Following on from our previous post, Green & Pink, won (or lost) the lottery and were the two kits who left their mum and siblings and came downstairs to live with the family.
By chance we’d got the most confident so far of the group (green) and the most timid (pink).
They don’t look particularly pleased about it on day one. They were in a large crate in the main living room whilst they acclimatised a bit.
Once they were more settled they started to explore the space a bit. Spent a lot of time offering treats, playing with toys with them, stroking when possible. Isaac sort of helped by playing with them and purring lots, though he’s a lot biggerer than them so was a bit scary too.
Quite a bit of the time I’m reminded of playing grandmothers footsteps … though in this version I try to pretend I’m not noticing them as they risk getting a little closer to me. For a few days I really wondered if I’d done the right thing … although I’m not at all convinced there is “A Right Thing” in this situation.
Then it started to get noticeably better. I’m not entirely sure what happened first. I stroked Green and he purred. First time I’d heard any of the family purr apart from the group purr when mum was feeding them. Pink was much more wary and would stand at a distance and cry to Green. Two weeks on, Pink is still more wary, but will also come to me and purr whilst being stroked.
I have to give at least some of the credit to the residents for their improvement. Jango has helped a little, but Henderson has been a real hero. Hendo has let them sit with him, and feel safe next to him. I did see a look of horror on his face when one of them asked about the possibility of a milky supper … but mostly this old chap has given them the reassurance they need in settling into a home.
The full family gathering for chicken supper was a bit tricky …. but we managed
At the end of two weeks living with the family, these two little ones are definitely more confident than their siblings upstairs with mum. They’ve had their first vet appointment and started their vaccinations. They’ve made the transition from being Green and Pink to Henry & Harvey.
In the next exciting episode we bring you ….. what happened with Yellow & Purple!
8 Lives: Sheffield 8 Cat Rescue 