Spoonerisms: 28 Days Later

Day 29 of Serendipity here. Tomorrow will be the magical 30th day since her arrival. I already have an appointment to get her microchipped.

The Spoon socialization is still slow. I think it is moving forward, though, but in very, very small increments. The other day when I got in the shower, I forgot to close the bedroom door. When I got out of the shower, I freaked out a little, because I couldn't find Spoon. I finally did find him in the bedroom, lying on the floor about 2 yards from Dipity with my cd crates between them. She had to know he was there, but I was just glad he hadn't tried to get in her face. That's the kind of interaction they need; quiet time near each other. Unfortunately, when I decided to leave the door open later that day for a little while, Spoon got too nosy and there was a tiff. No injuries though, unlike when Pandora was training Spoon and he would always have at least one scratch on his nose for the first couple months. And I keep the water squirt bottle handy to break up anything. Spoon will usually back away just from the sound of it, now, without even getting wet.

Speaking of getting wet, as I've said, I don't have air conditioning in my bedroom, and I don't want to drag out the little kitty if she's going to be tense and nervous in the main room. She hasn't seemed interested in coming out, either. So, to keep her cool in the afternoon heat, as the temperature here has been in the upper 90s and higher the last week, I keep plastic water bottles in the freezer and leave them at the edge of her favorite spot on the far side of my bed. I thought that, while she would like to be close for the coolness, she wouldn't actually want to touch them because of the water condensation. But, no, she'll actually even use them as headrests! And I've also seen her lick off some of the condensation, so they're multi-functional. And, of course, I make sure there's plenty of fresh drinking water in her bowl.

She's not super-affectionate or snuggly, although that may be partially due to the heat. She does like getting her head scratched, but on her terms. She also really seems to like getting brushed. She doesn't shed nearly as much as Spoon, even on a per-square-inch basis, but I still pick up some loose fur. The important bit is the bonding/trust thing. Still, Spoon was the only new cat I'd gotten in the past 15 years, and he literally came out of the box super-snuggly and loving and trusting. I'd forgotten that many if not most cats need some more time to develop that bond. And Pandora didn't even become a snuggly lap cat until she was several years old, but once she started, she mastered it quickly. This little girl is still young and while she's certainly comfortable with my presence, she may never have been given an opportunity to bond with a receptive person before. I'm pretty sure that everything will work out at this point, though.