Preventing Kitty Stress

Before Cyrus came we all wondered how our cats would deal with the situation. Cyrus is actually very good around the kitties but he is, after all, a one-year-old. He can get very excited about seeing one of them and squeal loudly in happiness... not a good sound to cat ears! We've been working with him about petting them gently and I try hard to make sure most of his activities take place in cat-free zones. He's done very well with learning to approach a cat softly and gently. Still, only a couple of them don't run away as soon as they see him! I think we've managed to keep the kitties relatively stress-free so that we don't end up with angry kitty behavior (like peeing where they shouldn't) and we've kept Cyrus scratch-free except for once in the very beginning when Frosty popped him on the head.

The good thing about cats is that they are very good at getting out of the way. Here is Banu on her cat pole, high up out of harm's way. She'd prefer to be in a totally different room but if Cyrus surprises her, up the pole she goes!

She even has a higher level above the one on which she's sitting. (That's Layli jumping out of the cat bed.)

Tippy totally disappears while Cyrus is around. Here I caught her behind the couch, but usually I can't even find her.

Calvin is almost always hiding in the coat closet when Cyrus is around, but here I found him behind the couch and the big potted plants.

Obi likes to hang out in the sunroom most of the time. Although Cyrus likes to go in there sometimes he's learned to stay away from the kitty lying on the sleeping bag. Obi doesn't mind Cyrus as much as the others and will even tolerate a petting from Cyrus if it's near the food bowl (he likes to be petted while eating.)

What a cutie.

Lupe is another one that totally disappears when Cyrus is around. I really had to hunt for her and found her under the couch in the piano room, a room Cyrus rarely goes.

I found Layli in the piano room too... can't see her? Go to the next pic.

She used the help of the glaring sun to hide in the dark corner. Layli often stays in the middle of our bed when Cyrus is there. She's learned that he can try to grab her from all around the bed but can't reach her if she's in the middle.

Frosty often gets away by climbing up the cat tree. He appears to dislike Cyrus and is very wary if Cyrus comes into the room. Frosty always tries to avoid him, but if Cyrus runs up on him he gets "that look" and I whisk Cyrus away to safty. Frosty wouldn't really injure him but he would probably pop him on the head again and that can really hurt.

Frosty sweetums can really pack a whallop when needed.

Last, but in no way least, is Chappu. Here she's hiding for a quiet nap but when she's awake she has no problem hanging out with Cyrus. She doesn't mind him petting her but flinches when he does it too hard. She has taken the most abuse from him and still tolerates him the best. I guess it's all personality. If you remember the early pics of when Cyrus was still just laying on the floor it was Chappu who was always the most interested in him.

The kitties have learned Cyrus' schedule. When he goes up for a nap they all come out and do their usual things. In the evening after he's gone to bed you can almost hear an audible sigh of relief as they plop on the couches and spread out in the middle of the floor to hang out with their humans. Cyrus is leaving us on Saturday night to go back to his normal life with mommy and daddy. Sunday will be a happy day for the Modaresi kitties, but a sad day for the Modaresi grandparents.