Adopted April 2010

4/28/10:

Are you sure you gave me a right cat? Kayko (ex Samuel) is not shy at all, he adjusts to the new environment very well. He loves to play, he purrs when I just talk to him. He rolls over when I pet him. He is very playfull. He is a great cat. Kayko and Kokosh met yesterday. So far Kokosh is not crazy about “intruder”. Kayko follows a big brother every where, which makes Kokosh upset. Kokosh decided to call for “hunger strike”. We will see how long it will last. Kokosh is a big cat, he is 14 pounds cat, he can be on diet for a moment, I just do not want to see him acting like this. Do you have any advices?

Shelter response: Poor Kokosh - he is worried that you are replacing him with Kayko. The best way to counteract this, even though it is VERY difficult, is for you to pretty much ignore Kayko - and give Kokosh LOTS of extra attention, kitty treats, and play time while Kayko is around, so Kokosh begins to associate Kayko with good things happening for him ("hmmmm, whenever this intruder is around, I get special kitty treats... that's a GOOD thing!") Refer to Kayko as "Kokosh's friend" verbally, always speaking to Kokosh with his name and referring to Kayko in terms of how you got him to be Kokosh's buddy, NOT your cat. Kokosh just needs to know things will only be BETTER, not WORSE, now that he has a new playmate.

So, just give it some time and remember to always treat Kokosh as the "king of the house" - Kayko won't mind a bit, he is just so happy to be there.