Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Spoonerisms: That Aggravating Beauty

Such a star I've never seen, she's as pretty as a queen
She's as perfect as an angel from above
If she'll only be my wife, I'll live happy all my life
With that aggravating beauty Lulu Walls
"Lulu Walls," The Carter Family
Hello Spoon
Dipity stares at Spoon...
Hello Dipity
... while Spoon smooshes his face and stares at... nothing.
I'm wondering if I shouldn't have named Dipity "Lulu Walls" instead.1 Oh, she's mostly a good kitty, but she's still stubbornly scared of Spoon. Yes, scared of Spoon. He doesn't really do anything overtly aggressive, although he does try to get closer, and the wimpy voice of his should be a dead give-away, but she's hissing at him under the door right now.

I'd like to think we're making a little progress. I can lure her to within a foot or two using cat treats. Fortunately, she really likes those. But she'll be making this low growl, and if the treats get too close, she'll dart forward an inch to grab them. Plus she's a fast eater and can really wolf the things down. She'll also hiss at him if he moves, even if it's just to rearrange himself in the same spot. He's just terribly curious, but she's terribly defensive in response.

She's become more social with me in the last couple of days. She had been greeting me every time I'd walk in before she got sick, and I'm not sure if it was my having to forcibly pill her after she got home or the extreme heat or what, but she hadn't been doing that much since. She's started it again and is initiating more affection. I knew she would come around, because she was always comfortable around me and Siamese as a breed tend to be very affectionate and social. I'm also getting her to play with the toys more instead of spending most of her time behind the bed, like she's been doing. I'm hoping that as she becomes more actively social with me, it means she is adjusting and calming down and will be a little more receptive to Spoon, too. For now I'm trying to make sure they have at least one treat-mediated encounter a day which generally lasts until Dipity withdraws to the bed.

I think the next step is to resort to homeopathy. Some people swear by it, saying that lavender is especially calming. I already have two Feliway (feline facial pheromone) diffusers going.


1Several years ago, a little boy named Benjamin moved in next door to my parents. Benjamin was fascinated by my parents' cats, which tended to disappear when he came around. After a couple years, he got a kitten named "Lulu." One day my mother asked his mother how Lulu was doing. Turns out Lulu was an imaginary kitten.

1 comment:

Fluzz said...

Time, lots of time :)

The fact that neither has outright gone for t'other is a good start. Your place is obviously big enough for two cats to co-exist so I'm sure they'll find some mutual agreement soon.

Also, congrats to Dippity, 30 days are over and now you have a perfect home!

Labels!