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Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

Original poster

Potential new inmate at Toddler Towers.

994 replies

Toddlerteaplease · 24/08/2023 11:43

Keep your paws crossed that Penelope (also to be known as Pickle) will be right for Cheddar and arrive soon.
I'm a bit confused by her story, but she's an ex show cat. So hopefully will be healthy.
She's not yet in the rescue so we do t k ow her personality. But from what I've seen as show cats. They are pretty docile.

The rescue told me about her when O told them of Magic's death. And when I got to work that night. We had a patient called Penelope. So I take it as a sign!

I'm trying to speed it up a bit but the rescue is busy.

Potential new inmate at Toddler Towers.
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Original poster
Toddlerteaplease · 24/10/2023 09:40

She says looks are deceiving!

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YetAnotherSpartacus · 24/10/2023 10:15

Apparently I've adopted a meerkat. Cheddar was happily introducing her to the garden, until I came out to supervise. They both went straight back inside!

Cheddar was giving her the low down on life in Toddler Towers out of your hearing ...

Original poster
Toddlerteaplease · 24/10/2023 10:40

@YetAnotherSpartacus yes. I suspect you are right.

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YetAnotherSpartacus · 24/10/2023 10:44

Yep. And you busted them.

Original poster
Toddlerteaplease · 24/10/2023 21:29

Just when I thought we were doing well. The girls are fighting. Penelope is the aggressor. Ears back, growling, and chasing Cheddar around. I really don't want Cheddar to be bullied.

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Scampuss · 24/10/2023 21:33

Are they doing it when you're home or when you're at work? Or both?

Ellmau · 24/10/2023 22:01

Oh no!

Does it seem serious rather than play?

Original poster
Toddlerteaplease · 24/10/2023 22:13

@Scampuss when I'm
At home, but I don't know about when I'm. At work. They come to greet me together quite amicably. And both come for fuss in the bathroom in the morning. They'll eat together happily as well.
@Ellmau it was the first time I've seen Penelope with her ears back. Shes currently got the zoomies. So I wonder if she's a bit under stimulated in the evening. She doesn't seem interested in toys though. But she is cleverer than the others.

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Scampuss · 24/10/2023 22:22

Under-stimulation sounds possible. Might be worth looking up cat enrichment activities to keep her busy and focused. Have you tried throwing a little ball for her?

Pixiedust1234 · 25/10/2023 00:51

I wonder if she still has too much of her hormones in her body since she got spayed a lot later than normal. Maybe in a couple of months she'll be different again. But if she's a mainly indoor cat now she might be under stimulated. As a showcat she will have experienced different situations and people, with lots of sound, smell, sight etc. which would have "entertained" her.

Some cats like the wand toys the best but it does involve human input. What about those toys with balls? Although saying that my DDs cat refuses to play with anything except dried pasta 🙄

Edit. Oh wait, she's a mini walrus. What about that flapping fish toy 😂

SequentialAnalyst · 25/10/2023 03:08

They had an argument, and doubtless they sorted it out between them in the way cats who live together doSmile This is a good sign. It means they are treating each other as equals, and Penelope feels sufficiently safe that she can be her real self. They don't shout at each other, because they are cats. You may perceive it as a fight - because you, of course, are a mere humanConfused. Thankfully, unlike humans, cats don't usually hold grudges. If you had a sibling, didn't you have the odd disagreementWink?

Original poster
Toddlerteaplease · 25/10/2023 05:58

I've had one curled up under easy arm in bed. So it's obviously not a serious fight. And they were sniffing each others face.

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Original poster
Toddlerteaplease · 25/10/2023 06:10

@Pixiedust1234 I need to get a new wand toy to try, but all other toys have been completely ignored. Cheddar likes Mollies mice and Yeaww tots but that's it. Penelope doesn't seem to play with anything. I'll try a ball. Magic loved a bit of paw ball.

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Original poster
Toddlerteaplease · 25/10/2023 06:12

@SequentialAnalyst me and my sister were complete angels. 🤣

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Original poster
Toddlerteaplease · 25/10/2023 06:15

Current scene at Toddler Towers.

Potential new inmate at Toddler Towers.
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FutureThroughLensOfThePast · 25/10/2023 06:27

Ha ha - identical grumpy expressions!

Allergictoironing · 25/10/2023 06:38

Girlcat and Boycat were totally bonded, didn't stop them chasing each other around, wrestling or standing up like hares having a boxing match. Ears flat back all the way, bog brush tails, the lot. Then 5 mins later curled up on the sofa or my bed yin/yang style.

And Girlcat and Tobias have fights and chasing, mostly chasing, yet get on really well now - not yet curling up together but pretty close on the beds & seek out each other's company.

Only injury at any time was when Tobias was pretty new and Girlcat had a swipe & scratched his face. The second she'd done it, she fled from the scene looking upset. Hasn't stopped them fighting, and no injuries since.

I think it's an entertainment thing for indoor cats a lot of the time. Something to do, good exercise, wears them out a bit. As long as there's no blood, big tufts of hair or crying in pain all good IMO.

Original poster
Toddlerteaplease · 25/10/2023 06:41

Thanks for the reassurance. Just remembered the time that there was a cat in the garden and Maia took a chunk out of Magic's ear.

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Original poster
Toddlerteaplease · 25/10/2023 09:47

I do wonder if it's taking longer for her hormones to settle as it's less than a month since the op, and she's 3.

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Pixiedust1234 · 25/10/2023 15:11

Do you have stairs? If so get a ball and throw it up the stairs. Ours favoured a screwed up tin foil ball as she could get her claws slightly into it for a good throw over her shoulder. They chase up, beat it up and both cat and ball fall down the stairs. You pick it up and throw, cat runs up.... they are exhausted after 5 mins and you've only used a throwing arm. You can be seated for this exercise 😉😂

RumNotRun · 25/10/2023 16:38

Toad loves these amzn.eu/d/99xYaFV

He'll happily play for hours throwing them about and pouncing on them. Large cat springs if the link doesn't work

Original poster
Toddlerteaplease · 25/10/2023 17:03

I'll take a trip to PAH tomorrow and see what I can find.

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SequentialAnalyst · 25/10/2023 18:30

Pingpong balls can be a great hit with the right cat.
IME not all cats are interested, but if they manage to work out how to tap them so they shoot across the room, which takes little effort, then they become pingpong ball enthusiasts. And unlike a heavier ball, or a ball of foil, which requires a slave to initiate play, a pingpong ball does not, so the slave can relax with a Brew and enjoy the fun.

Sadly, Midnight was not interested. As she came from a farm, and had been fully trained by her mother, she preferred her prey to have a pulseShock However, those old favourites, the skillfully twitched string, and the magical uncatchable light on the wall, were always hits with her. She did retire from most hunting when we moved, and in her last years would often manage to convey to me somehow that 5 minutes play with the string would be highly appreciated💖

FutureThroughLensOfThePast · 25/10/2023 18:59

Stupid question, but where could I buy pingpong balls these days?

Original poster
Toddlerteaplease · 25/10/2023 19:53

Problem is when they loose them under the furniture! You spend your life retrieving the bloody things.

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