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abendgulesWe have a 'trial' cat, currently named Coco, courtesy of Poorly Paws (FB page), the east-end cat rehoming charity. The woman running it works at another branch of our vet's practice, and thus has a steady supply of cats that need new homes.
In this case, an owner 'signed her over' (which I think means asked the vet to take over her care) because his new girlfriend didn't like cats. His loss!
She's a lovely classic tabby, with black stripes on grey on legs and tail, and a swirled pattern on her side. She's beautifully symmetrical, with one white patch on her chest, 'eyeliner' highlights and a light-brown tummy. She has a solid chunky body build, but her tail looks a bit short and thin for her size - very different shape from Harley.
For those who might remember Puddy, she reminds me of Pud - cobby body, thick fur, lovely markings.
The conditions of trial are pretty relaxed - one or two week, or 'whatever is needed', to determine if Coco is a good fit. Aside from character, we want to know if she'll make Robert sneeze, but it's been pretty good so far.
Coco is exceptionally friendly - she'll visit with anyone who is offering head scritches, and chats with you when she's excited (hurray, breakfast! hot diggity, Going Out!). She has a gargling sort of meow, and a very quiet purr.
She seems to be looking at us for cues a lot - gazing up at us with an expectant look. I have no idea if we're passing muster, or are failing miserably.
On Saturday, after carefully investigating our house, she had a drink and a nibble and then continued with the reconnaissance, coming back with dust on her whiskers, to eventually settle on the sofa for a bit for a lengthy groom. Her fur is quite dense, and evidently requires a lot of care.
A couple of hours after arrival - trying to cope with the stress of moving.
However, brushing was *not* welcome on day 1. We'll keep trying, to see if she'll come to enjoy it.
Beds are the *best* venue for sprawling - they give the most options for stretching out but keeping in touch with the human. And she already knows one of China's tricks: if you tap humans very gently on the face with a sharp-clawed paw, they wake up easily! Very useful.
She's litter trained; she had to ask three times for directions from the clueless staff, but once she found the box was quite happy.
Harley was outdoors-trained, and nothing could convince her otherwise. I don't know if there's any way to broaden Coco's options to include the outdoors!
Right now, we're keeping her indoors to get used to us, but she clearly wants More Out to explore, and she led Robert a fine dance yesterday morning when he was headed out to work - Not Finished with Out, thank you!
We need to replace the current chip-sensor cat flap, because ours has a fault, but after that, we're hoping she can manage her own ins and outs. I allowed her a short Out this morning, and she wasn't impressed with being scooped up to hustle her back indoors. This evening there was a longer Out, at least til we ran into a strange cat - then her skinny tail just about trebled in size..
She's so outgoing, and so inquisitive, we're a bit concerned she won't come back if we let her out unsupervised. I think it's better to let her out hungry (with promise of food at home), Robert thinks we should let her out fed, to keep her from scrounging. Any opinions?
In the meantime, string-on-a-stick is a very welcome diversion; in fact, strings and fine threads are *so* marvellous we may have to keep a closer hold of our sewing tools. Pencils rolling on the bare floor provide a rewarding rattling noise and are also a hit.
Helping me with patterning hose. She appears to be a natural in this role.
We're not certain if Coco is a permanent name; being medieval geeks we'd rather she answered to something historic, but we haven't found the right name yet. Since she doesn't answer to anything so far, it's not a great issue.
This evening's pose. It's foreshortened, because this paw was at full extension in search of perfect comfort.
In this case, an owner 'signed her over' (which I think means asked the vet to take over her care) because his new girlfriend didn't like cats. His loss!
She's a lovely classic tabby, with black stripes on grey on legs and tail, and a swirled pattern on her side. She's beautifully symmetrical, with one white patch on her chest, 'eyeliner' highlights and a light-brown tummy. She has a solid chunky body build, but her tail looks a bit short and thin for her size - very different shape from Harley.
For those who might remember Puddy, she reminds me of Pud - cobby body, thick fur, lovely markings.
The conditions of trial are pretty relaxed - one or two week, or 'whatever is needed', to determine if Coco is a good fit. Aside from character, we want to know if she'll make Robert sneeze, but it's been pretty good so far.
Coco is exceptionally friendly - she'll visit with anyone who is offering head scritches, and chats with you when she's excited (hurray, breakfast! hot diggity, Going Out!). She has a gargling sort of meow, and a very quiet purr.
She seems to be looking at us for cues a lot - gazing up at us with an expectant look. I have no idea if we're passing muster, or are failing miserably.
On Saturday, after carefully investigating our house, she had a drink and a nibble and then continued with the reconnaissance, coming back with dust on her whiskers, to eventually settle on the sofa for a bit for a lengthy groom. Her fur is quite dense, and evidently requires a lot of care.
A couple of hours after arrival - trying to cope with the stress of moving.
However, brushing was *not* welcome on day 1. We'll keep trying, to see if she'll come to enjoy it.
Beds are the *best* venue for sprawling - they give the most options for stretching out but keeping in touch with the human. And she already knows one of China's tricks: if you tap humans very gently on the face with a sharp-clawed paw, they wake up easily! Very useful.
She's litter trained; she had to ask three times for directions from the clueless staff, but once she found the box was quite happy.
Harley was outdoors-trained, and nothing could convince her otherwise. I don't know if there's any way to broaden Coco's options to include the outdoors!
Right now, we're keeping her indoors to get used to us, but she clearly wants More Out to explore, and she led Robert a fine dance yesterday morning when he was headed out to work - Not Finished with Out, thank you!
We need to replace the current chip-sensor cat flap, because ours has a fault, but after that, we're hoping she can manage her own ins and outs. I allowed her a short Out this morning, and she wasn't impressed with being scooped up to hustle her back indoors. This evening there was a longer Out, at least til we ran into a strange cat - then her skinny tail just about trebled in size..
She's so outgoing, and so inquisitive, we're a bit concerned she won't come back if we let her out unsupervised. I think it's better to let her out hungry (with promise of food at home), Robert thinks we should let her out fed, to keep her from scrounging. Any opinions?
In the meantime, string-on-a-stick is a very welcome diversion; in fact, strings and fine threads are *so* marvellous we may have to keep a closer hold of our sewing tools. Pencils rolling on the bare floor provide a rewarding rattling noise and are also a hit.
Helping me with patterning hose. She appears to be a natural in this role.
We're not certain if Coco is a permanent name; being medieval geeks we'd rather she answered to something historic, but we haven't found the right name yet. Since she doesn't answer to anything so far, it's not a great issue.
This evening's pose. It's foreshortened, because this paw was at full extension in search of perfect comfort.
