Author Topic: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!  (Read 9443 times)

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Offline Middle Child

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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #15 on: October 02, 2016, 10:02:35 AM »
I need to share more of Jennie's story in this forum! Jennie came forever home the day after her spay.  She spent her first two weeks living behind the screen door in the bedroom.  Ootay,Tolly, Mazy cat and I slept on the floor in the living room for those two weeks.

The first few days Jennie lived in the bedroom she continued "nursing" her kittens.  It was quite remarkable to see.  She really believed her kittens were still with her and she was nursing them.  She made a little nest on the far side of the bed, and I would peek over there and watch her. She would lie there purring this deep purr, and even adjust her body to give the kittens better access to her nipples.

After I had peeked at her over on the side of the bed a few times she "moved" the kittens to under the bed.  Safer for those phantom kittens I guess. So I lay flat on the floor and peeked under the bed and she was doing the same thing. She gave me a look as if to day, Don't bother me, can't you see I'm busy?

During this time Jennie never even looked toward the door out of the bedroom.  She ate, used her litter box and took care of her phantom kittens.  On the third day I noticed she was no longer cleaning her dish with every meal..  Each meal had about half left.  I figured she was weaning those phantom kittens, leaving half the food for them.  This went on for two days.  Then, she was done.

She still wasn't getting up on the bed, but she started sitting at the screen door looking out and conversing with the other cats.  She was protective the first day she did that.  Swearing and warning everyone away.  But once she started eating all her food again she just wanted out. I was supposed to keep her quarantined for 2 weeks, mainly because of Ootay's precarious health status.

I kept to the two weeks, then opened the screen door.

Offline Middle Child

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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #16 on: October 02, 2016, 10:20:36 AM »
Tolly, who loved other cats all other cats, just longed for her to be out!

I am TRYING to get pictures of this, as I have some.  But they keep disappearing from my computer when I try moving them from where they are stored to a place I can attach them here. I'll be back after I get over my frustration regarding this.

I'm back.. I have downloaded and saved this picture to file a hundred times and it just disappears.  Finally I opened it from the download folder, took a screen snot (snip) and saved it that way.  This is what Tolly used to do, while Jennie was still in quarantine.  Just stare at her longingly, while she swore at him.

Offline DeeDee

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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #17 on: October 02, 2016, 11:16:50 AM »
Happy Jennie Day!!!

  tiggerbounce dancingbanana bananamiddlechild BanWooHoo bananamiddlechild dancingbanana  tiggerbounce
"In order to really enjoy a dog, one doesn't merely try to train him to be semihuman. The point of it is to open oneself to the possibility of becoming partly a dog." Edward Hoagland
"Thorns may hurt you, men desert you, sunlight turn to fog; but you're never friendless ever, if you have a dog."

Offline Middle Child

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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #18 on: October 02, 2016, 04:41:20 PM »
When Jennie's quarantine was up I opened the door and waited to see what would happen. Tolly was immediately at the doorway waiting for her to come out.

Jennie approached the door and saw Tolly sitting there.  She started to swear at him.  She hissed and growled and spat and Tolly stared at her in amazement. He'd never heard such language. His eyes got very big but he didn't budge.  Suddenly, right in the middle of it all, Jennie yawned. I practically fell on the floor laughing. Tolly took advantage of the moment and moved in for a sniff.  He got his ears boxed for his trouble, but he didn't take offense, he just ran off kicking up his heels.

Jennie didn't come any further than that out into the room right away.  That night though I claimed my bed back, with Ootay Tolly and Mazy cat joining me.  I think Jennie might have slept under the bed.

She didn't get up on any furniture for many weeks.  The first time I saw her on the couch, as soon as I looked at her she flinched and jumped down and ran under the bed.  It broke my heart.  After that I was very careful to not look her way when she jumped up on the couch or windowsill.

Offline Middle Child

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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #19 on: October 02, 2016, 04:49:48 PM »
Jennie has a real sailor's  trashmouth and all the other cats were shocked at her language.  She stalked around swearing and cursing at everyone.  However, Tolly, with his wonderful sense of humor, soon found a way to get some fun out of it.

He would approach her and have a sniff, or swat at her hind legs, and Jennie would whip around and start screaming at him.  Tolly would run off laughing.  Even better was if he could approach her face to face.  He would lean in asking for a head bump and she would box his ears.  He LOVED that.  He would run off kicking up his heels, saying mrrph, mrrrph, and I swear what he was saying was "Haha made ya do it!"

The first time Jennie ever showed any indication of wanting to play:  I was on the floor with Tolly and Mazy cat (Ootay was sleeping).  We were playing Catch the Crumpled Paper Ball.  There were a number of paper balls around and Mazy cat and Tolly were waiting for me to toss another when Jennie came tearing out of the bedroom and busted right through the middle of our Game.  She snagged a paper ball and dribbled it into a corner where she somersaulted over ti and kicked it to pieces.  We all just sat and stared, it happened so fast , but it didn't take long to discover that that was Jennie's fun thing, she loved to ambush a Game and bust it apart.

She still loves doing that.  Of course now we're all long since used to her foul language and her ambushing ways!

Offline Middle Child

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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #20 on: October 02, 2016, 07:35:33 PM »
Wherever Jennie came from, she was not treated well.  I knew that by the way she flinched all the time, when I reached for her.  And having to raise a family all on her own outside, she had what I called swivel head.  Her ears and head were constantly swiveling, she was just on alert all the time.

This did gradually fade, but it took a long time.

