Help/Advice for introductions

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"I do wish she was a bit more assertive with Fluffy, although he may see it as play from her." - Well, she will figure it out. I am sure he will view it like that unless it isn't serious. BUT I get a sense she kinda wants to wants to play with him so I think she is in a bit of "limbo" land. :/ It is working albeit slowly. But as long as we get there that is all that matters and they are almost there.

"Things seem to be going well for the most part." - Great

" I did the usual breakfast and dinner together last night and this morning." - Great

" Fluffy is starting to ignore her a bit more" - LOVE IT!!! SO helpful!!

" and she isn't seeming as nervous or tense and will sort of move around a little bit more and come a bit closer without any problems." - FANTASTIC!!! Exactly what we want to see and a direct response to his good behavior.

" This morning, she let out a tiny tiny hiss but that was it." - If that is it that is GREAT!!!

"A little later in the morning, I brought Fluffy out from upstairs while Sapphire was resting on a dining chair. He just wandered a bit, several times right passed her (me keeping an eye on him of course)," - AMAZING!!! THAT is so helpful!!

" and she looked a little bit nervous." - Understandable. BUT the amount of nervousness is key.

" At one point he did get more focused on Sapphire and he started to get excited and she started to growl and hiss at him from up on the chair," - That is fine. Sounds like she handled it pretty well. Exactly what we want to see from her.

" so I brought him back upstairs before he got too excited." - Great. So she didn't run, etc? Great!!!

"That's all for today :) " - Hahahaha, "that's all". Too funny. THAT is FANTASTIC!!! :) THAT is a GREAT DAY!!!! :cheerleader:

Keep up the great work!!!
She hasn't ran away in quite some time (I believe the last time he pounced on her was the last time). At most she'll just start to look more tense (hunched over, tail wrapped around herself, etc), or she will move to another spot a little further away from him. I would say she's fairly relaxed 75% of the time as long as he is being good and he only seems to get excited when Sapphire moves closer to him or to a spot he can't see, or when she hisses at him.
 

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She hasn't ran away in quite some time (I believe the last time he pounced on her was the last time). At most she'll just start to look more tense (hunched over, tail wrapped around herself, etc), or she will move to another spot a little further away from him. I would say she's fairly relaxed 75% of the time as long as he is being good and he only seems to get excited when Sapphire moves closer to him or to a spot he can't see, or when she hisses at him.
"She hasn't ran away in quite some time (I believe the last time he pounced on her was the last time)." - Love it!!!

" At most she'll just start to look more tense (hunched over, tail wrapped around herself, etc)," - Totally fine

" or she will move to another spot a little further away from him." - Great!!!

" I would say she's fairly relaxed 75% of the time as long as he is being good" - Great

" and he only seems to get excited when Sapphire moves closer to him or to a spot he can't see," - Totally normal

" or when she hisses at him." - Yes, understandable.

Fantastic. :)
 
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"She hasn't ran away in quite some time (I believe the last time he pounced on her was the last time)." - Love it!!!

" At most she'll just start to look more tense (hunched over, tail wrapped around herself, etc)," - Totally fine

" or she will move to another spot a little further away from him." - Great!!!

" I would say she's fairly relaxed 75% of the time as long as he is being good" - Great

" and he only seems to get excited when Sapphire moves closer to him or to a spot he can't see," - Totally normal

" or when she hisses at him." - Yes, understandable.

Fantastic. :)
I think tonights face to face was probably one of the most positive yet. It started as normal. Sapphire was up on the cushions just laying down relaxing and Fluffy was eating dinner in the arch between the living room and dining room. After he ate, he just looked at her and then wandered off into the dining room to explore and she jumped down to eat some of her dinner. There was a lot of back and forth with Fluffy. He would come over to me, look at Sapphire, they'd have a treat each and then he would wander off again or lay down and play slightly. A few times he tried to walk around me further into the living room, but it looked like he was trying to go to her food although I can't be certain. Eventually he just walked to the kitchen and laid down in the middle of the floor there while Sapphire sat in the middle of the living room. She looked kind of playful but she wouldn't play unfortunately. She did start to scratch on a cardboard scratching pad which of course got Fluffy excited and I saw him creeping towards her at high speed really low to the ground which I'm pretty sure was playful, but I stopped him and told him no then threw a treat back the other way for him to chase and then I just let him calm down a bit before bed. Sapphire didn't seem phased. In total, he was probably out with her for around 15 minutes.

After he was back behind the baby gates, as usual, Sapphire suddenly got really playful and hyper, so I let Fluffy watch while she ran up and down the house and stopped to scratch on the scratching pad just outside of the baby gates.

