Making Ripples: post-corporate adventures in Floyd County Virginia

What's in your In-basket?

Now that we are becoming a nation of work-at-home professionals, I notice a subtle addition to even the most business-like home offices.

It is quite apparent that we are being infiltrated by feline operatives, who under the guise of being helpful will pull valuable papers out the printer, walk across freshly sprayed artwork, and lie on keyboards ignoring the plaintive peeps of an outraged computer.

Yesterday, I was talking to three professionals who work or manage their businesses from home and I distinctly heard them being chided by their cats for being on the phone too long. The pattern was so similar that it gave away the degree of organization that lies behind their innocent expressions.

In all cases, our conversation would be in progress and there would be a querulous chirp in the distance. After a few moments, the chirp became a penetrating complaint closer to the phone. If we continued our conversation, the unseen feline would yowl to be recognized and the person on the other end would interrupt the conversation and escort the cat out of the room. A quick apology from the person and we would resume our business.

I think this is the result of a lack of training. Some cats add value to the professional settings they inhabit. When we take our cats to the local veterinarian, we are interviewed by the receptionist and our cat is interviewed by the cat in residence. I have seen our cats settle down quietly after a few moments with the cat-in-charge.

 

As long as we are the subjects of this furry invasion, we might as well put our cats to good use. Cats, like most people, even children, feel better when they have something they can do which gets them recognition and positive feedback.

We have one cat that chases and disposes of any critter that wanders or flies in. We have another that grooms the other cats and keeps them looking well-cared for. Another cat is the watch cat and sounds the alarm if anything strange happens in the yard. Our dear old lady cat does not have the energy for such activities. She spends her days sitting in the herb garden enjoying the fragrance of Thyme..

In the right environment, cats are quite eager to help you exercise. I work standing in my shop almost all day but I do take short walks whenever possible. All I have to do is to call out, "Let's take a walk" and I will usually get a few takers. On a good day they will stick with me for a half hour tour of the property.

Our Christmas Cat

We have a new cat and our boss cat is going through a severe reality adjustment.

Our cat quartet was broken when up our alpha cat Sherman bit the dust after contracting some sort of quick-acting wasting disease.

We found a replacement cat named Chester living on a neighboring farm. I had featured Chester in a blog post after I discovered that he looked after small animals on the farm. He would make regular rounds to visit the chickens in the Chicken coop and the rabbit in its pen. He was great with visitors too. He was a stray who became one of our neighbors farm cats. Unlike the other farm cats, he was as socialized as they were feral.

Chester and I struck it off immediately and I had always planned to make off with him if I found an opportunity to do so. Unfortunately he was loved by his owners and it didn't seem fair to break up a happy family.

I bided my time and avoided recruiting him for our house with tales of good food, a private bed, personal play toys and on-demand feedings. However, I did let him know that he had other options if he ever wanted to expand his horizons.

Time went by and it came to pass that one of his family members was quite allergic to Chester...

We were properly sympathetic and offered to take Chester under our wing where he would be available for visits. We did a killer presentation on how he would be treated well and it would be a win-win situation for everyone. Chester would be able to be inside during cold weather without kicking off allergy attacks, his former family would have unlimited visiting rights, and we would have a new player in our cat quartet.

It was a tough sell, but we persevered.

I think that Chester must have already decided that we were an opportunity to expand his horizons. When we brought over a cat carrier and opened the carrier door, Chester immediately walked inside. He wasn't even upset when we shut him in the carrier although he moaned quietly all the way to our house.

We gave him his own room for the first day so he could get acclimated. He checked it all out and even figured out how to use the litter box although he had never seen one before. Barn cats use the great outdoors, but Chester liked the convenience of an indoor privy. Don't we all, especially in cold weather...

By the second day, Chester had taken over one of the prime lounging areas and was making himself at home.

He has not attacked any of the other cats and he does not encourage the others to invade his space. He has a whole repertoire of blood curdling moans and growls and uses them to good effect to keep others from bugging him. You can see from his expression that he is no wuss cat.

He is social with people and he is adjusting the feline pecking order to his liking. Some of the other cats are already making friendly overtures as they see that he will probably become the top cat in short order.

