We just adopted these 2 cuties last Saturday. Maine Coon kittens!
Meet Smokie
And the Bandit!
Not from the same litter and he is about 3-1/2 weeks younger than Smokie.
And… it is my purpose in life to be cat furniture! 
Love Your Cat(s)? Share Them with Us
Janie
(Jane)
#203
We were down to one tiny orange cat and she of course hissed at the kittens for the first 5 days. Bandit is all-boy - went right up to Leah-Leah and went nose-to nose with her. She was good and didn’t swat at him. Today he jumped up on the bed to eat and she just watched him - no hissing. We are feeding the kittens on the bed because of our 95-lb dog.
We boarded Ella to go get the kittens in Alabama and left her there until yesterday so the kittens could get used to their new home. I wish dogs were as easy to potty train as kittens! Took forever to get Ella potty trained. I set both kittens in the litter box, moved their paws in the litter. Done. No accidents.
Ella grew up with our other Maine Coon and she LOVED Katy! But the kittens are so small and Ella came in the yurt one day with a rat in her mouth she had shaked until it was dead and it was about the same size as the kittens. We didn’t know how Ella would react but the kittens had their smell all over the house (and in Ella’s bed LOL). I put them in the cat carrier and let Ella sniff them. She wagged her tail and grinned! She was so happy.
The kittens hissed and spit and arched their backs and I don’t blame them. I am so proud of Ella - she has been gentle and kept her distance so eventually the kittens will figure out she isn’t going to hurt them. Ella has never gotten along with Leah-Leah - lunges and growls at her but has never hurt her. But she must associate these kittens with Katy and we are so thankful. You never know how animals are going to react. It’s going to be all good.
Hari
(Harriet)
#206
This is Max. We adopted him February 2023 when he was 10. He’s a polydactyl, but just barely, his extra toes are dewclaws on the rear. His front dewclaws actually touch the floor giving his front feet a wider appearance. He’s got a cute trait, if you stop petting him before he’s ready he reaches out and pats your hand with a paw, no claws.
Janie
(Jane)
#207
Our own Max was a Russian blue mix from a shelter. Lived 18 years and still missed because he was such a character!
ctviggen
(Bob M)
#208
18 years for a cat is a long time. I like cats, but my wife is sadly allergic.
Did you know cats can be trained using a clicker? Probably not to the extent dogs can, but not too bad.
CFLBob
(Central Florida Bob )
#210
I never posted about it, but I lost my little buddy back at the beginning of March. He was 19 and we adopted him around the fourth of July in 2010. He was sliding downhill for the last couple of years and I honestly thought we were going to lose him back in '22. I woke on Saturday, March 1st, to my buddy having died in my arms. I still miss him. I still reflexively look at places he used to “hang out” in the house when I walk by them.
It took us several months to decide to take in another cat, and in June, went to look for an older cat because they’re the hardest to adopt out. On Sunday, July 6, little five year old Tyla came to live with us.
She plays constantly, purrs very loudly, and investigates everything. Within a couple of days, she moved into our bedroom to sleep with us or just on our bed. Did I mention she wakes me up before sunrise every day? Ah, well.
OldDoug
(Doug)
#212
Bob, this is sad and yet beautiful.
Their relatively shorter lifespans have always seemed like a great unfairness in the universe to me, if there are such things.
ctviggen
(Bob M)
#213
For cats, are there rules like the “rule of 3” for dogs? The rule of 3 is 3 days, 3 weeks, 3 months for dogs, meaning that they are freaked out the first 3 days, then begin to settle in at about 3 weeks, then really are at “home” at about 3 months.
CFLBob
(Central Florida Bob )
#214
She’s very active. Aside from sleeping 35 hours/day (she’s a cat after all) she chases things the other 20 hours of the day.
Wait… it must only seem like that.
In the pic, you’ll see an orange thing she’s holding. Looks stick-like except the texture is carpet and it has white puffs of threads on both ends. Her right hand (top in the picture) is holding on to one end of the toy, That was hers in the adoption home and came here with her. We’ve gone a couple of days without being able to find it but she does. We’ll suddenly see her playing with it again.
The only thing she does that’s annoying to me is not uncommon with cats. If I’m petting her she’ll try to grab my hand and chew on it. I’ve discovered that most of the time, if I concentrate on scratching her forehead, she’ll concentrate on that, get that overcome-with-bliss-face, and stop trying to bite me.
CFLBob
(Central Florida Bob )
#215
Hmmm. I’ve never heard that before. The 3 days of freaked out and avoiding contact seemed about right. Day one we put the carrier we brought her home in “her” bathroom and she didn’t come out until evening. By the third day, she discovered our bedroom and has been centered on that. We’re at four weeks now and she really seems settled in but early on we started giving her canned food and while she seemed to like it all, she ignores most of it, now. I’d say all three of us are adapting to each other.
ctviggen
(Bob M)
#216
This is one representation:
Although this is for “rescue” dogs, it seems to work for puppies or really any dog.
I assume there’s something similar for cats, but maybe not as long.
kib1
(KM)
#217
I think it’s a lot more nuanced for cats? We’ve had kitties who simply didn’t go through a hiding phase, especially if we got them as kittens, they just marched in and took over, and I once had a purebred I got as a kitten who would almost never come out from under the furniture unless we were alone. Even then she really preferred having the apartment to herself.
Shinita
#218
Mom once got a cat that simply run into the kitchen and very clearly expressed (with her eyes and body language):
“I am here. Feed me!”
There was totally zero acclimatizing period.
We usually get our cats like that. They come and refuse to leave. It was only Tofu who was rescued. She was crying on a tree since at least a whole day so my SO grabbed and brought her home. She very seriously fought him. For many months, she screamed bloody murder (I can’t say it differently) whenever we touched her. Or just put our hands near her.
For several years, she complained whenever we touched her or almost. It took me some time and doubts but I have figured out she had never any problem with it (she did the show even when she could have gone away. and honestly, a cat nearly always can go away if they want… but there was no resistance but she stayed and meowed loudly). She is the only one. The other may love cuddles more or less but never acted like her.
That’s fun in cats: each and every one has their own personality!
By the way, when we moved (we did it twice a year at some point), the cats were always shy for a few days.