Two side notes..
1. I did give them each a calming treat tonight. I don't know what if any effect it has on Fluffy, but I give it as a treat after I give him a good play time to help him settle down before the face to face and I find that Sapphire seems much less nervous and tense if she has one.

2. This morning, after I put Fluffy back in his room, sapphire went over to his door and was sniffing and then hitting his door before walking away. Then, when I got home, I went upstairs to say hi to Fluffy and I turned around and Sapphire was hitting right at his gate only a few inches away. He ran over and stuck his paw out and she just sniffed his paw while hissing for a few seconds and then walked away.

Hopefully the positivity continues. Fluffy is getting more and more discontent being alone in a room so I'm having to spend more and more time with him. When I'm at home and he's upstairs, he won't even nap anymore. He just sits at the gate and meows non stop, sometimes for an hour or two until he gets to come out and won't nap until the door is fully closed.
 

calicosrspecial

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I think tonights face to face was probably one of the most positive yet. It started as normal. Sapphire was up on the cushions just laying down relaxing and Fluffy was eating dinner in the arch between the living room and dining room. After he ate, he just looked at her and then wandered off into the dining room to explore and she jumped down to eat some of her dinner. There was a lot of back and forth with Fluffy. He would come over to me, look at Sapphire, they'd have a treat each and then he would wander off again or lay down and play slightly. A few times he tried to walk around me further into the living room, but it looked like he was trying to go to her food although I can't be certain. Eventually he just walked to the kitchen and laid down in the middle of the floor there while Sapphire sat in the middle of the living room. She looked kind of playful but she wouldn't play unfortunately. She did start to scratch on a cardboard scratching pad which of course got Fluffy excited and I saw him creeping towards her at high speed really low to the ground which I'm pretty sure was playful, but I stopped him and told him no then threw a treat back the other way for him to chase and then I just let him calm down a bit before bed. Sapphire didn't seem phased. In total, he was probably out with her for around 15 minutes.

After he was back behind the baby gates, as usual, Sapphire suddenly got really playful and hyper, so I let Fluffy watch while she ran up and down the house and stopped to scratch on the scratching pad just outside of the baby gates.

Two side notes..
1. I did give them each a calming treat tonight. I don't know what if any effect it has on Fluffy, but I give it as a treat after I give him a good play time to help him settle down before the face to face and I find that Sapphire seems much less nervous and tense if she has one.

2. This morning, after I put Fluffy back in his room, sapphire went over to his door and was sniffing and then hitting his door before walking away. Then, when I got home, I went upstairs to say hi to Fluffy and I turned around and Sapphire was hitting right at his gate only a few inches away. He ran over and stuck his paw out and she just sniffed his paw while hissing for a few seconds and then walked away.

Hopefully the positivity continues. Fluffy is getting more and more discontent being alone in a room so I'm having to spend more and more time with him. When I'm at home and he's upstairs, he won't even nap anymore. He just sits at the gate and meows non stop, sometimes for an hour or two until he gets to come out and won't nap until the door is fully closed.
I think tonights face to face was probably one of the most positive yet. It started as normal. Sapphire was up on the cushions just laying down relaxing and Fluffy was eating dinner in the arch between the living room and dining room. After he ate, he just looked at her and then wandered off into the dining room to explore and she jumped down to eat some of her dinner. There was a lot of back and forth with Fluffy. He would come over to me, look at Sapphire, they'd have a treat each and then he would wander off again or lay down and play slightly. A few times he tried to walk around me further into the living room, but it looked like he was trying to go to her food although I can't be certain. Eventually he just walked to the kitchen and laid down in the middle of the floor there while Sapphire sat in the middle of the living room. She looked kind of playful but she wouldn't play unfortunately. She did start to scratch on a cardboard scratching pad which of course got Fluffy excited and I saw him creeping towards her at high speed really low to the ground which I'm pretty sure was playful, but I stopped him and told him no then threw a treat back the other way for him to chase and then I just let him calm down a bit before bed. Sapphire didn't seem phased. In total, he was probably out with her for around 15 minutes.

After he was back behind the baby gates, as usual, Sapphire suddenly got really playful and hyper, so I let Fluffy watch while she ran up and down the house and stopped to scratch on the scratching pad just outside of the baby gates.

Two side notes..
1. I did give them each a calming treat tonight. I don't know what if any effect it has on Fluffy, but I give it as a treat after I give him a good play time to help him settle down before the face to face and I find that Sapphire seems much less nervous and tense if she has one.

2. This morning, after I put Fluffy back in his room, sapphire went over to his door and was sniffing and then hitting his door before walking away. Then, when I got home, I went upstairs to say hi to Fluffy and I turned around and Sapphire was hitting right at his gate only a few inches away. He ran over and stuck his paw out and she just sniffed his paw while hissing for a few seconds and then walked away.

