Monday, March 12, 2018

Update: Angel v. Da Boyz

Angel, playing yesterday morning
We have been practicing site swapping, with Angel upstairs, then downstairs, and Da Boyz downstairs, then upstairs.  If they ever met on either side of a closed door, there was hissing, growling, and paws flying.  And Angel was meowing, meowing, meowing all day long, no matter where she was.

Therefore, The Hubby and I decided last week that everyone will be kept apart.  Angel now is full time upstairs, living in the area that used to be an apartment.  There are four rooms, plenty of windows, perches, beddies, toys, etc.  This is where Angel and Chuck used to live when they first came home with us as wee kittens.  Angel is also on a mild mood stabilizer, temporarily.

Manny and Chili Bruce occupy downstairs, which includes the front room, dining room and back hall (and the kitchen, if some person forgets to latch the screen door), with many catification climbers, scratchers, boxes, beddies, toys, windows, and of course, the human(s) during the daytime.  When it's meal time the humans, we 'park' them in the front parlor, so we can eat in peace without two cat noses in our vegan sloppy joes, salads, or oat meal.  Both cats have each grabbed a sandwich right out of our hands, and run off with it, and who cannot forget The Struggle Is Real post!

Chili Bruce, looking at camera, and Manny
chillaxin' on Sunday afternoon,
on a coat-covered chair
Thank you Pamela Merritt from The Way Of Cats Blog, for answering my questions, and being encouraging when we were at our wit's end.  Point of note: Feliway Diffusers have done nothing.  Thanks also to all of my blogging and non-blogging friends, who've offered one-on-one encouragement, and the benefit of their own experiences with similar situations.  You know who you are, and I appreciate all of your help.

This situation is far from settled; we will keep working with Angel, Manny and Chili Bruce to see if relations can be re-established.  For this past week, this new set-up has worked.  No humans are being driven from the house, and no cats are ready to attack...well, except Da Boyz who must have a tussle or two every day.  Brothers...!!!

Angel is VERY bonded to The Hubby, and recognizing this key to her emotional strife has helped all of us.  He knows that he must spend quiet time and playtime with her a few times a day.  We will rearrange some furniture so he can comfortably interact with her AND keep his old, creaky bones comfortable too.  Of course, I too share Angel's space often, but it's really The Hubby who makes her heart go pitter-pat.  Obviously, I don't mind sharing him with another female; after all, I have The PO'M who is my boyfriend...
Patty O'Malley, on my lap

29 comments:

  1. I'm glad you are getting lots of advice. As we know, it can be tough to figure out things when kitties don't get along. Keep an eye on Angel and the medication. We had Sadie on prozac for about a year, and she ate less and lost about a pound. We did some googling and learned that eating less is a side effect of the medication.

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  2. Yippee for finding a solution that seems to work. We finally found a similar situation with Ruby when she came to live with us and she continues to love staying exclusively in our master bedroom!

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  3. guyz.....nothin wrong with havin yur own roomz... we noe lotz oh palz that due N we iz buzzed happee a solutionz iz in place.....N ya never noe; one day when mom N dad leest eggz pect it; ya mite all bee come best pals !! ☺☺☺♥♥♥

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  4. The boyz and Angel are lucky to be loved by 2 such devoted peeps
    Hugs madi your bfff

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  5. It sounds like you have come up with a solution for the time being that seems to be working. Kudos to you and your perseverance will pay off. Hugs!

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  6. Thanks for the update. We know this is tough, but it seems like for now, you've arranged a good set up. We will keep our paws crossed for future improvement.

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  7. Thank goodness you and The Hubby have the room and the patience to deal with this ! Praying for peace for all concerned !

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  8. This really sounds like the best solution for all. And while you may not think it's ideal, for the cats, it really is.

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  9. I agree with the Island Cats, Angel told you what works best and you both listened, bravo!

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  10. Kudos to you for working so hard to keep your mulit cat home peaceful. It can be a challenge. They are such wonderful creatures.

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  11. Sounds like a very good plan! Maybe one day everyone will feel like co-habitating :)

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  12. Glad to hear things are starting to get more settled - i do hope they can all get along one day! I can't believe thy stole sandwiches!

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  13. Sounds like the best solution for now.
    As long as everyone and everycat is happy that's all that matters :)
    Purrs Georgia,Julie and JJ

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  14. I still say she is mourning Chuckie and more than likely views the boys as "intruders" (that is what I have been saying all along) and...I have always been anti-Feliway because I also think it does absolutely nothing. catchatwithcarenandcody

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    1. We agree. Mom was reminded of when Eddie lost his pal Cowbell (Mom's cats number 2 and 3), all he did was cry for the longest time. Up until her loss, he never said more than two meows. It just takes as long as it takes. Give Angel a kissie from Mom and us.

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  15. It's good that Angel can have her own apartment. It must be easier on her to not have the boys smell in her space.

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  16. I am sure you will make it all work out.

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  17. Sounds interesting. So you have kitties everywhere with their own turf and no turf wars. Pretty smart, I'd say.

    Shoko

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  18. I am so sorry that integrations are not moving forward. You are always torn when your house is not harmonious. It sounds like you have a working solution at the moment and I hope in time, maybe when the babies are older, you can make some progression.

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  19. Sounds like it's the best solution now. There are numbers of blogging kitties with their own rooms and they sure seem happy & comfortable :-)

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  20. We are glad you found a solution for Angel and Da Boyz, maybe one day they can be integrated but if not it sounds as if everyone has what they need to be happy with your current arrangement.

    You asked about our artwork, We actually think it is a DOG. We think it is a Fu Dog from Chinese mythology http://warriorsofmyth.wikia.com/wiki/Fu_Dog

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  21. I'm sure that time will help the cats get along. For now separation sounds like a good plan. Good luck!

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  22. Aww... it's the best you can do for now. Hope it all works out in the end :)

    Purrs xx
    Athena and Marie

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  23. I never thought Bear and Ellie would stop fighting. We kept her separate in the second bedroom at night - for the first months. The readjustment was difficult though - every morning we'd go through the introduction again and it never went well. Then once I let her out at night, I'd get up a ton of times each night to try to get them to stop fighting. We hope that this is just a temporary solution ... hopefully the boys will settle down a little bit and Angel will give them a chance!

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  24. Sometimes it takes cats a long time to get along but most of the time it does work out Everyone finds their safe place. Good luck to you.

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  25. I'm glad you've arrived at some form of detante. I recently read a study that said Feliway had no effect (I think it was in a shelter). I've used it before and it didn't do anything to calm the kitties and I could smell it (yuck).

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  26. Cat wars! We have had our fair share of those! Luckily Kozmo, Jo Jo, Marvelous and Ninja all seem to be fairly mellow. There are always a few sparks when Kozmo and Jo Jo or Ninja visit. But they settle down after a few days.
    In the past..with other cats...i too have gone through what you are going through.
    And you know, I've found that feliway and calming collars do work to some extent in expediting the transitions.
    Love Barb

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  27. We are so sorry you're havin' to go through this. But we're fankful you have somethin' that works and the space fur it. We'll continue to send lots of purrayers fur all. big hugs

    Luv ya'

    Dezi and Raena

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