Sunday, August 1, 2021

Contentment, Perhaps

I don’t recall if I wrote it in a blog entry or just talked about it with a friend, but a while ago, maybe in early June, I described Portia as being unhappy. She was displeased at having lost her home, being placed in this strange environment, having to live with other cats, and with an unknown human – a man, at that. I think she was angry much of the time.

This was to be expected. Certainly the confusion and distress of being wrenched from a home of many years would afflict any cat brought into a completely different setting. Being a very sensitive and intelligent calico may have affected Portia more than it would otherwise.

But I believe things have changed for her. Po has adapted to her new home. She has found favourite spots, and she has developed a routine that fits within the general routine of the Cosy Apartment. She no longer hisses at the other cats. Neville and Tucker walk past her without much concern, though sometimes the latter hesitates for a moment. Renn is still quite wary of her because he took her lunges and hisses more personally than did the other two boys; that, however, is his problem rather than hers, and he is dealing with it.

Portia’s new attitude is also shown in how she is using her small world. After ignoring the cat-trees since her arrival, she has begun using them on her own (subsequent to some prompting by me.) I have found her several times this weekend on the taller cat-tree in the sitting room; she seems to prefer the middle-level platform, and likes using it as a vantage point to peer out the glass doors.

She likes to lie under the cat-tree, in the full blaze of the sun on hot, late afternoons. She dozes there amid a jumble of toys with which she plays periodically. She retreats under my bed less often, though it may just be a quiet, cool spot for her now, rather than a refuge from discouragement.

It is in her behaviour toward me that I see changes, too. She likes our time together, usually in the evenings, when, seeing me go into the library for my own reasons, she will follow me and expect me to provide her with a lap. Sometimes I will do the inviting. Other times, she will be lying on top of the short bookcase, under the window, and refuse my invitation to join me on the couch. I can sense a difference in her refusal: instead of a low grumble or a hiss, my offer will be met with a slight pause of consideration, before it is declined. (“Not just yet. Maybe later.”)

And she let me cut her claws on Saturday. She wasn’t happy about the process, and I couldn’t achieve all of them at once, but it was done, and she didn’t hold it against me.

Po undoubtedly misses much of her old home, and will continue to do so. But I think she has made the decision to live in the Cosy Apartment. She doesn’t look to the front door whenever she hears voices in the corridor; I believe she no longer expects her former humans to show up and take her home. She has, I think, resigned herself to the apartment being her home.

And she has, perhaps, found a little contentment in that realisation.

15 comments:

  1. Transition time; we can never know what length it will take.

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  2. I'm glad she's come to the realization that the Cozy apartment is her new home. I hope too, it is her forever home.

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  3. I think you're quite correct, John. It does indeed seem like Po has decided that the Cosy Apartment is now her home. She appears to be content and relaxed. Losing her former home after so many years must have been awful for her, but she seems to have adjusted well. A little time, patience and love can work wonders.

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  4. Tincture of Time is one of the best medicines for a lot of things...

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  5. It certainly takes our cats quite a while to adjust to their new homes that we try to give them. But she certainly seems to be getting into the groove with you. Nice to know she's now climbing the cat tree and reclining on it by herself. You can't help but Wonder how much they remember and how much they want to go back to their original life.

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  6. We humans can imagine what it must be like to be wrenched out of our homes and put in a strange place with strangers both human and feline. It seems Po has settled and knows she is home now.

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  7. It's good to see Portia settling in. What a hard adjustment that must have been for her. With your experience with cats the transition was made easier. I love seeing how she's slowly becoming comfortable at your cozy apt!!!

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  8. It's not at all surprising that it would take time for her to adjust to a new home, but it does sound like Portia's finally realizing that she her current surroundings are pretty darn good. I hope whatever homesickness she had is ending.

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  9. it bee oh fish ull portia ~~~~

    happee gotcha day; az they say on vulcan; live long and prospurr

    ore as de catfather wood say

    benvenuto ~~ ☺☺♥3

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  10. It is amazing in a way how many, if not most cats adapt easily to new situations. Far far better than their human counterparts. I am happy to hear how Po is growing so well in what she sees as her new home.

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  11. I'm glad she is accepting her new place and I hope she continues to heal from her disruption.

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  12. I am glad that Po has accepted the Cosy Apartment as her home. I hope it can be her permanent home.

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  13. Thank you for helping Po transition in her own time, John. It certainly sounds as though she is getting there.

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  14. It takes time. Laz (Lapis Lazuli) took a year to settle in and understand that he had a Forever Home finally. It was a difficult year, but worth it.

    Now, he accepts the other cats, comes up on my lap, and under the covers sometimes at night. My previous cats (some still here) went for me immediately. Laz took some time...

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