Hopefully the positivity continues. Fluffy is getting more and more discontent being alone in a room so I'm having to spend more and more time with him. When I'm at home and he's upstairs, he won't even nap anymore. He just sits a
"I think tonights face to face was probably one of the most positive yet." - Great, let's see

" It started as normal. Sapphire was up on the cushions just laying down relaxing and Fluffy was eating dinner in the arch between the living room and dining room." - Great

" After he ate, he just looked at her and then wandered off into the dining room to explore" - PERFECT!!! EXACTLY what we want to see.

" and she jumped down to eat some of her dinner. " - :)

"There was a lot of back and forth with Fluffy. He would come over to me, look at Sapphire, they'd have a treat each and then he would wander off again or lay down and play slightly. A few times he tried to walk around me further into the living room, but it looked like he was trying to go to her food although I can't be certain. " - OK, normal.

"Eventually he just walked to the kitchen and laid down in the middle of the floor there while Sapphire sat in the middle of the living room." - PERFECT!!! EXACTLY what we want. :)

"She looked kind of playful but she wouldn't play unfortunately." - ok, BUT she is wanting to it seems which is great.

" She did start to scratch on a cardboard scratching pad " - Great

"which of course got Fluffy excited and I saw him creeping towards her at high speed really low to the ground which I'm pretty sure was playful," - Totally normal

" but I stopped him and told him no then threw a treat back the other way for him to chase and then I just let him calm down a bit before bed." - Great

" Sapphire didn't seem phased. " - FANTASTIC!!!! Exactly what we want to see.

"In total, he was probably out with her for around 15 minutes." - Perfect

"After he was back behind the baby gates, as usual, Sapphire suddenly got really playful and hyper," - Awwwwwwwwww

" so I let Fluffy watch while she ran up and down the house and stopped to scratch on the scratching pad just outside of the baby gates." - Great, feel free to reassure him during that. I am sure he wants to join in and hopefully he will be able to soon.

Two side notes..
"1. I did give them each a calming treat tonight. I don't know what if any effect it has on Fluffy, but I give it as a treat after I give him a good play time to help him settle down before the face to face and I find that Sapphire seems much less nervous and tense if she has one." - Ok

"2. This morning, after I put Fluffy back in his room, sapphire went over to his door and was sniffing and then hitting his door before walking away. Then, when I got home, I went upstairs to say hi to Fluffy and I turned around and Sapphire was hitting right at his gate only a few inches away. He ran over and stuck his paw out and she just sniffed his paw while hissing for a few seconds and then walked away." - Awwwww. Do you think she was wanting to play?

"Hopefully the positivity continues." - It will. :) Sure there will be some downs but they are going to be just fine.

" Fluffy is getting more and more discontent being alone in a room so I'm having to spend more and more time with him. When I'm at home and he's upstairs, he won't even nap anymore. He just sits at the gate and meows non stop, sometimes for an hour or two until he gets to come out and won't nap until the door is fully closed. " - Yes :/ He is ready. The good news is she is almost ready so not long. :)

Well, that is fantastic. Keep it up. If you can in the evening hang out maybe with them. If you can sit near Sapphire while he roams around that is great. Anything like that.

Overall, they are almost there (if not already). This weekend we are going to give more leeway and see how do. :) EXCITING!!!

ALL the hard work and efforts are paying off. :) GREAT JOB!!!
 
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Graham18

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"I think tonights face to face was probably one of the most positive yet." - Great, let's see

" It started as normal. Sapphire was up on the cushions just laying down relaxing and Fluffy was eating dinner in the arch between the living room and dining room." - Great

" After he ate, he just looked at her and then wandered off into the dining room to explore" - PERFECT!!! EXACTLY what we want to see.

" and she jumped down to eat some of her dinner. " - :)

"There was a lot of back and forth with Fluffy. He would come over to me, look at Sapphire, they'd have a treat each and then he would wander off again or lay down and play slightly. A few times he tried to walk around me further into the living room, but it looked like he was trying to go to her food although I can't be certain. " - OK, normal.

"Eventually he just walked to the kitchen and laid down in the middle of the floor there while Sapphire sat in the middle of the living room." - PERFECT!!! EXACTLY what we want. :)

"She looked kind of playful but she wouldn't play unfortunately." - ok, BUT she is wanting to it seems which is great.

