Smudge & Indie

September 2015

We spent a month looking after Smudge and Indie, 2 very different characters who mostly avoided each other as much as possible, but we managed to bring them together through play. Whilst we were there, we were also asked by a neighbour if we could mind her little girl Kiba for 4 days, and of course we were happy to oblige!

Smudge was as gentle and sweet natured as they come. Once you earned his trust, you really could do anything you wanted with him – a real softie inside and out! But earning his trust didn’t come easy.

The advert had said that he was a very nervous cat who needed experienced and patient sitters, and “hated strangers and men”. But we were ready for the challenge! When we arrived, he was sitting on the sofa, but the moment he caught a glimpse of us, he ran to one of the bedrooms to hide.

We were warned he’d probably stay there a whole week at least, and only come out to eat when we went out, or after we’d gone to sleep.  It really pains us so see a pet so scared in their own home, so we set ourselves a challenge to get him out of that wardrobe sooner.

We spent time in the room with him every day, sitting on the floor to appear smaller, some distance away so he could observe us without feeling crowded, talking to him softly, and bringing him food and the occasional treat so he could associate us with nice things. And it worked!

After a couple of days, he was out and about, eating normally, and soliciting attention.

And a week later, we had him playing, stalking, chasing, jumping… Priceless comment from his mum when we sent her a video: “I have never seen him using up so much energy!”

Indie was a Spanish señorita with big round eyes and the cutest little face. She had been rescued from life in the streets as a tiny orphaned kitten. As it’s often the case with cats that have been weaned too early, she had some aggression issues and was not as placid as Smudge. We were warned that she went through “biting phases”.

Much more confident than Smudge, she didn’t hide from people, but insisted in being “asked for permission” to stroke her before you did, otherwise she would let you know, in no uncertain terms, that the attention was not welcome.

Some would say she had a bit of a short temper, but it was simply that she tired of physical attention quicker than other cats, and let you know she had had enough the only way she knew how.  She would happily jump on our laps and try to climb into bed with us, but it didn’t take much petting to get her overexcited and we had to watch her body language carefully to know when to stop and just let her be.

By respecting her boundaries, we all had a trouble-free month and she was much more relaxed and playful by the end, joining in games with Smudge, and both of them sharing the same space more willingly and peacefully.

These days, Smudge no longer hides in the cupboard and they even snooze together from time to time! It makes us so happy!

Kiba was a tiny, super sweet and loving old lady who just couldn’t get enough cuddles. She actually enjoyed being held like a baby and would purr ever so softly in appreciation. We were asked to just pop round a couple of times a day for a few minutes to give her food and water and clean out her litter tray, but we ended up spending every afternoon with her as the other two slept their siestas. How could anyone resist that face!