The Trials of Tigger: Tigger's Trials Are Over
I will try it when she is in her room with the door shut and see what happens. I had her out for about three hours today, and although there was some musical growling from Tigger and Mischa (surprise, surprise from Mr. Mellow!) there was no real excitement. She is back in "her" room now and will be there overnight to save us from any bad surprises while we sleep.
Tomorrow, I'll let her out again, maybe for longer. And we'll take it from there. She knows about my three, and they know about her. They have met and sniffed each others' spaces. Now they can start coming to terms with living with each other, one day at a time.
Tomorrow, I'll let her out again, maybe for longer. And we'll take it from there. She knows about my three, and they know about her. They have met and sniffed each others' spaces. Now they can start coming to terms with living with each other, one day at a time.
I've had the door open for many hours today, but I'm not going to carry Tigger anywhere. I'll shut the door when I feed her so the others don't interfere, but otherwise the door will be open and she can do whatever she likes.
So far today she has done nothing but sleep on the bed, although she is always happy when we go in to visit her. She has clearly adopted this as "her" room, and the others are now a bit shy of going in there. There have been no hostilities, and very very little hissing. I think we have achieved detente.
And some day she might get bored and lonely enough to venture out to find us.
So far today she has done nothing but sleep on the bed, although she is always happy when we go in to visit her. She has clearly adopted this as "her" room, and the others are now a bit shy of going in there. There have been no hostilities, and very very little hissing. I think we have achieved detente.
And some day she might get bored and lonely enough to venture out to find us.
Today we left the door open while we went out for a couple of hours, and when we came back, she was still on the bed in "her" room. I went in to say hello, then went next door to change my clothes in the master bedroom. Within seconds I heard an imperious "Meow!" right behind me, and there she was on the bed in the master bedroom! So we are making progress. This is the first time she's voluntarily come out of her room to go somewhere unknown.
Unfortunately for her, however, the house is still a veritable mine field of other CATS. I hope she'll get used to them. They are behaving like purrfect little ladies and gentleman.
Mischa is trying SO hard. He walks up to her VERY slowly, making no aggressive moves, and he just hunkers down about 2 feet away while she hisses and yowls. Poor boy.
Oh, yes. I've been calling him our little good will ambassador for a long time because of how friendly he is with people. But only now am I finding out just how much it means. Really, he ought to be a therapy cat. He is THAT good, with people and animals alike.
Peggy I just LOVE reading this story. I truly believe you can teach an old cat new tricks. Give them time and you'll come home to a mess o'kittys hanging out together on the bed.
Even my original three cats don't do that, but it truly wouldn't surprise me if one day I come home and find Tigger and Mischa curled up together somewhere. 
If it helps give you hope, the puppy and my geriatric cat are now getting along better.
I'm actually OK with how things are now. They have achieved a species of detente, and there is very little hissing or growling. I'm being a little careful to control things when they are eating, or when we are sleeping, but otherwise she has the run of the house now and is doing fine for the most part. Things will be good going forward, I'm sure of it.
But I'm glad to hear about the puppy and your older cat, Fluger.
But I'm glad to hear about the puppy and your older cat, Fluger.
Earlier this evening, when we were both in the kitchen making a batch of macaroni and cheese, we got a surprise visit from Miss Tigger! She's really getting around now, probably because we're not spending as much time in her room with her. At one point, Mr. PeggyC was sleeping in her room so she wouldn't meow all night, and I was spending time each morning and evening with her. I would lie on the bed and read, with her stretched out on my lap or my chest. Now, we are leaving her to find us. And it's working.
Well, two steps forward, one step back. I let Tigger get up on the bed with us last night, but she then proceeded to yowl and hiss at the other cats when they wanted to join us, too. Then, when Mr. PeggyC got into bed, she yowled every time he moved his legs. It was annoying as all hell. So he finally moved his legs enough that she jumped down and stalked back to "her" room, where he shut her in for the rest of the night.
One day at a time. Work in progress and all that! Can't deny she's making progress, but at times it's a bit frustrating that she can't be a little more mellow. Poor old girl.
One day at a time. Work in progress and all that! Can't deny she's making progress, but at times it's a bit frustrating that she can't be a little more mellow. Poor old girl.
How long has she been there? She's an old cat, and things may be moving a little too fast for her.
On top of that, you have to give your pride time to adjust. Cats are ritualistic animals, and it takes some time to develop new rituals. She was alone with your mother for a long time, living a quiet life. Now she is in the company of 2 new people, and 3 new, much younger ,cats. I think she is more than a little overwhelmed, yet the fact that she is integrating at all (and not hiding under a bed or in the back of a closet) is HUGE! She is adapting.
Interpreting vocalizations without regard to other behaviors, can be misleading. You have to determine who is on the offense and who is on the defense. Without having seen her behavior, I think it might have been that her yowling was letting you know that being on the bed, imbued with your human scents and the scents of the other cats, took her way out of her comfort zone, yet she was there because she thought you wanted her to be there. Since she was there first last night, she might have been confused about what you expected of her and the other cats---was this her territory, was it theirs?
Patience, Peggy. I think you are all doing very well.
On top of that, you have to give your pride time to adjust. Cats are ritualistic animals, and it takes some time to develop new rituals. She was alone with your mother for a long time, living a quiet life. Now she is in the company of 2 new people, and 3 new, much younger ,cats. I think she is more than a little overwhelmed, yet the fact that she is integrating at all (and not hiding under a bed or in the back of a closet) is HUGE! She is adapting.
Interpreting vocalizations without regard to other behaviors, can be misleading. You have to determine who is on the offense and who is on the defense. Without having seen her behavior, I think it might have been that her yowling was letting you know that being on the bed, imbued with your human scents and the scents of the other cats, took her way out of her comfort zone, yet she was there because she thought you wanted her to be there. Since she was there first last night, she might have been confused about what you expected of her and the other cats---was this her territory, was it theirs?