" She did start to scratch on a cardboard scratching pad " - Great

"which of course got Fluffy excited and I saw him creeping towards her at high speed really low to the ground which I'm pretty sure was playful," - Totally normal

" but I stopped him and told him no then threw a treat back the other way for him to chase and then I just let him calm down a bit before bed." - Great

" Sapphire didn't seem phased. " - FANTASTIC!!!! Exactly what we want to see.

"In total, he was probably out with her for around 15 minutes." - Perfect

"After he was back behind the baby gates, as usual, Sapphire suddenly got really playful and hyper," - Awwwwwwwwww

" so I let Fluffy watch while she ran up and down the house and stopped to scratch on the scratching pad just outside of the baby gates." - Great, feel free to reassure him during that. I am sure he wants to join in and hopefully he will be able to soon.

Two side notes..
"1. I did give them each a calming treat tonight. I don't know what if any effect it has on Fluffy, but I give it as a treat after I give him a good play time to help him settle down before the face to face and I find that Sapphire seems much less nervous and tense if she has one." - Ok

"2. This morning, after I put Fluffy back in his room, sapphire went over to his door and was sniffing and then hitting his door before walking away. Then, when I got home, I went upstairs to say hi to Fluffy and I turned around and Sapphire was hitting right at his gate only a few inches away. He ran over and stuck his paw out and she just sniffed his paw while hissing for a few seconds and then walked away." - Awwwww. Do you think she was wanting to play?

"Hopefully the positivity continues." - It will. :) Sure there will be some downs but they are going to be just fine.

" Fluffy is getting more and more discontent being alone in a room so I'm having to spend more and more time with him. When I'm at home and he's upstairs, he won't even nap anymore. He just sits at the gate and meows non stop, sometimes for an hour or two until he gets to come out and won't nap until the door is fully closed. " - Yes :/ He is ready. The good news is she is almost ready so not long. :)

Well, that is fantastic. Keep it up. If you can in the evening hang out maybe with them. If you can sit near Sapphire while he roams around that is great. Anything like that.

Overall, they are almost there (if not already). This weekend we are going to give more leeway and see how do. :) EXCITING!!!

ALL the hard work and efforts are paying off. :) GREAT JOB!!!
I do usually try and sit half way between their starting locations and when Fluffy wanders off I'll go over to Sapphire and give her a treat and a pet or two (if she allows it). I like to hangout in the arch way as it's a smaller area that Fluffy has to go through to get to her so I'm able to stop and distract him if needed before he gets too close to her. Sapphire also likes to switch her position quite a lot which gives Fluffy more ways to get to her in an open area, but I can try it tonight and see how it goes.

I'm hoping everything keeps going well and I can try and let Fluffy go to her this weekend knowing full well that it may get a bit wild while he tries to play with her.

I'm off of work all next week so I should have plenty of time to rebuild trust in the aftermath of interactions. My partner is also traveling to the UK for a week, but this shouldn't matter too much as most of the routine involves just me. Unless there is a miraculous breakthrough, I couldn't see myself allowing full interactions next week anyways.
 

calicosrspecial

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I do usually try and sit half way between their starting locations and when Fluffy wanders off I'll go over to Sapphire and give her a treat and a pet or two (if she allows it). I like to hangout in the arch way as it's a smaller area that Fluffy has to go through to get to her so I'm able to stop and distract him if needed before he gets too close to her. Sapphire also likes to switch her position quite a lot which gives Fluffy more ways to get to her in an open area, but I can try it tonight and see how it goes.

I'm hoping everything keeps going well and I can try and let Fluffy go to her this weekend knowing full well that it may get a bit wild while he tries to play with her.

I'm off of work all next week so I should have plenty of time to rebuild trust in the aftermath of interactions. My partner is also traveling to the UK for a week, but this shouldn't matter too much as most of the routine involves just me. Unless there is a miraculous breakthrough, I couldn't see myself allowing full interactions next week anyways.
"I do usually try and sit half way between their starting locations" - That is great. At some point in the future I hope you can just sit on a couch or a chair near Sapphire and just "hang out" (read, watch tv, etc) and let them wander with words to distract.

The key will be to act like everything is normal, fine, calm, etc.

" and when Fluffy wanders off I'll go over to Sapphire and give her a treat and a pet or two (if she allows it)." - Perfect. Yes, never force attention. If you sense tension give "eye kisses" rather than a pet.

" I like to hangout in the arch way as it's a smaller area that Fluffy has to go through to get to her so I'm able to stop and distract him if needed before he gets too close to her. " - Yes, that is great for this part. For the next I would like to try a more neutral area (around Sapphire). By "next" I mean the next phase where they seem more comfortable with each other after allowing more leeway.

"Sapphire also likes to switch her position quite a lot which gives Fluffy more ways to get to her in an open area," - Yes

" but I can try it tonight and see how it goes." - Or in a few days. Not a rush.

