Sunday Hopefulness…
HIYA!! SAVANNAH HERE!!!
Have you ever noticed that sometimes our humans’ have all kinds of ‘hopefulness’…for us, the cat(s)? I mean, they often don’t even let us know they have this ‘hopefulness’…for us…on their minds.
Nice morning in bed
Maybe it’s just me…but I think that can lead to all kinds of miscommunication, misunderstandings and what not…don’t ‘cha think?? Or is it just me???
Well you all know I have been having to do some investigating…about several things…
- First…there were some rumors around blogville that made it sound like my furriends thought I might miss having Cuzin Leo around…and they were feeling a tad sad I was all alone…so I had to go check out who thought that and make sure they knew…”nope, nope and more nope”…don’t miss Cuzin Leo at all…happy he has his very OWN furrever castle…thank you very much…so ’nuff said on that rumor
- Then…there have been these recurring shadows around my home…some of you have seen the evidence in some of my photos…so I had to get out my steampunk investigative tools to try to learn what that was all about…what I learned…not pretty…no siree…not pretty at all.
So as the saying goes…”who ya gonna call…if there’s something strange in your neighborhood??”…why our peeps, of course!!! Right???
Wrong…when I finally brought all my findings to Mom and Dad…guess what they tried to do?…go on…guess…guess???…you won’t believe it…I am telling you…not for one itty bitty minute…you so won’t believe what they tried to do…one last ditch effort on their part…
They tried to pass off the shadows, the rumors…etc. as if it was all about…get this…SANTA PAWS!!! Like ‘as if’ Santa Paws was right here in my home!!! HAH!
And then they did it…they presented their evidence…
Seriously? Santa Paws??
Yup…there was Dad…holding this stoopid plushie black panfur kitty and saying it was “Santa Paws”…harruuummmppfffff….
And then…that plushie moved!!!
It can leap!!
…
It’s in my Three Way Teleport Tunnel!!!
…
Playing with my toys!!
Holy Ceiling Cat!!! They were hoping I would want a SISFUR!!!! AIIIEEEEEEEE!!! Who asked me??? Who, I ask, who????
Now I realized that Mom and Dad had been trying to get me all softened up for this “great new adventure”…heh…heh…yeah…like whose adventure is this gonna be???
Here is some of the photo evidence I have collected as to just WHAT I have been subjected to over the last 6 weeks…
…first…I began to notice someone had been messing around near one of my beds…(you can click to bigify OR see each gallery as a slideshow…hover cursor over photos to see captions)
…I set up a surveillance camera…look what I found…
This is when I just knew this was no “shadow“…HAH! Can’t fool a Tuxie, no way…no how…
So one morning…minding my own business in bed…just chilling with Mom…
Now I knew…this was no mirage or shadow…this was INVASION!!!….so there has been a lot of this…
…and this…just look at her…sneaking up on me in my very own special TENT my mentor Sammy taught me how to use….harummpppfff….
There have been some relaxed times…when I feel especially safe with Mom by me…
Sigh…I am not a very happy cat right now…so I am gonna give this last bit over to Mom Linda…
“errrrr….ummmm…Hi Everyone…Mom Linda here. So here is what is going on. Dad Peter and I believe in everything about Pets Add Life….more than one is always more fun and usually more comforting for both humans and our furry furramily. And we committed that if we EVER adopted another cat, besides Savvy, it would be a black panfur. We have looked, researched, waited…and learned…it doesn’t matter what gender, nor age, the companion feline is, what counts most is the personality when it comes into contact with the resident feline. Especially when that resident feline is Savannah…an adult survivor of kittenhood trauma…I am not mocking the real challenges of Adult Survivors of Childhood Trauma…rather using what I know, as a counseling psychologist, as I work with Savannah who so mirrors many of the human challenges of moving through to recovering from this early child/kitten experience.
I have been trying to chronicle our Nana’s recovery process. She has nightmares, cries out in her sleep, mews like a newborn kitten and seeks solace at my side. We have conferred with many long time feline experts…and they, like us, are convinced that Nana was feral early in life, most likely attacked by males cats in a feral colony for mating…hence she has such developed shoulder and neck muscle…and she is terrified of other cats…convinced they are out to harm her. She has little to no self esteem/self confidence. She only defends and hopes to escape.