Patience, Peggy. I think you are all doing very well.
I was sitting on the sofa in the TV room just now, and I heard an ungodly yowling coming from Tigger upstairs (OK, it was more of a feline scream). I put down Niki and went upstairs, only to find that Tigger was curled up in a ball on "her" bed, with Mischa rolling around in a friendly manner about two feet away from her. His tail was HUGE, and he was giving me a look that said, "How do I get out of this alive??," but he was still showing his tummy and trying to make friends. I went and picked him up and removed him from the battlefield. Within seconds he was rubbing his head against mine.
A fine point, but last night I was the first person/presence in the bedroom, and Tigger joined me on her own. And most fortunately, she knows me and Mr. PeggyC quite well from several years of sitting on our laps at Mom's house. But I do take your points. I know she needs time. I'm not forcing her to do anything, but rather am letting her do things at her own pace. The only one rushing things a little is Mischa, really.
Tigger continues to make progress at her own pace.
Last night she roamed the house of her own free will, occasionally hissing or growling at one of the other cats, but never escalating to real hostilities. We left her door open all night for the first time, and it was a peaceful night.
And this morning, she came down for breakfast with the others!
I had been giving her breakfast in her room, with the door shut, but today she braved the stairs and the other cats to come to the kitchen with the rest of the pride. I put her food on the floor and she started eating, but everyone was too distracted, and soon they had all wandered away from their bowls to stare at each other and grumble a little. I picked up Tigger's bowl and led her back to her room, where I left her food and closed the door. I'll open the door again when they are all done eating.
We're definitely getting there.
Last night she roamed the house of her own free will, occasionally hissing or growling at one of the other cats, but never escalating to real hostilities. We left her door open all night for the first time, and it was a peaceful night.
And this morning, she came down for breakfast with the others!
I had been giving her breakfast in her room, with the door shut, but today she braved the stairs and the other cats to come to the kitchen with the rest of the pride. I put her food on the floor and she started eating, but everyone was too distracted, and soon they had all wandered away from their bowls to stare at each other and grumble a little. I picked up Tigger's bowl and led her back to her room, where I left her food and closed the door. I'll open the door again when they are all done eating.
We're definitely getting there.
Peggy, thanks for sharing this story. Is it silly how interested I am in the lives of cats I don't even know?
It's kind of funny to watch. They are very entertaining even when there isn't a stranger in their midst, and seeing them all process this intrusion in very different ways has been fascinating. This evening, Tigger waited for her dinner to be brought upstairs, although she came out to meet me in the upper hallway. But, she later decided the dinner wasn't entirely to her liking, so she trundled downstairs in a businesslike way to see what else was on offer in the kitchen. Then, she hung around the living room for awhile, with some half-hearted hissing, but I think she is mostly just letting the others know who is boss (hah!).
Mischa still wants to be friends. Anya kind of ignores Tigger. Niki walks away from direct confrontation, which surprises me. I figured Niki would be the one who would be in Tigger's face, but she's decided discretion is the better part of valor.
Mischa still wants to be friends. Anya kind of ignores Tigger. Niki walks away from direct confrontation, which surprises me. I figured Niki would be the one who would be in Tigger's face, but she's decided discretion is the better part of valor.
Oh, dear. Anya, my mild-mannered calico, seems to have developed a real antipathy for Tigger. In the past few days, I have heard several all-out cat fights and rushed into the room where it's happening to see Anya slinking out with her tail HUGE. More and more, I'm convinced that Anya is the aggressor. Tigger mostly avoids the others but screams if they get too close to her. Anya apparently is charging at Tigger, and Tigger responds predictably. No blood or fur drawn yet, but I'm worried it could escalate.
Any thoughts on how I can circumvent this? I will try to get some Feliway immediately. I would try catnip, but it doesn't make my cats mellow -- it makes them short-tempered. I'd really prefer not to have to isolate anyone, but it might come to that if this keeps up.
Phooey.
Any thoughts on how I can circumvent this? I will try to get some Feliway immediately. I would try catnip, but it doesn't make my cats mellow -- it makes them short-tempered. I'd really prefer not to have to isolate anyone, but it might come to that if this keeps up.
Phooey.
An interesting postscript to this story. At my vet's recommendation, I put Tigger on Prozac, but after the move I took her off it again because I hadn't been able to tell any difference after more than a month. However, I noticed that once we moved to our new house, the dynamics of the cats changed.
I suppose it's because the house is new territory for all of them, and they came to it at the same time and took possession simultaneously. No one had squatter's rights, so to speak, so they were all in the same position with regard to their new territory.
This means that they are behaving much more like equals now, and even though Anya sometimes antagonizes Tigger, and Tigger occasionally growls, for the most part Tigger is in a MUCH better mood. She lets me pet her a lot more, she sleeps next to me whether I'm on the chaise or in bed, and she is a lot more accepting of the other cats. They more or less ignore her now.
Nice change.
I suppose it's because the house is new territory for all of them, and they came to it at the same time and took possession simultaneously. No one had squatter's rights, so to speak, so they were all in the same position with regard to their new territory.
This means that they are behaving much more like equals now, and even though Anya sometimes antagonizes Tigger, and Tigger occasionally growls, for the most part Tigger is in a MUCH better mood. She lets me pet her a lot more, she sleeps next to me whether I'm on the chaise or in bed, and she is a lot more accepting of the other cats. They more or less ignore her now.
Nice change.
Of course, she still has most unfortunate bathroom habits, but at her age I can't really expect much. *sigh*
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