I expect that they will all be sleeping together in a few more weeks. I only heard one hiss all day.

Farm cat cheers up rescued rabbit

We had the chance to join our neighbors for a Labor Day barbecue this year. There were lots of laughs, good food and good company.

We were entertained by Chester, their recently acquired farm cat who showed an unusual amount of purpose in addition to a winning personality.

I first noticed Chester when he greeted us on our arrival at the party. A complete extrovert, he checked everyone out and played with those of us who are into cats.

After a brief session searching the grass for interesting varmints, he charged up the hill toward the rabbit hutch and disappeared.

When we visited the rabbit hutch later, Chester had climbed into the hutch and was inside on the rabbit's bed. When I asked if he would harm the rabbit, his owner said he visited the rabbit often and would spend considerable time with it.

I have read about friendships between animals of different species, but this was the first time I had seen it in action. I was somewhat surprised to see the difference in their behavior toward each other.

Chester was outgoing and friendly but the rabbit was almost completely unresponsive.

Chester was interested in the rabbit and watched it closely. The rabbit came over and sniffed the cat once but seemed relatively withdrawn otherwise.

The owner said the rabbit had been rescued from a place where it had been severely neglected. I figured it had probably never been socialized as an animal raised by an affectionate owner. It certainly did not show the normal curiosity exhibited by animals raised under humane conditions.

There is a wide range of personalities in domestic animals and humane treatment tends to bring out the best in them, but watching this cat interact with the rabbit, it seemed that over time the cat might have a positive effect on the rabbit in spite of its past neglect. 

We all do better with friends around us. It's nice to see that this is not confined to human friendships.

In Memory of Sherman

We said goodbye to Sherman yesterday. Our active and affectionate feline companion of 15 years passed away after several weeks of worsening health. Fortunately, we were with him at the end and he died on his own terms in a place where he felt safe.

It was very hard to bear watching him during his last hours of distress, but the end came quickly.

The hard part for us comes now because he took such an active part in the daily rituals of our everyday life. From the moment we got up to the time when the last of us went to bed, Sherman interacted with each of us and chirped to get our attention when necessary.

The quirky aspects of his personality were captured in this pastel by Gretchen.

He and his sister, Buffy, have been an integral part of our lives ever since Gretchen and I were married.
Buffy is a dependable normal cat with a set routine that rarely varies. Sherman was an independent spirit who was always ready for an adventure and changed his routines almost every month. I have written about his activities here, here and here.

We noticed his first real signs of aging a year ago when his whiskers were beginning to come in white on one side.

He seemed to get more frail as the year progressed, but he was still able to leap off a nine foot high deck when he wanted to and he caught his last mole just a few evenings ago. He was quite upset with me because I wouldn't allow him to bring his trophy in and present it to Gretchen who was sleeping.

We will miss his antics and cheerful companionship.

Political maneuvering and strange bedfellows

Regular readers will remember my earlier posts on the forced integration of cats from two separate families. Things have finally progressed to the point where we will find cats sleeping all over the house and territorial borders have apparently disappeared.

That may be the apparency, but this peaceful picture is actually the result of feline political maneuvering.This image appears to show a quiet moment in which our female cat Buffy, on the far left,  is snoozing with the two visiting cats on the bed that used to be her exclusive domain.

One could think, "How cute! Just see how they get along!"

The actuality is that Buffy has pushed her way into this room and is reclaiming territory that used to be hers alone.

She has been quietly planning this for some time, starting with occasional casual forays into the guest room which the new cats now occupy with their owner.

Once the new cats got used to her presence, Buffy moved back to her favorite spot at the head of the bed.

I can't wait to see what happens next...

Our cats are exhibiting "tribal" behaviour

I have written at length about the interaction of house cats when families move in together, but I recently saw an unusual and quite encouraging organizational development in our four-cat family.

Gretchen and I were trimming our female cat's claws. This is not major surgery, nor is it painful, but Buffy is well-skilled at playing the victim card. After the first few seconds, she gave out an outraged squall that sounded like the sound track of a horror movie. I was holding Buffy and splaying her paws while Gretchen was doing the actual clipping. I might add here that Gretchen was only clipping the very extremities of the claws, where they were curling back on themselves from lack of wear.

