My Poor Fur Babies

A blended family always needs to go through an adjustment period while each member figures out where he or she falls in the family hirearchy. We are going through such an adjustment now.

My cats have been my babies for several years now. I love them and consider them a valuable and irreplaceable part of the family. So, of course I worried about how the addition of two little babies would affect them. Would I be able to give them enough attention and time to ensure that they stay happy and not feel like they have been replaced by Shawn and Jason?

When I first brought Shawn home, the cats were less than impressed with this loud bundle of joy. He would cry (scream might be a more accurate word) and the cats would go scrambling for the garage or my bedroom, whichever point would get them the furthest from the baby. They were skittish and unhappy about the whole thing. Gracie, who only has eyes for me, took all of this especially hard. She had even taken to throwing up a few times a day while she dealt with this new stress.

I did what I could to comfort them and make them feel like all was well. When I would nap while Isaac had Shawn, I would take them with me to the bedroom so they could get some undivided snuggle time with mama. Slowly but surely, the cats would come closer and closer to Shawn to smell him and get to know him. It took quite a while, and it was painful sometimes to watch, but they were aclimating to the new situation.

Fast forward a few days, and I am happy to report that everyone seems to be settling in to a new routine. Now, instead of running from his cries, the cats will follow me around while I try to console Shawn. Often, they will cry, too, in a show of support for Shawn's distress. While they still don't want to get too close to the baby, they will now stay in the same room with him and don't freak out when he moves suddenly or makes a new noise. Gracie has stopped getting sick and throwing up all over the place. Not too bad for only one week, I think!

Now I wonder what it will be like when Jason comes home. I hope the cats don't unite in protest and do something to me in my sleep! :-)



And I can't get spell check to work for some reason. If you catch an error, overlook it and attribute it to a mind numb from little sleep. Thanks...