Sweet Sage, so pure and innocent…perhaps one of the most well socialized cats we have ever been around. She is about 17 months old…mellow…non-confrontational in the beginning…but now learning she can dominate Nana. So sad.
We have not talked about this effort on our part on the blog…we did not want to have others have the same hope we have had…that Nana could accommodate a housemate. We have done all the Feliway, Spirit of Essence, behavioral consults, book readings…consultations with cat vet specialists and long time feral cat rescue folks etc. Trust me, we have not missed any homework.
But…we are not convinced that Nana can survive having another cat in her safe space. She is truly a special need feline…psychologically/behaviorally speaking. We honor her and her willingness to give us her trust to protect her.
We have not yet ‘thrown in the towel’ so to speak…but want you all to know what has been going on in our home.
Thank you all for continuing to come by and visit Savannah even when I have not been able to consistently visit and comment for all of you. This has been very time consuming to manage the girls’ integration process with the care we want to give it. You are such good friends and a wonderful supportive community. Thank you for your care and understanding.
Savannah's Paw Tracks 
Savvy, how can your ‘rents do this to you again? Mine tried once and gave up. You poor cat, what you had to put up with as a feral. TW thinks my probelms are because I was abused by a human as a feral kitten. I hope you can work through this and be a loving sisfur and mentor to the youngster.
oh Ck…you know…only time will tell…but I know Mom L and Dad P have MY best interests in their hearts
So just as we thought…another cat. It definitely is all about personality. It has nothing to do with sex, breed or age as you said. And even kitties who get along can one day decide they don’t like and don’t want anything to do with each other as has occurred at our house more than once. We hope you can keep Sage. Black cats are revered in our house. But we know you will do whatever is best for Savannah. Purrs and hugs, Lily Olivia, Mauricio, Misty May, Giulietta, Fiona, Astrid, Lisbeth and Calista Jo
Miss Savannah, I wish you all the best in this new step in life. And I’m with mythreemoggies — I laughed out loud at the photo of Miss Sage looking at you over the bed. Of course, if I had been present I would have tried to keep it to myself — must keep one’s dignity.
Think of you all at this time. Savvy, Mom Linda & Dad Peter will keep you safe!
Oooh, I hope this works out! It’s verreh eggs-siting to think you might have a House Panther like ME living there! Sneding you loads of purrs Savannah!
Sweet Savannah we think it would be so much fun for the both of you to be able to play together. We hope you and sweet Sage can get along, become the best of friends and have tons of fun together. You have an amazing mom and dad and we wish them great success in helping you two sweeties to both be happy campers and have a long, enjoyable life together in one of the most loving homes ever. Hugs and nose kisses
Oh Savvy, having an invader must be quite a trial for you. And I feel for you and your parents, introducing a new pet in a one pet household can be difficult – I’ve had firsthand experience of this going wrong… But I hope over time you learn to tolerate each other xxx
Sage sounds very sweet. I hope you can get over your fears, Savannah. It will be difficult for your mom and dad if you can’t.
Oh we do hope Miss Savvy can come round to sharing her space. We would always suggest two cats for company but if she has deep wounds, it may be impossible. Good luck in bringing her round sweet Sage xxx
The photo of Sage looking over the bed at Savvy is hilarious xx
The cat’s out of the bag, so to speak! We are hoping for the best and we know you will do what’s right for all of you. Good luck! ((Hugs)) and >>smooches<<
We heard about a new kitty in your domain. Miss Sage is beautiful and we really hope things work out.
