Mihijo Takes Cat Food Advice

Hello Greyce,

Mihijo

Thank you so much for your sound advice. Herself purchased wet food for me and I LOVE it! I could eat that stuff all day.

And I have plans for a treat ball - for my kibble.

She insisted on taking more than one photo of me - even a side view which is less that flattering. However I am hopeful that I will now be in a position to shed some of my extra poundage and become even more handsome than I already am.

I will keep you posted.
Mihijo


Dear Mihijo,
Glad to hear that you are know eating yummy stuff.  I wanted to show you at your most handsome in this entry and so I have inserted the other photo in the past entry (Advice for Mihijo, posted 9/19/13).

Keep up the good work!
Greyce

Tyrone the Cat Gets More Advice on Living with a Puppy

Hello Tyrone,

I promised to advise you further about dealing with the new puppy who will soon become a part of your household.

In my last entry to you (published on 10/3/13), we reviewed:
- Getting you used to puppy sounds and smells in advance.
- Getting your folks up to speed on what it takes to raise a puppy and how to decode cat talk.
- Paying special attention to making sure puppy understands that you are much higher up in the family hierarchy, so you will be treated with respect (and be safe).
- Moving your food and water to a place puppy cannot reach.
- Bringing the kennel that puppy will sleep in into the master bedroom now so you can get used to it; locating it in a way that still makes your favourite sleeping spot accessible and safe for you.
- Using Feliway to enhance your sense of calm.
- Putting a puppy barrier to block access to your litter box so you can use it in peace.

Helping Nyx the Cat Who Howls Before Dawn

Dear Greyce,

Nyx enjoys rest

 
I am a handsome adult black cat and have spent my life as a mostly-outdoor cat. When my purrsons moved, they left me behind and I stayed in the neighbourhood as a stray. The neighbours left food for me but it was a battle to get it because I had to invade the territory of their primarily-outdoor male, Shamus, who is orange and grumpy and thinks everything belongs to him. He always goes after me and I have battle wounds to prove it.

My very new, new home is an apartment on the top floor of a two-storey building next door to Shamus.  It has a bedroom and main area; and there is a back porch to lie out in the sun during the day. I now live with Herself and Himself and their six-month old female calico kitten called Luna. I still have my manhood but Herself says I cannot stay this way. Why I cannot is a mystery to me.

My folks rise around 10:00 a.m. because they work late hours. Bedtime is between 11:00 p.m. and 1:00 a.m. I am okay during the day and at bedtime. When they are in bed, I curl up at their feet. Once the lights are out and things get very quiet, I get nervous and start to cry. But if they ignore me, I settle down. The problem beings in the pre-dawn hours. 

At 4 a.m. I begin my opera lessons. I prepare Themselves for a concert by pacing up and down the bed, then by Herself's side of the bed, then going to the door and the hallway. I get in their faces. And I let forth my golden tones to the tune of a lament.

I will not stop until they do something. They would give me pets and calm reassurance but the minute they stopped I started to sing again. So they put me out of the bedroom and closed the door! Well Greyce, I attempt to entice them by singing at the door, starting with soft cries and building up to something truly spectacular. But since they ignore me, I settle down in about 30 minutes.

Because of their lack of music appreciation, I am banned from the bedroom until the morning.

Themselves would prefurr that 'morning' be considered as 10:00 a.m. when they usually wake. I'll admit that they did try to let me in earlier, but then Himself tried to snuggle with me and give me pets and I would cry when he stopped.  He must have realized he was poor at customer services because he started to feel guilty and blamed himself - of course, as he should. The massage and snuggle service left something to be desired, if you ask me. Then Herself got worried, thinking my behaviour relates to a fear of being abandoned again.

Tyrone the Cat Prepares for A New Puppy

Dear Greyce,
I am a gorgeous male of robust stature, weighing in at about 21 pounds (9.5 kg). There is a distinctive Maine Coon touch to my features which grace my three-year-old, neutered, and declawed self. When I jump, I land on my feet with a manly thud. I have lived with the same human family since I was six weeks old: Herself, Himself, The Calm and Quiet Teen, and The Highly Affectionate Preteen who always wants to snuggle and kiss me. We live in a house that has two levels and I have the run of the place. And now, I am told, the household will be graced with the presence of a Labradoodle puppy in a matter of weeks.