We kept on clipping as the rest of the cats gathered worriedly around us. I tried to reassure them that we meant well, but they would not have it. The two male cats started clawing at us as we were trimming the last of Buffy's claws. Buffy was now alternating growling and hissing furiously as the other cats moved in. (I was ready for feline levitation with an accompanying 360 degree revolution of the head at any minute)

Gretchen's daughter Marjorie reached to remove her large black and white male from the scene and it bit her!

Meanwhile, Sherman, our male cat, was sinking claws in Gretchen's leg in response to Buffy's squalling.

All calmed down quickly when we put Buffy down on the floor with nothing damaged but her dignity. She was not grateful for the support of the other cats, in fact, she spat at them, probably thinking they were out to get her.

We, on the other hand, had never seen this kind of behavior in house cats and were very impressed that the large black and white male cat, who is visiting, would have taken responsibility for the protection of one of our cats. It looks like the organizational consolidation is complete and the cats now consider themselves to be a group and they act in unison when faced with danger. The cats have a new leader and fortunately he is protective of his flock, as opposed to being a bully.

We gave him a lot of praise for his actions.

By the way, just to give you some perspective on the claw-clipping, Marjorie had just completed clipping her Black and White cat's claws only minutes before and he sat unconcernedly all through the process while Buffy looked on.

She is a drama queen of the highest order. If she could use the Internet, we would have gotten calls from PETA, I am sure.

Becoming a four-cat household - day 10

The merger is complete as far as the cats are concerned. Cats pass one another in the hall without a second look. At any given moment there are cats sprawled all over the living room in various states of repose and they interact as if they were old friends.

The turning point occurred a few days ago when Buffy brought in a fully functioning mouse which she let loose. The visiting cats joined in a chase which lasted for about a half an hour.

Hilarity ensued because the cats were not very coordinated and the mouse escaped under the hearth. The chase was a bonding activity and the cats are no longer acting in isolation.

Sherman stayed quite aloof from this circus and watched without joining in. Late that night, I was working away at the computer and Sherman came out and sat quietly by me for a few minutes. Then he darted off and returned with the mouse which he quickly dispatched and left for me to dispose of. He was definitely showing off. None of this fancy footwork and scrambling around like the new cats in the house. He just let me know that he had not lost his skills as a predator even if he is deficient in the feline social skills department.

He stays out of sight most of the time and only comes out for meals and to show off. Last night, around midnight, I let him out in the rain and he was back in ten minutes with a freshly killed bird! Where he found it I cannot imagine.

Meanwhile the more domesticated felines have joined forces to assist Gretchen recover from Bronchitis. I looked in on her this afternoon as she was resting and she had cats snuggled up on both sides. One was Buffy and the other was Marjorie's Black and White cat.

Our cats notice our illnesses and respond by staying close to us until we recover. Having Marjorie's cat participate in this routine was heartwarming, to say the least.

We are all doing our best to get through bouts of sneezing and coughing and pet affection goes a long way toward making life easier.

Cats and dogs offer an amazing amount of personal support when we are not at our best.

Becoming a four-cat household - day five

We have temporarily merged two households to facilitate step-daughter Marjorie's relocation to Floyd County. In the process, we have become a four-cat family unit and are being entertained by the political machinations that take place among the cats in our now extended family.

Our cats were initially quite apprehensive about the change, as you can see. Sherman who is normally the alpha male of the household, hides behind his sister in this photo and has been quite inconspicuous since the other cats arrived. He doesn't handle change well.

We kept the cats separated for the first two days except for brief moments when they could see each other under our close supervision. This, of course, piqued their curiosity about each other and seemed to minimize the threat of takeover by the "new" cats in the area.

Now we are allowing the cats to roam freely and they are beginning to interact on a more frequent basis.

The natural leader of this feline community seems to be Marjorie's black and white cat which is twice the size of any other cat in the group and fortunately is very placid.

He is the 800 pound gorilla of this household and is cheerfully inquisitive about everything in the house including the other cats.

As a result of his overwhelming size and amiable disposition, there is very little hissing and spitting as is the case when there are equally matched contenders for leadership.

The group dynamics have shifted considerably since day one. The black and white cat goes anywhere he chooses and is interested in everything.