"I'm hoping everything keeps going well " - It will, there will be a few blips and bumps but I don't think it will be anything meaningful but it could be a few hours to a day of unsettled cats. But they will get over that IF it happens.

"and I can try and let Fluffy go to her this weekend" - Ok and just feel free to reassure, go alongside them (safely). Just stay calm and confident and act like nothing is wrong. Cats take on our emotions so the more calm and confident we are the more they tend to be. f course, that can be easier said than done but do your best.

"knowing full well that it may get a bit wild while he tries to play with her." - Yes but he has no intention to hurt her and she is believing it more and more every day.

"I'm off of work all next week so I should have plenty of time to rebuild trust in the aftermath of interactions. " - Great BUT also enjoy your time off.

"My partner is also traveling to the UK for a week, but this shouldn't matter too much as most of the routine involves just me. " - Ok

"Unless there is a miraculous breakthrough," - I kinda wonder if that has already happened..........................

" I couldn't see myself allowing full interactions next week anyways. " - Sounds good, that is fine. Not an issue.

Next week you may have a little more stress with your partner gone so even the status quo is fine. Just enjoy the time off and enjoy the cats. :)
 
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Graham18

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"I do usually try and sit half way between their starting locations" - That is great. At some point in the future I hope you can just sit on a couch or a chair near Sapphire and just "hang out" (read, watch tv, etc) and let them wander with words to distract.

The key will be to act like everything is normal, fine, calm, etc.

" and when Fluffy wanders off I'll go over to Sapphire and give her a treat and a pet or two (if she allows it)." - Perfect. Yes, never force attention. If you sense tension give "eye kisses" rather than a pet.

" I like to hangout in the arch way as it's a smaller area that Fluffy has to go through to get to her so I'm able to stop and distract him if needed before he gets too close to her. " - Yes, that is great for this part. For the next I would like to try a more neutral area (around Sapphire). By "next" I mean the next phase where they seem more comfortable with each other after allowing more leeway.

"Sapphire also likes to switch her position quite a lot which gives Fluffy more ways to get to her in an open area," - Yes

" but I can try it tonight and see how it goes." - Or in a few days. Not a rush.

"I'm hoping everything keeps going well " - It will, there will be a few blips and bumps but I don't think it will be anything meaningful but it could be a few hours to a day of unsettled cats. But they will get over that IF it happens.

"and I can try and let Fluffy go to her this weekend" - Ok and just feel free to reassure, go alongside them (safely). Just stay calm and confident and act like nothing is wrong. Cats take on our emotions so the more calm and confident we are the more they tend to be. f course, that can be easier said than done but do your best.

"knowing full well that it may get a bit wild while he tries to play with her." - Yes but he has no intention to hurt her and she is believing it more and more every day.

"I'm off of work all next week so I should have plenty of time to rebuild trust in the aftermath of interactions. " - Great BUT also enjoy your time off.

"My partner is also traveling to the UK for a week, but this shouldn't matter too much as most of the routine involves just me. " - Ok

"Unless there is a miraculous breakthrough," - I kinda wonder if that has already happened..........................

" I couldn't see myself allowing full interactions next week anyways. " - Sounds good, that is fine. Not an issue.

Next week you may have a little more stress with your partner gone so even the status quo is fine. Just enjoy the time off and enjoy the cats. :)
I have got the routine down when I'm off of work for when to do face to face sessions, when to let Fluffy out to have the run of the house etc so I'm not super worried. I do 75% or more of the face to face stuff alone now as Sapphire seems somewhat more comfortable with one person rather than two doing it so all should be well :)
 
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Graham18

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"I do usually try and sit half way between their starting locations" - That is great. At some point in the future I hope you can just sit on a couch or a chair near Sapphire and just "hang out" (read, watch tv, etc) and let them wander with words to distract.

The key will be to act like everything is normal, fine, calm, etc.

" and when Fluffy wanders off I'll go over to Sapphire and give her a treat and a pet or two (if she allows it)." - Perfect. Yes, never force attention. If you sense tension give "eye kisses" rather than a pet.

" I like to hangout in the arch way as it's a smaller area that Fluffy has to go through to get to her so I'm able to stop and distract him if needed before he gets too close to her. " - Yes, that is great for this part. For the next I would like to try a more neutral area (around Sapphire). By "next" I mean the next phase where they seem more comfortable with each other after allowing more leeway.

"Sapphire also likes to switch her position quite a lot which gives Fluffy more ways to get to her in an open area," - Yes

" but I can try it tonight and see how it goes." - Or in a few days. Not a rush.

