Sometime in the middle of the night, as I attempted to "sleep" in the front bedroom with Boo and Dash, it was a good thing I was on the other side of the house, because I started laughing out loud like a crazy person. It suddenly hit me - I had inadvertently recreated my kids' childhood! No, I am not punchy from lack of sleep (well, I am) but I do have a point! Here is the recap:
My intention to get another Aby was twofold - I wanted a bona fide companion for Dash and - well - I wanted another Aby. That she is a girl was a bonus because we are seriously lacking estrogen in this male-filled household. What I didn't anticipate was the big brother/little sister tableau it would create.
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| If you mess with me I'll scream! |
From the moment Boo arrived, she made it clear she was not going to be messed with. She is tiny but mighty. She is also extremely smart. As with any newcomer, the rest of the kids were curious, but not particularly concerned. Maybe they're used to this by now. Anyway, Dash wanted to play with his new "toy." I mean, we did tell him we were getting another Aby just for him.
When things settled after awhile, we decided to just let her explore the house. We sat down to have supper. The first time we heard the sound she emits when she's warning somebody to leave her alone, Andy choked on his dinner, I fell off my chair and the kids looked at me like the world was possibly ending!
I dispatched my granddaughter to take a look because I just couldn't bear the sight of my new kitten dead from God knows what.
Then I got my wits about me and called her back! I went to check for myself and there was Dash, looking dazed and confused - pretty much like the rest of us. If he could speak, he would have said, "I don't know what that was! I never even touched her! I swear!!" Then Little Miss Boo strolled out, none the worse for wear, with a teeny tiny smirk on her face, and went into the bedroom.
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| I never even touched her! |
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| That should do it... |
As the day went on, the blood curdling scream became her MO to get, primarily Dash, to back off. Now, I can't say we ever got used to it - let's just say it became less and less terrifying and heart stopping. We were told a female cat in heat makes ear splitting howls. Trust me, Boo will never have a chance to make any other sounds than the ones she performed yesterday.
So, I wanted to put her in the front bedroom with Dash last night but was afraid she might kill him in his sleep, so I went in there with them as a chaperone. ALL NIGHT LONG they played the "come closer; get away from me" game. The screams of protest also played into the scenario. That was when it hit me - she knows she's a little sister and this is what they do! (Insert head slap!)
I laughed so hard thinking of the times when our kids were little. Our daughter would cry and loudly protest her brother had committed some grievous crime against her. He would be standing there stupefied; stuttering something like, "I never even touched her!" We never caught on. Years later, when we were older and wiser, we realized we had been played. Unfortunately, nanny cams were not widely used or we would have done a better job of parenting.
Let's hope we've learned enough to be better cat parents. All I know is, I'm sleeping in my own bed tonight. Boo is more than capable of taking care of herself!
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| At dawn, they finally decided the other wasn't horrible and they (sort of) cuddled. |
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