Let me start by saying, no, I am not crazy. I really wanted a dog and didn't want to wait until my then-13-year-old cat went to the "final litter box in the sky." I had heard all the warnings about cats and dogs in the same house and I knew that my elderly, hyper-sensitive cat would not be too pleased with this development, but I am the human and I get to make the decisions. So a year ago I got a puppy. A Siberian Husky to be exact. This blog is dedicated to the adventures of life with the two of them.
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My husband believes that the cat is coddled and just needs to get over it. I, on the other hand, believe the cat might have a few good reasons to be afraid of this large, furry beast with enormous teeth and a tongue that drips rain drops of slobber down onto her toys. So we bought a doggie gate to create a "cat safe" zone.
My husband affectionately refers to this gate as the Furlin Wall. Occasionally we have meetings at the Furlin Wall. They rarely go well. A typical meeting starts with the cat walking by to go get food or use the litter box. The dog sees her and runs to the gate. The cat turns, hisses and completes her intended course. Sounds innocent enough. But wait. The dog just stays at the gate. She may be younger and less experienced than the cat, but she aint no fool. She knows that the cat can not stay at the end of the hall forever and eventually has to come back in front of the gate. And when she does, the dog will be ready. Ready for what, I am not sure. Neither is armed and the gate is pretty stable, so I doubt it will spontaneously fall over. While the dog is certainly big enough and strong enough to jump over the gate, she does not seem aware of this.
So she just lies there and waits, some times for several minutes, until the cat attempts to walk back down the hallway. That is when the fun starts. Both animals are aware of the gate. They have both sniffed it out separately and pawed at it. So I think they realize that it is a barrier of some sort. None-the-less, when the cat sees the dog at the gate, all hell breaks loose. The cat won't move forward or backward. She just hunches down to the ground and hisses at the dog. The dog won't move forward or backward. She just lies on the ground and licks her lips.
I have to take this moment to explain that each animal sees this very differently. The cat is clearly not happy. Anyone who has seen a cat not happy knows what I mean. The dog on the other hand, thinks this is a game. Her tail wags the entire time and she will periodically stand up and look over at me all excited then turn back to the cat.
This stalemate can go on for as long as 20 minutes until finally the cat musters up the courage to sprint past the gate and run off into another room. The dog, feeling dejected, paces in front of the gate for a few seconds, and then bounces off to the next adventure.
We do see a light at the end of the tunnel, however. Every now and then the dog ignores the cat or the cat ignores the dog and the passing goes smoothly. Maybe the ghost of Ronald Reagan will visit our home some evening and demand of us that we "tier down this wall." I can only hope our fuzzy little Gorbachev is listening.
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My husband believes that the cat is coddled and just needs to get over it. I, on the other hand, believe the cat might have a few good reasons to be afraid of this large, furry beast with enormous teeth and a tongue that drips rain drops of slobber down onto her toys. So we bought a doggie gate to create a "cat safe" zone.
My husband affectionately refers to this gate as the Furlin Wall. Occasionally we have meetings at the Furlin Wall. They rarely go well. A typical meeting starts with the cat walking by to go get food or use the litter box. The dog sees her and runs to the gate. The cat turns, hisses and completes her intended course. Sounds innocent enough. But wait. The dog just stays at the gate. She may be younger and less experienced than the cat, but she aint no fool. She knows that the cat can not stay at the end of the hall forever and eventually has to come back in front of the gate. And when she does, the dog will be ready. Ready for what, I am not sure. Neither is armed and the gate is pretty stable, so I doubt it will spontaneously fall over. While the dog is certainly big enough and strong enough to jump over the gate, she does not seem aware of this.
So she just lies there and waits, some times for several minutes, until the cat attempts to walk back down the hallway. That is when the fun starts. Both animals are aware of the gate. They have both sniffed it out separately and pawed at it. So I think they realize that it is a barrier of some sort. None-the-less, when the cat sees the dog at the gate, all hell breaks loose. The cat won't move forward or backward. She just hunches down to the ground and hisses at the dog. The dog won't move forward or backward. She just lies on the ground and licks her lips.
I have to take this moment to explain that each animal sees this very differently. The cat is clearly not happy. Anyone who has seen a cat not happy knows what I mean. The dog on the other hand, thinks this is a game. Her tail wags the entire time and she will periodically stand up and look over at me all excited then turn back to the cat.
This stalemate can go on for as long as 20 minutes until finally the cat musters up the courage to sprint past the gate and run off into another room. The dog, feeling dejected, paces in front of the gate for a few seconds, and then bounces off to the next adventure.
We do see a light at the end of the tunnel, however. Every now and then the dog ignores the cat or the cat ignores the dog and the passing goes smoothly. Maybe the ghost of Ronald Reagan will visit our home some evening and demand of us that we "tier down this wall." I can only hope our fuzzy little Gorbachev is listening.
Your descriptions (and the fact that I know your two little loves) help me to picture this perfectly. Well done!
ReplyDeleteThank you. I hope the rest of the blog lives up to this level of story telling.
ReplyDeleteI feel your pain Sarah. Bo and Jangles are not fans of the dogs at all. Maeby (The Monster) wants nothing more in life than to be friends with Bo and Jangles. She goes in "The Cat Room" and flops her 80 ound self on the floor and waits for them to come and play with her. It has been over three years and they have yet to accept this invitation.
ReplyDeleteI hold out hope. A house divide and all that. ;)
ReplyDelete