in that pic. I have seen this cat + dog relationship so many times over the past year!

 

[Illiterati]

They are indeed the very best of buddies. It's really very sweet to watch them.

It puts the lie to the whole "dogs and cats are natural enemies" b.s. in a hurry.

 

[Overmind One]

They are indeed the very best of buddies. It's really very sweet to watch them.

It puts the lie to the whole "dogs and cats are natural enemies" b.s. in a hurry.

After seeing this cat + dog dynamic in every household that has both (living together inside or in/out), I am wondering how that bs assumption started in the first place? In the wild, or with dogs which have never been exposed to a domesticated cat, I might see it. But to watch a cat and dog play, and notice how the cat makes sure not to expose claws or bite too hard, that is just love IMO. I notice that dogs like the purring of a cat as much as people do.

What breed/how much does Jeffrey weigh?

 

[Illiterati]

After seeing this cat + dog dynamic in every household that has both (living together inside or in/out), I am wondering how that bs assumption started in the first place? In the wild, or with dogs which have never been exposed to a domesticated cat, I might see it. But to watch a cat and dog play, and notice how the cat makes sure not to expose claws or bite too hard, that is just love IMO. I notice that dogs like the purring of a cat as much as people do.

What breed/how much does Jeffrey weigh?

Jeff is about 18 pounds. No idea on his lineage. He was a feral kitten on the Long Beach docks several years ago. He'll be six in April. He was raised by a sweet, elderly wedge-head Siamese girl who I still miss terribly. We lost her 4 years ago. She was a rescue.

 

[Overmind One]

Jeff is about 18 pounds. No idea on his lineage. He was a feral kitten on the Long Beach docks several years ago. He'll be six in April. He was raised by a sweet, elderly wedge-head Siamese girl who I still miss terribly. We lost her 4 years ago. She was a rescue.

He is about the same size as Fisher. Abigail must be positively tiny!