A few weeks ago my friend put out a call for help. One of his students was being forced to find a temporary home for their cat, thanks to a declaration from their landlord. My wife and I decided to answer that call for help.
Angel, a year-and-a-half old floofy black cat, is a guest in our house until July. It’s only been a week, and it’s been both educational and a reminder that our cats, Normandy and Mugsy, are not normal cats.
When we brought Normandy and Mugsy into our homes, we were stunned to discover how chill they were. Mugsy, despite coming into a home with two cats who immediately decided they didn’t like him, made himself at home within moments of arrival. Normandy, coming into a house ruled by Mugsy after the aforementioned cats passed away, not only made herself right at home but was welcomed by him on the first day.
Angel has been our reminder of how cats actually act when brought into a new environment; she was scared when she arrived, hisses and swats at the cats she doesn’t recognize, and took a few days to make herself at home.
Despite her understandable anxiety things are going quite well with Angel, mostly thanks to the fact that Normandy and Mugsy are so chill around new cats. They’ve never been aggressive with her despite her hissing and swatting, and while they don’t take her abuse they seem to be sympathetic of it.
Normandy, we have discovered, acts like a damsel in distress when confronted by Angel. I’ve never heard a cat’s meow sound remarkably like a fainting princess exclaiming “No, please don’t hurt me!”
All in all, we’re staying positive about Angel’s time with us. She’s very sweet with us and while she may not be warming up to our cats, she’s slowly becoming accustomed to them. They may never be cuddle-buddies or even friends, but if we can reach “tolerant of one another” than her time with us will have been successful.