First Five Days

There's a neat meme going around called First Five Days in My Forever Home, and many cats have done an open tag, so I thought I'd jump in and play!


Day One: Mom and Dad brought me home from my checkup at the v.e.t and got me all cozy in what they now call the Project Room, which had been turned into a Cat Sanctuary for me. It was nice: there was a cozy chair with a blanket, lots of good food, toys, and they left the kitty carrier in there for me, too, in case I wanted a chill-out place. Mom and Dad had told me there were two cats in the house who would be my sisters (Mao hadn't come on the scene yet!) but I wasn't allowed to meet them -- Mom and Dad wanted to introduce us slowly. Mom and Dad spent time in the Sanctuary with me, and I enjoyed cuddling with them. I was pretty relaxed, despite getting a whiff of the two as-yet unknown cats in the house! I later learned that Mom and Dad had put them in the bedroom before bringing me into the house. That evening, I saw two inquisitive kitty noses from under the door, a black one and an orange one. Those kitty noses were the first I saw of my sisters, Brainball and Dorydoo. They knew I was in there, a new kitty. Nobody hissed, since we couldn't see much of each other, but there was a whole lot of sniffing going on.

Day Two: I got to explore the house -- several times! Mom and Dad put Brainball and Dorydoo in the bedroom, though, while I was out of my Sanctuary Room. It was still too soon for them to meet me: Mom and Dad wanted us to exchange scents more before we actually saw each other. And my oh my, the whole house smelled like Brainball and Dorydoo! It intimidated me a bit, but Mom and Dad were so reassuring and comforting, and I spent quality time in their laps before they put me back in the Sanctuary and gave Brainball and Dorydoo the run of the house again. Mom and Dad spent lots of time with me in the Sanctuary Room so I wasn't lonely in there, and the time they weren't in there with me, I caught up on my sleeping. It had already been a very eventful two days -- it kind of wore me out!

Day Three: As I recall, it was a clone of Day Two: Mom and Dad let me out of the Sanctuary Room several times to explore the house while they put Brainball and Dorydoo in the bedroom. I was feeling less intimidated each time I explored the house, and from what Mom tells me, Brainball and Dorydoo weren't upset by my smell, though they were very curious.

Day Four: Mom and Dad decided to leave the Sanctuary Room door cracked so I could get out if I wanted to. And they left the kitty carrier in there for me as a retreat if I got too nervous. I was nervous, but I am a brave girl, so I left the sanctuary to meet my sisters. I went into the living room, and there they were -- a lean, gold-eyed black kittygirl and a huge fuzzy orange kittygirl! Brainball scared me a little because she's so big. She sized me up but she didn't hiss, she just kept her eye on me. Then she got close to me, but I got nervous and hissed and backed away. Dorydoo hissed at me, too, and did a funny, prolonged squeak. But nobody got swatty, spitty, or spewy, so after a few minutes of me looking at my new sisters and them looking at me, Mom and Dad decided there had been enough interaction for the time being and put me back in the Sanctuary Room. I was ready. I'd gotten a bit tense, I'm afraid. I took a nice, long nap.

Day Five: Mom and Dad cracked the Sanctuary Room Door again, and I went out, more confidently this time. And that day, I had the run of the house for quite a while. My sisters and I didn't like getting too close to each other, but we all behaved ourselves, and we all got treats -- yum! Mom and Dad kept the Sanctuary Room for me for several days after that, especially when they were asleep and couldn't supervise us, and it was my retreat when things got tense. But things never got bad between my sisters and me, and over time, we all accepted each other quite well.

My darling Mickey: I would love to hear about your first five days in your forever home! And imagine that I am kissing that owie on that sweet, mancat nose of yours. Thank you for your beautiful triolet. You know that you are my sweet prince, don't you?

And speaking of princes: Congratulations to my dear friend Miss Peach: her prince, Ali, has come!

And everyone, please go to sweet Suzanne's blog and give her Mom purrs and hugs. Precious Suz has made the journey to the Bridge.