Saturday, August 9, 2014

The Feline Friends of My Rotten Dogs

Little known fact-I have two cats.

People may question why I have not posted about them before.  There is not a reason.

I have heard all the horror stories of how all wolfdogs and northern breeds are small animal aggressive and cannot safely live with cats.  And that is why I disagree with broad, definitive statements, because they are usually untrue.

Neeko is the only of my dogs that I trust completely unsupervised around the cats.  Faolan is fine with them, but I do not trust him implicitly.  Bruce must always be supervised around the kitties.

It's not a hassle or a problem to do so.  It is simply a matter of being accountable for where all animals are and making sure that the appropriate doors are shut when we are not at home.

Juice
Juice is nosy, wants affection on her terms, and full of attitude.  She will be nine next month.  I got her as an approximately three month old kitten.  A friend's brother saw the kitten she was with get hit by a car, so he stopped and scooped her up.  I took her in.

As one can see, Juice is a bit chunky, though I try to cut back her portions.  She is vocal at times, and also my puking cat.  Certain foods don't agree with her, and I am made aware of this by finding a pile of cat vomit.  Gag.  Although she can be bitchy, she is usually kind enough to puke on a hard floor surface.

Noelle
 Noelle is sweet, shy, and skittish.  She is also incredibly affectionate if she trusts you, and finds you worthy.  She will be nine in December, and came to me as a three month old kitten, "free to good home" on my former employer's private, online employee bulletin board.  Same scenario as how we came to get Neeko.  I eventually quit perusing the employee classifieds...

She was supposedly born right before Christmas, and had no name, thus I named her Noelle.  Noelle is sleek, agile, and slinky.  She can open cabinet doors to hide in them, and will find the most out of the way places to hide.  When we first moved in here, I didn't see her for three days, because she was stressed and hiding.

My cats are both spayed, but they are NOT declawed.  I do not agree with mutilating an animal as a convenience for an owner. 

I have tried multiple times, unsuccessfully, to switch the girls to an all raw diet.  They are incredibly picky, and unlike dogs, you cannot "tough love" a cat into eating something.

They eat mostly canned food, some raw, but it has to be room temperature or slightly warmed, and a tiny bit of kibble.

They are funny and sweet, and have distinct personalities, and I consider myself lucky to be able to share my life with them.

11 comments:

  1. Your kitties are so cute! We have 3 cats. Zoe has killed two squirrels and people at work freaked out on me and said that I better be careful with her around my cats. I've never had a problem with Zoe and my cats. When I got her the cats made sure she knew they were in charge and she knows the difference between our cats (family members) and stray cats (free game). One time when one of our house cats got out, they found him and were very happy to see him.. All wags and kisses, like they were greeting a family member and then the next day they chased a stray cat. So they totally know the difference. :) I don't ever worry about leaving them alone with them.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Our cat could probably be the alpha dog if she wanted to, but mostly she just stays above it all. The world of dogs amuses her.

    ReplyDelete
  3. The kitties are lovely. Mom says she doesn't think we can be trusted with cats. Maybe the only possibility is Ciara, but not for sure:)

    Woos - Phantom, Ciara, and Lightning

    ReplyDelete
  4. Your kittehs are BEAUTIFULS!!! Ma says I can't be trusted around the kittehs, cause I'm a hyperbutt and would probably start something...whatevers.
    I loves your kittehs!
    Kisses,
    Ruby ♥

    ReplyDelete
  5. Such pretty kitties! I'm not a cat person (at all), but Noelle is so cute.
    DM

    ReplyDelete
  6. We can't be trusted with cats peeps says. Have a serene easy Sunday.
    Best wishes Molly

    ReplyDelete
  7. I am with ya on this one. I think it's crap when people say certain breeds cannot live with cats, or even be around them at all. I know, because Siberian Huskies are one of the breeds people say can't be around cats. I have 3 huskies and 3 cats, so I am living proof of otherwise! Of course, I do supervise, and the cats have their own area of the house that the huskies can't get to, but I agree with you in saying, it is not a hassle, it is a precautionary action, that I am more then willing to do!
    ღ husky hugz ღ frum our pack at Love is being owned by a husky!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Noelle reminds me of my cat. She is very shy but super sweet. Definitely a one person cat. I adopted her with no previous history at 7 months old, so I think she might have been abused. Possibly by men, since she does not take to them well. She's never been aggressive, she just doesn't seem to care about men that want to meet her.

    Bain does well around her, and they will occasionally touch noses. For the most part though, she still doesn't like him. lol

    I would love to get a Maincoon or Scottish Fold in the future.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I totally agree about declawing. I honestly didn't believe there was such a thing until I've joined this bloggy community. Our dogs aren't big fans of cats. I think it's because they've grown to trust their natural instincts rather than live peacefully with their humans. I think Chooey will have fun with cats.

    ReplyDelete
  10. It's nice to meet your kitties! They are both adorable. I find it much more difficult to control the weight of a cat than of a dog. We struggle with one of ours being chunky all the time. Our older guy is too thin....but we've finally got him to put on some weight lately!
    Jan, Wag 'n Woof Pets

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for the howls!!