sonpaperearly: drink he tequila

Especially since I have an appointment to meet at 11 am. :P�

Night shift blows.

Anyhow, I thought Iapos;d give a little update on something I havenapos;t touched on in awhile.

Axel Katt.

No, no... Heapos;s fine, donapos;t worry.�

Itapos;s just that heapos;s started to chill a teeny bit.� Heapos;s still my annoying kitty.� Seperation anxiety will do that to a cat, you know... And my having to leave he and Jinks alone for 10 days shortly after I�adopted him was no help in that arena, I�know.� But heapos;s not so strident anymore. �

I wonder if heapos;s depressed sometimes (and I�have seen kitty depression in Jinks... It does happen.)� But he seems happy enough.� Heapos;s not gaining weight, he holds his body in a relaxed manner... He goes out and hunts (at least I think he does... Itapos;s hard to tell who to credit the dead fauna that gets left on the porch or walkway you know...)� So I apos;m not overly worried.�

Really more what I�notice is a sense of him being more relaxed and at ease with things.� Heapos;ll sleep on the couch beside you rather than insisting on sleeping ON�you.� He is slightly less yowly. (Although he wonapos;t ever be the reticent cat Jinks is... But no cat can be Jinks, so itapos;s unfar to hold Axel to that standard, really.)� And the most shocking of all: he will tolerate being brushed... And actually seems to enjoy it some.

See, for the last year brushing day with Axel has been a traumatic thing for the both of us.� For me because I have to scruff him and force him to endure something he obviously despised.� For him because he would spend the entire session (usually no longer than 5 or so minutes total) growling, screetching and trying to escape.� (Necessitating the use of the scruff maneuver.)�
I tried everything to acclimate him: kind words, patience, even cat sedative... Nothing worked.�

Now, if it were Jinks, Iapos;d just let it go.� Jinks has fairly light fur and since itapos;s dark it can be mildly annoying as it builds up on my white couch... But itapos;s not terribly troublesome (except to Bill... And only really if he has to spend 24/7 around it.� Keeping the cats out of the bedroom and keeping a stock of allergy medication seems to have helped this part of it some... And when Bill returns to the care of an allergist, the problem will eventually resolve Iapos;m told.)� But Axel has a very thick coat.� A coat which featured (up until very recently at least) coarse "guard hairs" on the outer layer of his fur.� With his being a white cat... All that undercoat gets everywhere.� And with our wardrobes being mostly dark-colored it makes regular brushing a necessity.� Even if only an irregular one.

Two weeks or so ago I decided it was time to attempt to brush Axel again.� He was relaxed, sleeping on the couch and I thought that it was as good a time as any to attempt it.�

I was shocked to find that he didnapos;t even wake up, he just started to purr sleepily.� And let me brush him for a good ten minutes before I decided I had pushed it enough for one day.�
Iapos;ve been able to brush him at least once or twice a week since that day.� And while he doesnapos;t think itapos;s the next best thing to catnip or anything, heapos;ll purr and tolerate it for a good ten to fifteen minutes before he decides heapos;s done and moves away to grab a nibble or sleep on our shoes (which we usually kick off just inside the front door to keep the pine needles from taking over our living room carpet.� Itapos;s a spot right in front of the main heat register in the living room, and I�think he likes to feel close to us.)

In the year and a half since I adopted Axel, I�had despaired of him ever gaining the semi-aloofness that most catapos;s share.� I had almost resigned myself to having another Merlin around (except this version didnapos;t come with the added bonus of scratching himself bloody due to a flea allergy - thank goodness for that.)� A "Merlin v3.0" if you will.��

Now, I originally got Axel with Jinkapos;s welfare in mind.� Jinks was pining for company when I was gone travelling with AACO... He would overeat and mope while I�was gone, and when I�got back he would be intolerable.� This was not surprising, as he had never been the solo cat ever.� So, I adopted Axel. �
Eventually, Jinks will die as all pets do.� And this will be hard on me.� I love Jinks with all my heart.� And while I�love Axel too, it was never the same as what I felt for Jinks.� Axel as a replacement for Jinks after Jinks passes away was not really a heartening prospect, I�am sorry to say. �
Until recently, that is.
Lately, as I have noticed the change in Axelapos;s demeanor I�find myself more drawn to him.� Even bonding with him a bit. �And this has made me very happy.�� Living with a pet you havenapos;t bonded with is a sad and unfortunate state for both you and the pet...

So, in closing, I give you the new Axel Katt. :)