An Oliver Update

Oliver.

Believe it or not, we're still in an adjustment period, even though he's been here for 3 months.

He really doesn't care to be held, but I worked with him over the summer and he will now tolerate it for up to 5 minutes, as long as he's held in a swaddling manner. Of course, when he's had enough, he'll meow and try to swat at my face with his paw.

He still evokes deep gutteral growls from Pepina. She does NOT like him in the least and she lets that be known continually. She ignores him completely....UNLESS he gets within about 2 feet of her, and then she lets out this low growl that you would swear is coming from some kind of a jungle animal.

Marina is just a tad better at tolerating him. She will actually play (or maybe it's really fighting?) with him for a couple of minutes at a time. When she wants nothing to do with him, she hisses at him and bares her teeth in his direction. She will antagonize him by pouncing on him or putting her paws up in the air as though she's telling him to put up his dukes...it can be quite hilarious.

He makes more sounds than either Pepina or Marina. He meows quite often. He can even do it without opening his mouth. When he and Marina go at it and are chasing each other and rolling around playing/fighting, and the fur is flying through the air (yes, it really is!) he can let out sounds that make you think he is being tortured beyond belief. We spent many nights this past summer, jumping out of bed to horrible sounds, only to find the two of them just chasing each other through the hall or the living room, or simply rolling around the floor nowhere NEAR each other. One night I heard some awful thuds and when I went to investigate I just knew I was going to find an unconscious cat somewhere.

Nope.

They were both in the living room, one on the chair, the other on the floor, just licking themselves.

Oliver can eat like no cat I've ever seen! The cats get dry food in the morning, and around 5:00 pm they each get a can of Fancy Feast.

Pepina is served first, because she is the matriarch. Oliver gets his second, because he can't wait and will drive us crazy. Marina gets hers third, because she is so patient.

Pepina eats almost all of hers. Marina eats about 5 bites of hers. Oliver DEVOURS his, then finishes up Marina's, then goes over to Pepina's to get the last few bites of hers. By the time he's finished, all three bowls are absolutely spotless! He'd eat another can himself if we'd let him, but our vet said that he eats just the right amount.

After he eats his evening meal, Oliver saunters into our bedroom, jumps up on the bed and promptly goes to sleep. He can be in a deep sleep for a couple of hours. If we interrupt him, he's not happy.

He's been quite an addition to our feline family. He and Pepina still have to work things out, but I think it will eventually be okay.

But three is our limit.

I mean it.

No more.

Unless another calico would happen to show up at our back door.