The pets all have me stunned today.

First the two cats. I decided I was going to step in more with their little wrestle matches when Jo appeared to be getting very annoyed. So today I did so. This morning they were getting rough so I put Merlin in time-out in his cage while we went out for breakfast. The rest of the day they spent sleeping around the house. This evening they both woke up and Merlin jumped Jojo again. The second time they started was in the living room and I shoo’d Merlin off and told him to cut it out. He walked off down the hall into Den’s office. Next thing I know Jo goes running down the hall after him. A few minutes later they both come flying out of Den’s office and down the hall, and Jo’s tail was most definitely in a crook. They ran around the living room a bit, climbing furniture, then sat down for a while. Then off they went again down the hall chasing one another. So apparently Jo is not nearly as upset about Merlin as I had feared. While I was reading a book tonight both cats snuck into the bathroom (which had the door cracked open) and proceeded to roll around in there for quite some time, thumping into walls and nearly shutting them both inside. After a while I saw the door get pulled open and Jo came sauntering out… a couple seconds later Merlin came out and walked in the opposite direction. It was the funniest thing! Unfortunately our bath mat is covered in a bunch of little black fur clumps. Whether or not they are getting “too” rough they are certainly not being gentle on each other. (Not that this should surprize me - our dogs beat the crap out of each other too.)

Merlin spent the entire day sleeping on the futon, then moving to the couch to sleep. He completely ignored Zeeke. After just two days he is walking around the house freely like he owns it - dog be damned. He does get a little ticked off with Zeeke nibbling on him, but he is definitely not the least bit scared. Zeeke has been acting much better than we expected - still not as good as we had hoped, but it is only day 2. Zeeke was basically ignoring Merlin the entire time he slept on the couches… just not paying any attention at all. This is a big improvement. However soon as Merlin moves Zeeke jumps to attention. We’re hoping that reaction will diminish over time. We hope. As it is, Zeeke is rather annoying when he starts the barking and panting and obsessive following and biting at the cat.

Zoe doesn’t even come into the equation. Merlin attempted to try playing with her - tapping her with a paw and sniffing her. But Zoe very carefully moved out of his reach. She’s still not quite sure yet. I’m sure she’ll warm up - she’s been sniffing him maniacally all day. She is feeling the effects of not as much attention as she’s used to, however. Whenever Den walks into the room she runs over to sit at his feet and start whining and barking insistently at him until he gives her some attention. I think she’s feeling a little ignored. I’ve tried giving her some personal time today. Gave her a little brushing, some cuddling, some playing. But she isn’t demanding with me, only Den.

Just now we’re all in the bedroom except Jo. The dogs were in here and when Den came in to go to bed Merlin came sauntering in and jumped on the bed. He currently has Zoe’s tail clamped in his arms and is chewing on it. Merlin is now biting her toes. It’s pretty damn funny. I’m not sure how Zoe feels… I think she’s a little disconcerned. LOL!