"I'm hoping everything keeps going well " - It will, there will be a few blips and bumps but I don't think it will be anything meaningful but it could be a few hours to a day of unsettled cats. But they will get over that IF it happens.

"and I can try and let Fluffy go to her this weekend" - Ok and just feel free to reassure, go alongside them (safely). Just stay calm and confident and act like nothing is wrong. Cats take on our emotions so the more calm and confident we are the more they tend to be. f course, that can be easier said than done but do your best.

"knowing full well that it may get a bit wild while he tries to play with her." - Yes but he has no intention to hurt her and she is believing it more and more every day.

"I'm off of work all next week so I should have plenty of time to rebuild trust in the aftermath of interactions. " - Great BUT also enjoy your time off.

"My partner is also traveling to the UK for a week, but this shouldn't matter too much as most of the routine involves just me. " - Ok

"Unless there is a miraculous breakthrough," - I kinda wonder if that has already happened..........................

" I couldn't see myself allowing full interactions next week anyways. " - Sounds good, that is fine. Not an issue.

Next week you may have a little more stress with your partner gone so even the status quo is fine. Just enjoy the time off and enjoy the cats. :)
I also do feel sapphire kind of wants to play but is unsure. I sat a bit closer to her tonight and she seemed fine, maybe a bit tense at times, but got over it quickly. She hissed at Fluffy once when he got too close but that was it. He was less wander-y tonight but was still pretty good. He tried to sneak up on her once while she had her back to him and was eating, and once when she walked towards the stairs out of his sight.

She just sat by the stairs for a minute or two looking at me again like she wanted to play (wide eyes, perky ears, tail slowly wagging), and then she ran upstairs. She didn't run overly fast or look scared, it just looked like her normal "okay I'm over being down here I'm going to relax" run. I don't believe Fluffy saw her go because he didn't try and chase her and he started looking around for her after she was gone. After Fluffy was back behind the baby gates, I went up to see what she was doing and she started to run around playfully between the two rooms. If it wasn't for the hissing at him when he gets too close, I'd say she most likely wants to play.
 

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I have got the routine down when I'm off of work for when to do face to face sessions, when to let Fluffy out to have the run of the house etc so I'm not super worried. I do 75% or more of the face to face stuff alone now as Sapphire seems somewhat more comfortable with one person rather than two doing it so all should be well :)
"I have got the routine down when I'm off of work for when to do face to face sessions, when to let Fluffy out to have the run of the house etc so I'm not super worried. " - Great, agreed. You are doing a great job, like a professional.

"I do 75% or more of the face to face stuff alone now as Sapphire seems somewhat more comfortable with one person rather than two doing it so all should be well :) " - Ok, yes, sometimes cats do better with less people, less interactions, etc. All will be fine. :) I am not at all worried.

"I also do feel sapphire kind of wants to play but is unsure." - Interesting, that is what I am thinking as well.

" I sat a bit closer to her tonight and she seemed fine, maybe a bit tense at times, but got over it quickly. " - Terrific

"She hissed at Fluffy once when he got too close but that was it." - Totally fine, not an issue.

" He was less wander-y tonight but was still pretty good. " - Awwwwwwwww

"He tried to sneak up on her once while she had her back to him and was eating, and once when she walked towards the stairs out of his sight." - Awwwwwwwwwwww. I am guessing it ended fine.

"She just sat by the stairs for a minute or two looking at me again like she wanted to play (wide eyes, perky ears, tail slowly wagging), and then she ran upstairs. She didn't run overly fast or look scared, it just looked like her normal "okay I'm over being down here I'm going to relax" run." - Awwwwwwwwwwww. Sounds fine to me.

" I don't believe Fluffy saw her go because he didn't try and chase her and he started looking around for her after she was gone." - Awwwwwwwww. I am surprised he didn't know but maybe he didn't.

" After Fluffy was back behind the baby gates, I went up to see what she was doing and she started to run around playfully between the two rooms. " - Terrific

"If it wasn't for the hissing at him when he gets too close, I'd say she most likely wants to play. " - Well, I am not so sure of that. Hissing and wanting to play are not incompatible. Just as to be on her terms, etc probably.

Either way, I would call that a great day!!! :)
 
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"I have got the routine down when I'm off of work for when to do face to face sessions, when to let Fluffy out to have the run of the house etc so I'm not super worried. " - Great, agreed. You are doing a great job, like a professional.

"I do 75% or more of the face to face stuff alone now as Sapphire seems somewhat more comfortable with one person rather than two doing it so all should be well :) " - Ok, yes, sometimes cats do better with less people, less interactions, etc. All will be fine. :) I am not at all worried.

