Ribh's D'Coopage

[BY Bob]

I just do not understand how you manage this.
I adore my cats. They have been together for a half dozen years and they still don't all tolerate each other. I have a few pairings that work but I could never get a nice cozy picture like that.
I don't think my environment is particularly stressful for them - they all seem to live their best lives - they just don't particularly want to do so together!
I am very jealous!

We are very lucky to have such go along get along cats. I do think there is something to the bigger cat equals more chill theory that my daughter espouses. But they are just cool with everything.

 

[BY Bob]

I think it’s the latter. When I was in high school, we had a cat that would rub herself all over the armpits of my school shirts!

 

[Ribh]

So they are trying to mask their smell with human smell? Or are they just in love with human stench?

According to cat experts the cat is marking territory/ownership by leaving their scent on the object or person. Same reason Toms spay. Both my boys have been marking everything since the move as nothing smelled like *theirs*. What has been scented is then known by scent as being part of their family/territory.

Marlow has become quite territorial. He was eyeballing next doors ginger through the fence a few days ago, then he & Freya were having a face off [Marlow lost] & yesterday I grabbed him just before he attempted the 6' fence to take on the backs B&W, who roams quite a lot.

Kirby is a chronic scent marker. I get quite the going over some days with him rubbing scent glands along me everywhere he is allowed. There are scent glands along the cheek/jawline as well as the anus ~ which is why the rubbing.

 

[Ribh]

We are very lucky to have such go along get along cats. I do think there is something to the bigger cat equals more chill theory that my daughter espouses. But they are just cool with everything.

I'm sort of with your daughter on this. I think bigger cats tend to be more chill. Too much effort to expend all that energy battling foes. Mine are on the larger side & pretty chill with each other. We get the occasional spat but nothing terribly serious. I am in awe of your lot though. They really are incredible.

 

[Ribh]

It is too early for Caturday but I'll submit this early because I'll likely not remember in 3 days

DD1's cat Checkers at his new home in Virginia.

Lovely. Poor puss!

 

[Ribh]

@BY Bob: I'm sorry. I don't have the energy to wade through your thread but I am delighted with your new additions. I hope this means you finally get coloured eggs. Are your new girls vaccinated? And a friend for Hattie! She is such a lovely, lovely hen it would be wonderful if she teamed up with the newbie. Congratulations, my friend.

 

[MaryJanet]

I just do not understand how you manage this.
I adore my cats. They have been together for a half dozen years and they still don't all tolerate each other. I have a few pairings that work but I could never get a nice cozy picture like that.
I don't think my environment is particularly stressful for them - they all seem to live their best lives - they just don't particularly want to do so together!
I am very jealous!

Lessons learned in infancy and early childhood are veeeery sticky. Maybe it's the same for cats and your's learned distrust of others when they were tiny?

 

[RoyalChick]

Lessons learned in infancy and early childhood are veeeery sticky. Maybe it's the same for cats and your's learned distrust of others when they were tiny?

That could be right. All mine were rescues from different places and times except two who were litter mates according to the shelter.
They were all young cats when I adopted them but not tiny kittens, so my guess is they had a hard life before coming to live with me.
Two of them for sure were massively under weight and were terrified of everything for weeks so I can only imagine they had a rough start, and one of them is terrified specifically of men's voices, and one doesn't cope with people at all (except for me of course).
So I guess I have a house full of feline neuroticism!

 

[Ribh]

That could be right. All mine were rescues from different places and times except two who were litter mates according to the shelter.
They were all young cats when I adopted them but not tiny kittens, so my guess is they had a hard life before coming to live with me.
Two of them for sure were massively under weight and were terrified of everything for weeks so I can only imagine they had a rough start, and one of them is terrified specifically of men's voices, and one doesn't cope with people at all (except for me of course).
So I guess I have a house full of feline neuroticism!

I don't understand people being cruel to any animal. They are totally @ our mercy & it costsnothing to be kind.

 

[RoyalChick]

I don't understand people being cruel to any animal. They are totally @ our mercy & it costsnothing to be kind.

It makes me so sad and angry. I am also so naive - I get that there is a stray cat problem in many places, but that is different from actual cruelty. The shelter required a statement from my vet that I was a genuine cat lover before I could adopt Nightshade because it was October and he is all black and apparently people 'adopt' black cats at Halloween and then tie fireworks to their tails and other unspeakable things.
Sorry - I suspect I have mentioned that before - it gets me all riled up every time I think of it.
And here is Nightshade now in all his glory!