![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
First, thank you so much to everybody who's sent hugs and sympathy about Chase. Just knowing that y'all are there and that you care (and that some of you had a chance to meet my fuzzy boy) really does help.
On a somewhat lighter note, I've been fascinated by the behavior of my cats since I got home from the vet last night. When I first came home, none of them would come near me... I think I was radiating more stress than they could figure out how to deal with. Then, all of a sudden, I realized I was petting a purring cat curled up by my left leg. I never felt him get on the sofa, and Smudgie's a big boy, but there he was... just hanging out and purring. Over the course of the night, I had an ever-changing procession of cats in that one spot. I frequently didn't realize they'd changed until I looked down and realized "Hey, that's not the fur I was petting a few minutes ago!"
Then I started noticing another piece of the pattern. Each time I got a "new" cat to pet, the previous one would go engage in a vigorous game of hide-and-seek or pounce-and-tussle with one of the other cats. In some cases, cats who generally consider themselves too "old and dignified" to play (looks at Errie) were suddenly hiding around corners and leaping up in the air and pouncing on furry passers-by.
It's almost like each cat would curl up with me 'til they'd soaked up all the grief and stress they could handle, then they'd go off and discharge it with a rousing bit of silliness with one of the other cats... like zapping them with a static charge... while another cat moved in to take their place by me.
It was very cute... and more than slightly odd. But, well, they're cats and "odd" is kinda in their job description.
On a somewhat lighter note, I've been fascinated by the behavior of my cats since I got home from the vet last night. When I first came home, none of them would come near me... I think I was radiating more stress than they could figure out how to deal with. Then, all of a sudden, I realized I was petting a purring cat curled up by my left leg. I never felt him get on the sofa, and Smudgie's a big boy, but there he was... just hanging out and purring. Over the course of the night, I had an ever-changing procession of cats in that one spot. I frequently didn't realize they'd changed until I looked down and realized "Hey, that's not the fur I was petting a few minutes ago!"
Then I started noticing another piece of the pattern. Each time I got a "new" cat to pet, the previous one would go engage in a vigorous game of hide-and-seek or pounce-and-tussle with one of the other cats. In some cases, cats who generally consider themselves too "old and dignified" to play (looks at Errie) were suddenly hiding around corners and leaping up in the air and pouncing on furry passers-by.
It's almost like each cat would curl up with me 'til they'd soaked up all the grief and stress they could handle, then they'd go off and discharge it with a rousing bit of silliness with one of the other cats... like zapping them with a static charge... while another cat moved in to take their place by me.
It was very cute... and more than slightly odd. But, well, they're cats and "odd" is kinda in their job description.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2008-03-06 03:45 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-03-07 03:52 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-03-06 05:10 am (UTC)Your cats' stress-relieving behavior sounds familiar. I was widowed in 1994, and the 3 cats in the household at the time did pretty much the same routine for a while. (One of them is still with me, 18 & a little senile but going strong.)
You've made it clear Chase was a special dog. I'm sure he thought you were special too. *hugs*
(no subject)
Date: 2008-03-07 03:55 am (UTC)It's cool to hear that somebody else's cats have done something similar, because the more I watched it, the more it became obvious that there was a pattern to their behavior, it wasn't any of the normal patterns, and it seemed very intentional. Tonight, I'm not nearly as emotional and the cats are back to their normal behavior... one on each side, one behind me, and the rest ignoring me. :-)
(no subject)
Date: 2008-03-06 05:17 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-03-07 03:55 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-03-07 02:22 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-03-08 01:40 am (UTC)Sherri