Oh Savvy..what a strange time for you..it is hard when you have many memories and learned fears..i do hope you and Sage can work out a compromise..i have been so lucky when integrating cats ..Cleo being the oldest cat I introduced to my clowder..Pickles of all the girls was the most fighty..she made Cleo feel very unwelcome..we did the whole look but cant get to for quite awhile..eventually they sorted it out..it is so dependant on the past life of the cats..and believe it or not I had to do the same with chickens so they didn’t leave a crime scene..a wire enclosure so they could see each other but knew they were safe..they could smell watch and observe the others..then when the calm had been reached an introduction.I so hope this all ends well…hugs Fozziemum xx
What a difficult dilemma! Sage is quite adorable, and we hope that with time Savanah would come to be comfortable enough with her to stay. We had no idea it was so hard to integrate two kitties. We will cross our paws that it will all work out.
Woos – Phantom, Ciara, and Lightning
woofies are not as…ahhhh….’discriminating’ sometimes as kittehs…just from Mom and Dad’s experience…thank you for coming by…purrs to all, Savannah
I agree, Savannah isn’t hiding so don’t let beautiful Sage bother Savannah. I know, easier said than done, but talk cat, crawl on the floor and hiss and gently whap her away.
oh Dad Terry and Brian…we knew you could help us…we are trying…even Savvy
Savvy, we really hope you and Sage can work it out. Humans aren’t privy to our minds and sometimes we’re won over a LOT more slowly…paws crossed that you two can become housemates. Mommy says you two napping that close is a good sign.
THank you so very much Miss Trish…we knew you would have a perspective that would help
That’s tough Savvy. I know it didn’t work out with Leo and that was traumatic. Sage does look like a black panther, you make a good looking family, but if you continue to feel unsafe I know your Mom and Dad will do the right thing for you.
We’ll be watching with interest to see if this Christmas another miracle happens!!
Let’s hope that this “miracle” is one for the books for sure!
Yow Savannah we can furinally exhale….ya shure did yer snooper-investigatin n ya waz right…dere IZ a Panfur gurl in yer midst!! Me not shure what to sayz ’cause az a kitteh wif isshuez me cuud not have another kittteh in me crib….it iz hard to even see da Shadow Kittehz eatin otuside on da patio!! Butt me iz a speshell kitteh n older den dirt now so me can not change…ya iz still young enuff to accept a kitteh sharin yer place….
Me herd a roomer da Sage LUBZ yer Dad alot…so me n Mum meowed a bit n we wanted to ask ya if ya cuud let Sage stay n share like ya did wif Cuss-in Leo. Sage cuud have her own room n Dad cuud bizit her…..den ya cuud be wif Miss Linda n Sage cuud have livin room time…..it cuud werk, right…maybee??? Yah? No?? Ya do haz a bigger place den we haz here…n Miss Linda n Mistur Peter can take care of 2 of ya just fine….butt den again me NOSE dat sharin izn’t easy n me cuud not doez it wifout losin me sh*t (like me did at da Vet’z last Tuesday)…
Oh sowwy Miss Linda fer da bad werd…Mum sayz me iz notty fer swearin….
Sage iz bery beuteeful…butt no kitteh cuud match yer beeutee n grace Savannah…what ever ya deecide we will understand….
Much lub n *nose kissez* (cyber of coarse) frum Nylablue n Lub frum Sherriellen Mum (who sayz da piccie of Sage peepin up at you in da bed iz a grrrreat pickture n me agreez…)
MOUSES! Almost forgot…
Please come visit Savvy. There’s a special little somethin’ over on my blog for you.
Purrs,
Nissy
So… the cat is finally out of the bag!
Savvy, you have not yet experienced the pleasures of fur-sibs. Oh sure.. they steal your food, toys, space… AIR. Have I missed anything there? But they can also steal your blame. Yup, it’s true. Say you get into a little mischief one day. A breakable breaks or somethin’. What do you do? Why, BLAME THE SIB, of course. I do it all the time. Works like a charm. Especially useful this time of year when peeps start decoratin’ trees with all those rollable breakables.
Come on Savvy… give it a try.
Purrs,
Nissy
It’s going to work….I know it’s going to work..you are doing everything the right way.You may have a minor nervous breakdown (been there, done that!) during the integration process…but you’ll get there.