"I also do feel sapphire kind of wants to play but is unsure." - Interesting, that is what I am thinking as well.

" I sat a bit closer to her tonight and she seemed fine, maybe a bit tense at times, but got over it quickly. " - Terrific

"She hissed at Fluffy once when he got too close but that was it." - Totally fine, not an issue.

" He was less wander-y tonight but was still pretty good. " - Awwwwwwwww

"He tried to sneak up on her once while she had her back to him and was eating, and once when she walked towards the stairs out of his sight." - Awwwwwwwwwwww. I am guessing it ended fine.

"She just sat by the stairs for a minute or two looking at me again like she wanted to play (wide eyes, perky ears, tail slowly wagging), and then she ran upstairs. She didn't run overly fast or look scared, it just looked like her normal "okay I'm over being down here I'm going to relax" run." - Awwwwwwwwwwww. Sounds fine to me.

" I don't believe Fluffy saw her go because he didn't try and chase her and he started looking around for her after she was gone." - Awwwwwwwww. I am surprised he didn't know but maybe he didn't.

" After Fluffy was back behind the baby gates, I went up to see what she was doing and she started to run around playfully between the two rooms. " - Terrific

"If it wasn't for the hissing at him when he gets too close, I'd say she most likely wants to play. " - Well, I am not so sure of that. Hissing and wanting to play are not incompatible. Just as to be on her terms, etc probably.

Either way, I would call that a great day!!! :)
There was a minor blip tonight but nothing major and I probably made it worse than it was.
Everything was going well as it normally does. After they ate sapphire sat in the middle of the room and fluffy didn't really care. He wandered towards the kitchen, then sat in a box, then came over and laid beside me while Sapphire sat a few feet away and watched him. Fluffy then wandered off into the kitchen and laundry room by the backdoor out of sight. Here is where the blip happened. As Fluffy was near the backdoor, my partner got home from work early and opened the door. Fluffy usually gets a bit scared when the door opens (he's nervous around strangers), and Sapphire always instinctively runs to the backdoor. So sapphire took off towards the kitchen as Fluffy was running into the kitchen from the opposite way. I probably made it worse by running after Sapphire. She slid to a stop as she saw Fluffy and I was in such a hurry to prevent a dust up that I didn't really see if Fluffy tried to go after her or not. Both cats got really scared and Sapphire quickly went under the dining room table and looked pretty scared. Fluffy ran back into the kitchen and he was also quite scared (arched back and fur raised). He calmed down pretty quickly and Sapphire just hissed a bit from under the table. I used a treat to guide Fluffy back behind the baby gates (another hiss from Sapphire as he walked by), and he seemed perfectly fine. Sapphire ran upstairs to her room and was still acting quite scared (more unsure and startled) at this point, but she came back downstairs within about two or three minutes and seemed mostly fine. She's still a bit jumpy at sudden sounds, I think she is fine.

I wish I wasn't so panicked in situations like this so I could see the full extent of what happens but I'm usually so focused on preventing a fight that I don't pay attention. I do know that running after Sapphire was at least part of the reason why both were scared (Fluffy was probably more scared of me than Sapphire was) so I'm guessing that they will be perfectly fine together tomorrow.

Edit: it's been about 25 minutes and Sapphire is really hyper, up on top of her cat tree, playing with a string toy so Im guessing she's forgotten about the incident. Thought about bringing Fluffy back out, but he's already had his bed time routine and I don't want him to get worked up.
 
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Hi! I've been watching your thread for a while and see so many similarities with Fluffy and my new kitty! Your incident today reminds me of a few weeks back when our gate crashed down and all of our cats ran startled under the couch all together! I remember the adrenaline and the "oh no potential crisis!" That ended up ok in the end.

What did you do specifically to prevent a dust up? It sounds like they ended up going separate ways on their own? Or did you block their sight of each other while Sapphire went under the table? If they went separate ways on their own that's pretty great cause it shows when they're scared and startled they are cautious rather than aggressive which is reassuring! If he had really tried to go after her I suspect you'd have known, those cat reflexes in that kind of situation are FAST.

I also suspect it's not that you aren't paying attention in these situations- I also feel foggy on details after I'm on high alert with my cats but I think it's more we're paying so MUCH attention so we can react in the moment our brains are just not able to put it together *after* cause we were just taking in so much information at once and we just couldn't process it all to recall afterward. I also get frustrated because I know those details are what will tell us how things are proceeding. It's really hard to control that adrenaline though, even though we know staying calm will help.

I agree that they will probably be just fine tomorrow. And hopefully they will even trust each other more since nothing bad happened!
 
