I went nose to nose with my sister Scruffy this morning. She barked. I batted hard at her nose. She barked some more. I purred. ~ Graham Kitty

Note: so the kittens this morning climbed up the closed Kitten Palace door and stood looking in at Scruffy. Cause of course Scruffy to bark. They dropped to the floor but Graham stayed by the door while the barking continued. After a quick discussion Greg put Scruffy’s harness and leash on her with a second leash on her collar then he held her. I opened the door and Gus Gus ran into the living room and straight under the couch where he stayed. I picked Graham up and the two in a very controlled atmosphere met nose to nose. As Graham mentioned he started purring almost right away. Scruffy stopped barking and moved to whining then a few seconds of silence. After about 10 minutes Greg took Scruffy out to the pup porch with the other pups while Graham and Gus had playtime in the living room. Progress…~ My Margret

Never underestimate the determination of a kitten who wants the feather! ~ Graham Kitty

I met my sister Scruffy this morning. She’s loud and jumps A LOT!!! I didn’t purr but wasn’t afraid. My Margret said next time My Greg will be there to help out. She also said once I get to know Scruffy she won’t be as loud or as jumpy. I hope she’s right… ~ Graham Kitty

Psst..Hey Graham! Are we supposed to be in here?

It must be okay Gus, because when our My Greg found out we could climb over the kitten palace gate he opened the door to make it easier.

Isn’t this great! ~ Gus and Graham Kitties

Note: A couple of days ago as is usual the pups were out in their pup porch/pen while we had supper. When Greg went into the living room he discovered the boys had climbed over the gate into the living room. They had a great time exploring and playing. In true cat fashion they like to stay in the area we are but are too busy to stay in our laps for more than a minute or so.
Because we are still working on introductions with the pups, (meeting Scruffy is on today’s schedule) the boys can only have free rein when the pups are not in the house and when we can keep an eye on them. Step by step we’re making progress 🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾
~ My Margret.

So I just met my big. loud. licky. sister Bessie. My Margret said that being loud and licking is how she says hi. My Greg helped us to get to know each other. It went fine and I did purr but after My Margret put me back in the kitten palace I gave her a look and dried off my fur that my big sister got wet. Sigh… ~ Graham Kitty

This morning Bea and Graham met nose to nose. I wasn’t able to get the close up pics because my two hands were busy holding a kitten and petting a golden retriever. After the introduction at the kitten palace gate and the “getting to know you time” in the dining room we moved into the living room. Graham was purring on my lap while Bea was laying at my feet. Both were relaxed and happy. I couldn’t have asked for a better result. When the opportunity arises we will introduce Graham to Bessie. 😊 ~ My Margret

Hey Bea!!! I’ve got an idea, let’s roughhouse, I’ll pretend to pin you and we’ll get Bessie to bark really loudly about it. It’ll be great!!!! ~ Scruffy Pup

If I lean just a little more to the left, and close one eye I can see our new brother kitties through the slightly opened door. Sigh… I wish our My Greg would open it more so I could see them better! ~ Scruffy Pup

Lest things appear to be too perfect thought it was time to give a peek behind the scenes. Bea is our Covid/retirement pup and she doesn’t handle change well plus she’s on a maintenance med for a chonic health issue that contributes to anxiety.
Unknowingly we gave her a perfect storm. We were on vacation for 9 days and she and Bessie were well cared for, played with and loved on by a close friend of ours and her two boys. Bea has known them for most of her life and loves them.
So the storm started when we came home and as much as our Velcro pup loves us she missed seeing Megan and the boys. Then 5 days after we came home from vacation, family arrived for a family reunion. More fun and excitement, then that same night family arrived, two new four footed family members started living in the front room. Bea desperately wants to play with her new brothers but they are tiny and we are giving everyone time to get used to each other. To do that successfully takes longer than one would think.
The day we came home from vacation Bea and Scruffy realized there are moles under their pup pen and have spent a lot of time digging holes to try and find them.
All of that combined took Bea’s appetite away this week. She would eat treats but one cannot only eat treats as fun as that sounds. Finally after much trial and error, time, stress reduction and making a party out of mealtime Bea’s appetite started to come back yesterday. This morning’s breakfast was eaten with almost her usual enthusiasm. The kittens are doing great and getting used to their kitty palace (front room) the barking dogs no longer seem to bother them and the barking dogs aren’t barking at them as much. Bea and Scruffy have slowed down the mole surveillance and there are plenty of love and cuddles for all 5 of our furry family members.
Things are finally getting back to “normal/new normal”. Boy it’s been a week though! 🙄😂

~ The Pups and Kitties My Margret