Jennie was so happy to be with us though, when she wasn't cussing she was purring.  Kneading, all the time kneading and purring, to me.

She knew "No" and (back then, not now haha) never had to be told "No" more than once.  She saw Mazy cat pick on Ootay one day, and so decided to try it too.  I said very firmly "No Jennie, NO".  From that moment on she ignored Ootay's existence.

She allowed nail trims from the very beginning.  She never had any trouble letting me handle her, but she did cower a bit and tuck her tail down under her nether regions whenever I held her.

She doesn't do any of that cowering or tail tucking or swivel heading any more of course.

Gradually Jennie did start getting up on the furniture and staying there, still braced to jump down, but staying there.

I was so happy I got to see the first time she ever jumped up on the Play House. She was playing with Tolly and leaped straight up to get away from his pounce and found herself up on top of the Play House.  Her look of wonder at the different view was just incredible to see.  I'll never forget it.

From that time on she seemed to relax about being on the furniture, but it took her over two years to join us in bed at night.

Offline Pookie

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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #21 on: October 02, 2016, 08:22:10 PM »
Happy Gotcha Day!

 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1 love1
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Offline Lola

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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #22 on: October 03, 2016, 10:24:18 PM »
Happy Gotcha Day to you both.  Thanks for sharing Jennie's story, MC. 
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Offline Lola

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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #23 on: September 29, 2017, 02:10:30 PM »
 BanWooHoo tootgif tootgif
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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #24 on: September 29, 2017, 09:33:55 PM »
multistars multistars multistars multistars

Happy Gotcha Day, you lucky girl!   tiggerbounce tiggerbounce coolgif2 coolgif2 CheerLeader1 CheerLeader1 dance1 dancingbanana woohoogif happydance1 yaygif bananamiddlechild
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Offline Lola

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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #25 on: September 30, 2017, 10:28:23 PM »
Keeping the party alive through Oct 2.  :)
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Offline Middle Child

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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #26 on: October 02, 2017, 05:07:05 AM »
Happy 10th Gotcha Day, my precious Jennie-Jennie.  The Jennie-est Jennie that ever was.

Offline DeeDee

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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #27 on: October 02, 2017, 10:31:01 AM »
tiggerbounce dancingbanana multistarsHappy Gotcha, Jennie!multistars  tiggerbounce dancingbanana

"In order to really enjoy a dog, one doesn't merely try to train him to be semihuman. The point of it is to open oneself to the possibility of becoming partly a dog." Edward Hoagland
"Thorns may hurt you, men desert you, sunlight turn to fog; but you're never friendless ever, if you have a dog."

Offline Middle Child

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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #28 on: October 02, 2017, 06:39:32 PM »
Thanks everyone.  I was reminded of an early Jennie story today.  I was just now standing in the kitchen with cats swarming around.  Mazy cat approached Jennie with head lowered..offering a head bump kiss.  Instead of boxing Mazy cat's ears (which is usually what Jennie does) Jennie licked Mazy cat's forehead.  One, two three licks.  Mazy cat looked up and waited...I'm sure she was still expecting to get her ears boxed (which, in the rare instances when Jennie DOES lick instead of swat, the ear boxing and swearing soon follows).

Instead Jennie sauntered away.  Mazy cat couldn't resist though, and went behind Jennie and swatted at her hind legs.  THEN Jennie turned and boxed and swore, and Mazy cat trotted off giggling "haha made you do it".

Anyway, the story I was reminded of happened when Jennie was still new here.  Newer, anyway.  She had, by the time this took place, started getting on the furniture a little. Before Jennie came the cat dynamic was pretty mellow and benign.  There was very little sweating, nobody was getting his or her ears boxed.  Lots of love to go around.  Mazy cat was used to approaching Tolly with that head lowered posture and getting lots of kisses for it.

So one day I came home from work and found Jennie sleeping on the bed.  When she saw me looking at her she did flinch and start to jump off, but she was starting to learn it was okay, and she didn't quite run away.  Instead I sat down on the bed next to her and fussed over her, petting and telling her how loved she is, and how it's okay she can go anywhere she wants in this house.

The others started wandering in (it was Ootay, Tolly and Mazy cat then)  Not Ootay, she was in retirement and sleeping most of the time.  But Tolly and Mazy cat came in and Mazy cat jumped up on the bed and approached Jennie with her head lowered, expecting a couple of nice licks and maybe a headbump back. Instead she got her ears boxed, got sworn at scandalously, then Jennie jumped down and stalked off, swatting Tolly and swearing at him as she passed him, as well. 

Poor Mazy cat!  She just wasn't used to such treatment!  She looked at me and said "prrt prrt! Prrt?"  I could just tell what she was saying.  "What'd I do Mom?  I just wanted to say hello. Geez, what did I do wrong?"

Another thing involving Jennie and Mazy cat was meal times.  Jennie had to learn some manners such as "We do not barge in and chase someone away from her own food dish".  Mazy cat had the same reaction, when Jennie barged Mazy cat out, and stole her food.  She looked so hurt..she just didn't know what to do!

Jennie has learned manners, and come a long way from those early days, but she stil has a gutter mouth.  funny2 The other cats are just used to it now, that's all.


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Re: Happy Gotcha Day Jennie-Jennie!
« Reply #29 on: October 02, 2017, 08:30:01 PM »
Happy Gotcha Day, Miss Jennie!  multistars multistars multistars

And after reading the story about her gutter mouth, maybe I should say "Miss Hissy?"   cat2   Silly7

Funny story, thanks for sharing!
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