It's been a year since Smooch and Johnny's first house encounter...
and they don't get along any better now than they did then. Oh well.
***
It was around 10:30 Wednesday morning. I was working at my desk, Smooch was napping on the back porch, and
JohnnyCashCat was napping in the reading chair behind me. It started to rain and I heard Smooch whining to come in the house.
What to do...what to do... A face-to-face encounter between the two would have to happen eventually. Why not now?
Erring on the side of caution, I put Smooch's leash on her and walked her into the office.
She was immediately suspicious...
...yet she neither saw nor smelled the feral beast in the chair...
...until the feral beast twitched a whisker. Rather than let Smooch's hackles raise any higher,
I lured her to the other side of the house with the promise of a cookie.
I left Smooch's leash behind us with a stern warning to both of them that it was not to be crossed.
Smooch got her cookie and decided to hang out in the bedroom for awhile. I went back to the office.
But never one to leave well enough alone and wanting to get this whole dog-meets-cat thing over with...
...I beckoned Smooch to come. She's usually not this enthusiastic.
Perhaps she thought I was going to reward her with a cat instead of a cookie.
She took her spot on her side of the leash and stared at Johnny for the longest time...
...until she got bored and went back to the bedroom...
...only to return a few minutes later.
Smooch: It's lunchtime. Can we have cat?
Me: No.
Johnny: How about dog for dessert?
Me: Be nice, both of you.
Smooch: I've got better things to do.
Me: You're being such a good girl!
Smooch couldn't stay away for long and soon joined Johnny and I back in the office.
Smooch poked her head over the arm of the chair once and Johnny let out a ferocious hiss.
Smooch got his message loud and clear and backed off.
At this point, I'm not at all concerned about Smooch hurting Johnny...
...it's Johnny hurting Smooch that I'm worried about. The feral beast has a wicked set of claws.
cats can do a number on a dog... they look so cute together, hope they get to be friendly one day.
ReplyDeleteThey make a lovely matched set…all color coordinated and such! :)
ReplyDeleteThe whole time I was reading your story I was thinking that Smooch was the one who was in for it! I hope they decide to play nice..I still have to put my cat up when the family comes over. She isn't a people person, and I am pretty sure she would eat any other animal that dared to enter her kingdom. :)
ReplyDeleteGood for you -- and Smooch and Johnny. This is a big, big step forward. Speaking from experience. My new half Rottie rescue dog wanted to kill my old, de-clawed, indoors, rescue cat. (I didn't do the de-clawing)
ReplyDeleteSomewhere, I was given the advice to not correct my dog "harshly." I kept him on a leash for six months. When we would walk past the cat and he wanted to go for her, I would say, "No, leave it," and keep walking. It was a long six months, but successful.
Feral beast, my foot!
ReplyDeleteOur old MiMau kitty trained more than her share of dogs, and got to be such a hand at it that we never worried about her safety. Nor did we worry about the dogs' safety: they were that well trained!
ReplyDeleteI think this is going to work.
ReplyDeleteSuch a great photo story!
ReplyDeleteOMG. It has been a year? Time flies by so fast at this government chair I sit in every day...only 7 more to go.
ReplyDelete