Kitty v.4.0

June 4, 2008

Deja vu. In spring 2006, when I lived in Maryland (ick) with my cat Martin (may my sweet boy rest in peace), I decided to try to get him a playmate. Some of you remember Madison (a.k.a. Kitty v.2.0).

That April, I adopted 7-year-old Madison, a gorgeous, gray Maine Coon, from the county shelter. I swear that I did everything I could at home to make it a smooth transition. I read all the articles about keeping the cats separated for x weeks, I used the methodology behind adapting each kitty slowly to the scent of the other, and then went to brief supervised visits, etc.

None of that crap worked. After three months of tremendous, time-consuming (and increasingly agonizing effort), I had to find Madison a new home. Of course, by then I'd become attached. But Martin wanted her to be as far removed from him as possible. He'd have nothing to do with the playful little gal who was invading his territory. Off she went.

When Martin passed away last October 16, I went out looking for a new kitty. My search for a new companion actually helped me survive those first few grief-stricken weeks. On November 1, I brought home Baby, a 5-year-old Tiffany/Chantilly from the NYC Animal Control Center in Manhattan.

Baby is nothing like Martin, except that she tends to be somewhat laid-back. Martin was beyond laid-back. He was downright lazy. And fat. And happy. A play session with the ever-mellow Martin might have lasted 45 seconds--on a good day. He just wasn't into mobility. Activities that didn't involve belly rubs, eating, or napping just didn't interest him much.

Baby, on the other hand, is more playful than Martin. God she loves to chase the laser beam, chew on her mouse toys, and bite my appendages when in "attack" mode. (Just play bites, mind you - completely harmless.)

Martin was a pillow cat. Baby is a lap cat. Martin wasn't big into being brushed. Baby goes nuts with when she is being brushed - she acts like she's in heaven.

Now that I've had Baby for over six months, I figure she's settled in enough to maybe get her a playmate. For the past few weeks I've searched and searched for the right young, male, declawed cat to be Baby's new daytime companion. The process is a pain in the butt because you always have to deal with kooks, disappointments, and misleading ads before finally locating the right pet to adopt.

Yesterday a new ad came up on Craigslist for a 10-month-old Maine Coon that was dropped off at the shelter on May 31. They called her "LadyBug" at the shelter, not knowing the name given her by the family that abandoned her to be euthanized. A nice woman (Jennifer), who rescues cats and volunteers at the Brooklyn shelter, took LadyBug home with her. I saw the ad before Jennifer even had a chance to post photos, and I called her from work this afternoon.

Before I knew it, I was headed to south Brooklyn on the unfamiliar M train and walking into a small apartment in an old row house inhabited by 22 cats. We were out of time, as the woman was ready to go to her volunteer job. So I quickly gave her $50, filled out the one-page form, and took LadyBug home in a cardboard carrier.

She's mostly been under the bed ever since. I put her in my bedroom with food and water, shut the door, and immediately walked the four or five blocks to the pet store where I bought a small litter box and extra litter. She came out from under the bed not long ago this evening and drank some of her water, rubbed up against me, explored a bit, played a bit with a toy on a string that belongs to Baby, and then went back under the bed.

Earlier I'd brought a little margarine-sized tub of catnip in and held it under the bed to coax her out. She came closer, sniffed it, and shoved her paw into the tub, spilling cat nip all over the floor under the bed! I guess she likes catnip! (Although she didn't fall for the trick and come out.)

She's a funny-looking cat. Her head and torso are pure Tabby. In fact, she's kind of skinny for Maine Coon. Her feet have a lot of Coon in them, but her tail - that's all Maine Coon, as is her Madison-like waddle. Her tail is so broad compared to her skinny body that it looks off-balance.

Ironically, her facial features are nearly identical to Martin's. In fact, Kitty 4.0 very much resembles a cross between Kitty 1.0 and Kitty 2.0! It's strange.

Baby is curious but not freaking out. She knows that there is another creature in the bedroom and has sat calmly outside the door in wait. For this evening, I'm trying to keep the routine as normal as possible for Baby and plan to keep them separated over night, which will require some juggling later, before bedtime.

So we'll see if Kitty 4.0 is good enough to keep. Backward-compatibility with Kitty 3.0 is a pre-requisite. Only time will tell. But this time I'm not making a big deal about it. I'll keep the two versions separated for one or two days then see what happens.

No way I'm dragging this out for three months! Let's see how it goes this week. . . .