The Training of Cats
Jan. 7th, 2011 06:20 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
deird1Dilemma: Smudge is getting way too dominant, and making Elf's life a misery. Elf, being a big wuss, is not going to stand up for himself to change this.
Our solution: When we feed the cats, feed Elf first, and insist that Smudge wait his turn - thus asserting Elf's dominance in the food-getting department, and levelling the playing field slightly.
(This is not such a random solution as it sounds: part of the problem was that Smudge was jumping in front of Elf to eat food, and Elf would just sit there and let him, looking sad and confused.)
New dilemma: Because we are now feeding the cats in order, they've each ended up with their "own" bowl.
Elf has figured out that he eats food out of his bowl, and shouldn't touch Smudge's. Smudge has not figured this out. I keep on being woken up by frantic requests from Elf, who is starving - because Smudge has calmly eaten half the food from Elf's bowl, and has saved his own bowl for later. Elf is too polite to touch Smudge's, no matter how hungry he is.
No kidding: the last three mornings, I've gone out to feed them, and found Elf's bowl licked clean and Smudge's STILL FULL. And Smudge looking extremely smug.
Our solution: Um...
Our solution: When we feed the cats, feed Elf first, and insist that Smudge wait his turn - thus asserting Elf's dominance in the food-getting department, and levelling the playing field slightly.
(This is not such a random solution as it sounds: part of the problem was that Smudge was jumping in front of Elf to eat food, and Elf would just sit there and let him, looking sad and confused.)
New dilemma: Because we are now feeding the cats in order, they've each ended up with their "own" bowl.
Elf has figured out that he eats food out of his bowl, and shouldn't touch Smudge's. Smudge has not figured this out. I keep on being woken up by frantic requests from Elf, who is starving - because Smudge has calmly eaten half the food from Elf's bowl, and has saved his own bowl for later. Elf is too polite to touch Smudge's, no matter how hungry he is.
No kidding: the last three mornings, I've gone out to feed them, and found Elf's bowl licked clean and Smudge's STILL FULL. And Smudge looking extremely smug.
Our solution: Um...
no subject
Date: 2011-01-06 10:00 pm (UTC)We had to feed our last cats in separate areas of the house (not because of food bullying, exactly, but because they just didn't get along) and it worked pretty well - especially after we moved into this house and were able to feed them on separate floors. We did generally give the less aggressive cat her food near where we spent most of our time so that we could keep an eye out for the other one trying to sneak in and eat it.
I must say that even after all these years, it still hits me how wonderful it is to have cats who get along as our two current ones do.