Pausing during her rounds this morning, in a particular spot we'd never seen her occupy before atop the studio file cabinets and framed by Tuck's model of "America," Tiny appears lost in thought. We're thinking the fading scent of her brother in all the usual places must be a puzzlement to the feline mind.
Tiny's been playing superball every day, more than usual, since we lost her brother. It may be her way of dealing with stress — Why are Grandpa and Grandma so quiet? Why can't I pick up the scent of my brother, and where is he, anyway?
"Political strongcat Tiny 'The Warrior' signals her displeasure to Baby 'The Cakes' with a hissing, snarling neck grab as her brother makes the mistake of coming too close in maneuvering past her on the kitchen counter in pursuit of kitty treats. Note Tiny's furious glare and Baby's hang-cat look of resignation," we captioned this image of the Chelsea Grays in early November.
Or maybe the superballs are an outlet for the aggressive impulse, someone to swipe at (above) in the absense of Baby Cakes.
"Setting herself up in a hunting blind of hostas and violets, Tiny draws a bead on a gray squirrel," we captioned this image of Tiny last May, noting that "Offspring of the feral beauty Sweet Pea — AKA The Squirrel Slayer — our own Sweet Tiny Pea and her brother Baby" had "slain reckless squirrels at the base of this very tree on occasion … even as they were constrained by their tethers. Knowing this, the squirrels like to play 'chicken', testing their mettle by taunting the Chelsea Grays."
Then, too, there's the cabin-fever aspect of her mindset in the wake of yesterday's substantial snowfall, followed by today's single-digit temperatures and sub-zero windchill factor. The usual opportunities for territorial patrol to destroy vermin (above) and run off feline intruders aren't available.
"Tiny goes for the jugular of her 'Pure Catnip' kitty toy," we captioned this image of Tiny in her cups in December of 2006, "Not vindictive, her attitude toward prey seems to be more aligned with Avery Cardinal Dulles's 'just retribution, which seeks to establish the right order of things.'"
She did have her own version of New Year's Day Eggs Benedict and champagne for brunch — an extra serving of wet cat food and a shot of catnip — and is at the moment upstairs in a box in the attic sleeping it off.
The behavior of my two felines, Lucie and Purrky toward each other defies me to completely understand. After all why shouldn't it. I am not a cat. My guess is that cats have much less of the herd instinct than do humans and while they sort of tolerate and even may miss the presence of a cat they live with, they want to be number one and boss at all times. Like humans only more so.
Posted by: goomp | January 01, 2009 at 03:45 PM
Bless Tiny. She is lucky to have such a wonderful home.
Posted by: Laura Lee Donoho | January 01, 2009 at 04:21 PM
I think some cats do bond with other cats -- I have a friend who maintains a colony of feral cats about three blocks from my house. One of the kitties, a frankly elderly old codger named Grendel (we think he was about 20, which is rare for a feral cat), died just before Christmas and was buried with due ceremony in my friend's back yard. The other cats in the colony seem to be keeping watch over his grave -- sitting beside it in the daytime and going into their outdoor shelters (straw-lined wooden boxes) only when it gets dark.
I've also noticed that my other two cats acted as if they missed Princess during the three days she was in the veterinary hospital last year with an ear infection that led to her being diagnosed with diabetes. The vets kept her there over the weekend to get her started on insulin after her fever went down. My other cats wandered around the apartment looking for Princess, sniffing her bed, and peering into her usual haunts (my closet, the space under the dresser, etc.) When I brought her back from the hospital, the other two went up to her and rubbed noses the way cats sometimes do to greet each other. The vet who discharged Princess did warn me that cats will sometimes hiss at one that has just come back from a clinic because its fur smells different, particularly if it's been given anesthesia. But I didn't see any of that with Princess -- her "sisters" both seemed glad to see her.
Of course Goomp is correct that none of us are cats, so we can't know for certain what goes through their minds, but from what I've seen, at least some cats do form some kind of friendship with other cats even when they aren't litter mates.
Anyway it wouldn't surprise me if Tiny feels disoriented and wonders where her brother is. I'll second Laura -- she is indeed blessed to have such loving caregivers.
Posted by: Connecticut Yankee | January 01, 2009 at 10:31 PM
Last month our dog of 13 years died. My daughter held her as she was euthanized. Now that was tough! I've put together a guide to coping with death. This was hard on the whole family, including our two other dogs. They are not eating well, and it's been two weeks. Quilla's story is here
Posted by: Jason | May 15, 2009 at 10:17 AM