It’s been a busy day here at Joyce Towers involving sorting, chucking, cleaning and a trip to the tip. Most satisfying, but we have a lot more to do.
Excellent news about Mouse, too! As I write, I have three cats sitting on my lap. Mouse is sandwiched between Milka and Percy and they’re all contentedly asleep. I’ll know she’s totally settled when I spot them washing each other. Nearly sorted.
I couldn’t get all three in one picture, so you’ll have to be happy with Percy draped over Mouse.
Florence, pictured this morning. She was looking for some gentle petting and I made sure she received it. She really does have the best whiskers in town.
Mouse is eating heartily now, but still hostile to the approaches of the other cats. We just need to be patient.
I have spent the day at school again today, even though it’s the Easter holidays. I’ve been trying to get all my (200+) pupils’ books marked right up to date. With a new marking policy and paperwork to be completed and glued into every book, it’s proved to be impossible to do in two days. After 7 hours of wielding my pen and a glue stick, I regretfully gave up and brought the rest home.
I arrived to hear that Mouse has been eating and drinking, using her litter tray (to my relief) and having plenty of cuddles with Isobel. However, she still hasn’t explored far.
I’ve decided that I’m going to pick her up tomorrow and take her on a tour to see the sights of our house. Percy, Milka and Willow are still fascinated by Mouse, but she growls at them when they approach. Florence hasn’t been closer than about 3 meters. Scaredy-cat.
Milka and Percy have finally realised that Mouse is here. They spotted her under a coffee table this morning and the hissing, growling and bottle-brush tails began.
Isobel and Ted have supervised all day, to make sure things didn’t get past grumpy, but it’s been fine. Mouse continues to enjoy human company and has spent at least 2 1/2 hours sitting on laps. She’s currently sitting on the back of Isobel’s chair, on the alert for approaching felines.
The two photographs show Milka’s magnificent tail when he was over-excited this morning. The other is from this afternoon and shows him sneaking up behind Mouse on my lap, so he could have a surreptitious sniff.
Things are progressing well.
We collected Mouse at 9am this morning and she has spent the day in the living room with us. We’ve kept the door closed, so she could get over the first shock without having to contend with other cats.
Mouse has hidden behind an armchair or under a table the whole time, as is to be expected. However, we have lifted her out and cuddled her a few times and she has been very calm and happy to be handled.
Half an hour ago, we opened the door and Milka and Percy came dashing in. The complete dopes know something is up, but they still haven’t found Mouse! I will report tomorrow on what happens when the resident cats finally understand that there is a new little stranger in their midst.
ACAD is back, and for a very special purpose.
Isobel and I have been to visit Mouse, who is going to come and live with us tomorrow. We thought it might be best to bring her to our house first thing in the morning, so we can give her breakfast and have a full day to settle her before we go to sleep.
Mouse is a pretty lilac point and was very friendly with me and Isobel. She’s a shoulder-cuddler and generous with her purrs.
Relaxing with a bit of Harry Potter tonight, because I’m conducting Y10 GCSE Speaking Controlled Assessments tomorrow, so no classroom lessons to prepare.
Here you see Percy on John’s shorts-clad knee. What a cutie (Percy, that is).
Today’s guest is Ostara, Percy’s sister and litter-mate. She has gone to live in Lancashire, with Tina, who is a Siamese breeder. I asked her to describe Ostara and this is what she told me:
Ostara is a huge character and she never stops purring. She has the loudest purr out of all my cats! It’s ridiculous! She has a habit of catching sight of her tail out of the corner of her eye and chasing it round… Until she notices I’m watching and then she pretends she’s not doing anything! She’s also a serious health and safety hazard because she’s an under your feet cat! I’ve tripped over her and stepped on her more times than I can count! She loves drinking water out of a cup… I have to watch my cups of water or she’ll have them! Hee hee!
Oddly enough, Percy is also an under-your-feet cat and John is seriously anxious that he’ll break one of his Percy’s paws one day by standing on it when he’s sneaking up behind him.
Thanks Tina. Please keep me posted with lovely pictures of Ostara’s progress.
A Cat A Day 