And Then There Were Four

From the right, there is my Benny and then Ava.  The little gray one is Maggie and her mom Blondie.  Last on the left is my latest rescue, Lily.

I had Benny and Ava and then I rescued Blondie and her only surviving kitten Maggie.  After their quarantine was lifted, I tried integrating them into the house, and that didn't always go well.  From the beginning we have had issues as Blondie would go after Benny especially and to a lesser extent Ava.  I attributed it to the fact that Maggie was so tiny at only four weeks old that she was just protecting her kitten.  Then came my last rescue, Lily.  My heart was in the right place and I committed to the financial responsibility of keeping all five cats.  Now Maggie is a whopping seven months old and able to hold her own against Benny and Ava when they are playing.  Unfortunately, Blondie has never gotten along with Benny and it just wasn't getting any better.

I don't know if it was the dynamics of having five cats or if something happened between the adults that I didn't see, but Blondie kept getting worse and worse with Benny.  She was ok next to him until she wasn't.   She would suddenly get so terrified of him, she would hunker down and scream.  It wasn't a meow, it wasn't a screech or a caterwaul, it was a scream.  She was totally stressed out which started stressing out the other cats and the kitty mama.  Hey, I'm stressed out enough, I didn't need this on top of everything else.

I did everything I could possibly do.  I talked to my vet and he told me to just keep moving their wet food closer and closer to each other until they can be next to each other.  Hey, this isn't my first time to the rodeo.  I could get them eating side by side and all was well.  Until it wasn't and she would try to crawl under the toe kick of the kitchen cabinets and just scream her lungs out.  It was absolutely heartbreaking.  I've even had her on pheromones which have not helped at all.

I finally had to keep either her or Benny on lock down.  I would lock Blondie up in the bedroom which she hated.  Or I would lock Benny in the basement which he hated.  It wasn't fair to any of the cats and especially those two.  I'd let everyone out at meal time and all would be ok while they were eating . . . until they weren't ok.  If they were out in the house together, Blondie would spend her time hiding from Benny, hoping he wouldn't see her.  She'd be inside of back of the floor clock or she'd hide behind the garbage can.  If he saw her, or even just glanced her way, she'd run and she'd scream.  Then he'd think it was a game so he'd chase her. 

I finally did what I thought was right and I surrendered her to the Friendship Animal Protection League (APL) so that they could find her a home.  Hopefully a home with no other pets.

Blondie really is a loving and beautiful cat, as long as she isn't by other cats.  I've never had a dog so I don't know how she would be around a dog or how she would be around kids for that matter.  I do know she hates to be by other cats.  Trust me on this one!  But this girl loves to play, loves her toys, loves her belly rubbed.  She will lay there and purr for as long as you are willing to rub her belly!  The pictures don't do her justice, she is really beautiful with such striking golden eyes and just wants to be loved.  I just wish I could be the one to love her enough to make her happy.

She has all of her first year shots, she is front declawed and she is spayed.  She just needs a loving home.  Here is a link to Blondie's APL page.

If anyone is looking for a furever friend and you don't have other animals, please head up to the APL in Elyria and consider my girl.  I know you won't be sorry!