Sherman, our black cat, and Marjorie's gray kitty have become relatively invisible, coming out only to eat. They are not in contention for leadership in any capacity.

Buffy, our cream-colored cat, is definitely scheming to take control. She is one of the smallest cats in the group. but she has a strong personality and a strong resolve to control her environment. She makes no overtures to the larger cat, but makes it come to her and then she ignores it pointedly. As a result, the black and white cat finds her indifference interesting and she is beginning to exert control over it.

She is using her personality to dominate rather than strength and she will probably succeed. She was quite successful with this approach with Doug Thompson's cats when we stayed there during the 2005 holiday season.

Cat behavior is this kind of situation is so similar to employee behavior during a corporate merger that it is worth observing. Which role did you play in the last corporate merger you were involved in?

Feline organizational structures revisited

Watching groups of cats reorganize their social structures is a fascinating experience. When different families and their cats move in together all sorts of changes occur and the experience is much like what happens when companies merge.

The existing social structure is broken as participants struggle to find new allegiances in the combined group. The pecking order is realigned. Some cats will go invisible. New champions will arise. Others will sulk.

If any of you have ever been in a company that has been acquired, you  already have some idea of what is going to happen. Changes will occur that no one expects.

We are about to merge two households far a period of several months. The most challenging part of this merger is that we are adding two full-grown cats to our existing two-cat household.

This is not our first time merging households with cats. In late 2005, Gretchen and I and our two cats were invited to stay with Doug and Amy Thompson and their four cats while our house was being completed. I wrote several posts on the event.

We all survived and were richer for the experience. This time around, our cats will be the home team so it will present a different set of problems for them.

I expect to have updates on this event real soon. The new cats and their owner arrive this weekend.

Welcome to Floyd!

Friday night cat blogging

I am reading so many "elder bloggers" recently who are complaining about the unfairness of being treated as an older citizen, that I thought I would give equal time to the problems of the elder cat.

The elder cat has problems too, but no forum to solicit sympathy.

Sherman is aging asymmetrically. His whiskers on one side are coming in strong and white while the other side is very sparse but the whiskers are still black.

He still looks fit, which is quite a feat for an animal that sleeps about 20 hours a day and eats at least 3 times a day. His sister, Buffy, on the same diet and with less sleep, is quite rotund.

Now in his 15th year, he is beginning to show signs of slowing down. Jumping from the floor to the kitchen counter is done infrequently and with some difficulty.

He is more cautious about charging out the front door these days as we have two neighboring dogs who have taken it upon themselves to be our watchdogs and constant companions.

He seems to have resigned himself to watching local events from the security of our back deck which is only accessible from the house. From this lofty perch he can observe deer and local dogs without fear of being attacked.

He will occasionally request that I accompany him on outside expeditions. He has finally learned that I am willing to serve as a cat bodyguard and that he is safe from inquisitive dogs when I am with him.

He is not the most demonstrative animal I have lived with but he has his moments. If either Gretchen or I become ill, he will make every effort to sit right next to us until we are well again. He will also remove bandages and will attempt to clean wounds.

Once in a while, I will have minor scratches and splinters from working with wood and I put on a bandage and forget about it. In the middle of the night, I will feel Sherman gently pulling at the bandage in an effort to remove it. I thank him profusely for the attention and get him to settle down and go back to sleep.

When I attended FloydFest 2007, I wore a Tyvek wristband for several days and had to contend with Sherman fiddling with the wristband at odd hours of the night. For the last two days, my wristband looked rather tattered because it had cat teethmarks in it.

Cats require little attention for the most part. They are generally companionable and they can be a constant source of amusement. They don't need to be walked, but they enjoy company at the oddest times and places. Four AM is when they decide that they need quality time with us and we have not been able to discourage them from attempting to wake us up and get with the program.

Right now, they are concerned that I will be blogging all night. Their impatient actions seem to be saying, "Enough already! Let's all settle down for some quality sleep."

They evidently find it hard to sleep when I am pounding the keyboard and generating any level of excitement.

It's been a very challenging week. I may have launched another micro business. I will wait until it achieves a degree of stability before blogging about it. More later...

Have a good weekend!