Much love
Jane x
We know this is serious business, but we had to MOL at the photo of Sage peeking up over the edge of the bed. She’s really beautiful, Savvy, though not as beautiful as you, of course.
As you know, after our failed adoption of Beau, we’ve been giving cat integration a lot of thought. We know you’re working very hard to get Sage to fit in with Savvy, and it’s time-consuming and sometimes heartbreaking to watch the glimmers of progress show up and then flicker out. You are awesome, patient advocates for Savvy, and we know you’ll do what’s best for her. We hope that she will relax a little with Sage, for everybody’s sake. Please keep us posted.
Aw wow! In wish you all the very best of luck with this. I truly do! And I have high hopes that it will all work out in the end for sure! Thank you for opening up your lives in such a beautiful way and sharing it with us!
Oh la la what a good looking house panter !
Sure hope you two become furriends !
XOXO
The picture (airplane ears) is the cutest I ever saw. I hope and cross my paws that you will accept Sage in your house, Savvy. I know that’s not easy but maybe the miracle will happen. That would be wonderful.
Yikes, Savvy! This could be a ……thing. Maybe a good thing. Time is a great tool. Maybe that tool will help you have a sister that you …..tolerate. Or even like. Or even love! Good luck.
Love and licks,
Cupcake
Integrating another cat into a one-cat household must be a terrific challenge when the “already there” kitty is fearful. I have this feeling that Savvy and Sage will work this out in a way that we humans may not understand. Sage is really a gorgeous girl! It must be distressing though for you to see Sage “pushing the limits” with Savvy’s circle of comfort but perhaps as Savvy sees she is SAFE she will accept Sage’s presence and in time they will become friends. Sammy and I both hope that they can find a state of peaceful coexistence for EVERYONE’s sake.
We’ve got fingers and paws crossed for this to work out for all of you!
Hugs, Sammy and his Mom
No immediate love affair between the two? Bringing together two cats hardly ever results in a loveatfirstsight-affair – unless you are very, very lucky. But the photo with both sides lying so closely there, that’s indeed HOPEFUL!
Do not give up – just because you think Savvy is not happy does not mean she is not happy. Look at the bright side: She does not hide. She has to settle from “only child” to having a rival, yes – but she lies there with you and the rival and does not flee or hiss!!! Savvy is on the way. In her own time.
Aw Savvy, how I wish we could just blink and you’d accept another kitty in your home. Trust me, I wish this for my home too. We have a half truce half smack-fest situation here now. Sometimes I wonder if bringing in a third kitty, a girl, would settle Star since she did have a sister at one point early in her life. But I’m too afraid to try at this point. Star’s age has a lot to do with that though.
Anyway, I hope things work out for you all. Hugs and purrs from all of us!
I have to say, Savvy, I loved Miss Sage from the moment I saw her! I really hope you two do get things worked out because she is clearly awesome and, well, you DO have a really good home and it would be so nice to share it…
One cat house here too … so hope they can learn to love each other. Sage is delightful xxx’s for our special Savannah
The one thing you don’t mention in your part of today’s blog, is how hard it is for the humans. Loving both kitties, seeing how they effect each other and the entire household. Everyone takes their own unique journey and we know you, Mom Linda & Dad Peter only want to do the best for both your girls. If we were to offer any advise, and I suppose we must, it is simply to remember that family is for the long haul. Hitch’s gotcha day is today, he’s been here 5 years, Mistletoe will have been here 10 years on Tuesday. Pumpkin and Tiger, 5 1/2 years this past summer. There were times I didn’t think we’d all make it. Mistletoe is defensive and suspicious from her time in the shadows. The Twins were born feral, reunited with their mother after she was trapped for TNR. And Hitch? His story the sweetest and most mysterious. So sweet and affectionate, but uncomfortable with touching and human contact. And I tell you all this because sometimes it’s hard to see the cracks in a family from the outside. The hissing and flying fur make the purring and sharing all the sweeter. We wish the four of you the best of luck. We look forward to learning more about Sage and following the journey the four of you are on together. We would be honored to offer you a hand, shoulder or ear whenever you might need one.
Purrs and hugs,
M, H & D