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Hi! I've been watching your thread for a while and see so many similarities with Fluffy and my new kitty! Your incident today reminds me of a few weeks back when our gate crashed down and all of our cats ran startled under the couch all together! I remember the adrenaline and the "oh no potential crisis!" That ended up ok in the end.

What did you do specifically to prevent a dust up? It sounds like they ended up going separate ways on their own? Or did you block their sight of each other while Sapphire went under the table? If they went separate ways on their own that's pretty great cause it shows when they're scared and startled they are cautious rather than aggressive which is reassuring! If he had really tried to go after her I suspect you'd have known, those cat reflexes in that kind of situation are FAST.

I also suspect it's not that you aren't paying attention in these situations- I also feel foggy on details after I'm on high alert with my cats but I think it's more we're paying so MUCH attention so we can react in the moment our brains are just not able to put it together *after* cause we were just taking in so much information at once and we just couldn't process it all to recall afterward. I also get frustrated because I know those details are what will tell us how things are proceeding. It's really hard to control that adrenaline though, even though we know staying calm will help.

I agree that they will probably be just fine tomorrow. And hopefully they will even trust each other more since nothing bad happened!
Hello :)
Both of the cats seemed perfectly fine today as expected.

I really didn't do a whole lot in terms of prevention. I think they were both startled by almost running into eachother and Fluffy is really skittish whenever the backdoor opens as he's unsure about strangers and Sapphire just got scared when she saw him and turned around. I think the sound of me running up behind her and towards him also startled them. I pretty much just knelt down and started to give Fluffy some pets to calm him down and then guided him back to his room and talked to Sapphire and after a couple minutes all was well :)

I don't believe Fluffy would go after her aggressively. Anything that he views as play from her, gets him really excited to play and he plays like a kitten, only one that's about 50% bigger than Sapphire. I was worried he'd see her running towards him and think OH MY GOD SHES COMING TO PLAY WITH ME FINALLY.

Everything seems perfectly fine this morning so I'm not worried :)

Thank you for your advice!
 

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There was a minor blip tonight but nothing major and I probably made it worse than it was.
Everything was going well as it normally does. After they ate sapphire sat in the middle of the room and fluffy didn't really care. He wandered towards the kitchen, then sat in a box, then came over and laid beside me while Sapphire sat a few feet away and watched him. Fluffy then wandered off into the kitchen and laundry room by the backdoor out of sight. Here is where the blip happened. As Fluffy was near the backdoor, my partner got home from work early and opened the door. Fluffy usually gets a bit scared when the door opens (he's nervous around strangers), and Sapphire always instinctively runs to the backdoor. So sapphire took off towards the kitchen as Fluffy was running into the kitchen from the opposite way. I probably made it worse by running after Sapphire. She slid to a stop as she saw Fluffy and I was in such a hurry to prevent a dust up that I didn't really see if Fluffy tried to go after her or not. Both cats got really scared and Sapphire quickly went under the dining room table and looked pretty scared. Fluffy ran back into the kitchen and he was also quite scared (arched back and fur raised). He calmed down pretty quickly and Sapphire just hissed a bit from under the table. I used a treat to guide Fluffy back behind the baby gates (another hiss from Sapphire as he walked by), and he seemed perfectly fine. Sapphire ran upstairs to her room and was still acting quite scared (more unsure and startled) at this point, but she came back downstairs within about two or three minutes and seemed mostly fine. She's still a bit jumpy at sudden sounds, I think she is fine.

I wish I wasn't so panicked in situations like this so I could see the full extent of what happens but I'm usually so focused on preventing a fight that I don't pay attention. I do know that running after Sapphire was at least part of the reason why both were scared (Fluffy was probably more scared of me than Sapphire was) so I'm guessing that they will be perfectly fine together tomorrow.

Edit: it's been about 25 minutes and Sapphire is really hyper, up on top of her cat tree, playing with a string toy so Im guessing she's forgotten about the incident. Thought about bringing Fluffy back out, but he's already had his bed time routine and I don't want him to get worked up.
"There was a minor blip tonight but nothing major and I probably made it worse than it was." - Ok, let's see

"Everything was going well as it normally does. After they ate sapphire sat in the middle of the room and fluffy didn't really care. He wandered towards the kitchen, then sat in a box, then came over and laid beside me while Sapphire sat a few feet away and watched him." - Fantastic!!!!

" Fluffy then wandered off into the kitchen and laundry room by the backdoor out of sight. Here is where the blip happened." - Ok

" As Fluffy was near the backdoor, my partner got home from work early and opened the door. Fluffy usually gets a bit scared when the door opens (he's nervous around strangers), and Sapphire always instinctively runs to the backdoor. So sapphire took off towards the kitchen as Fluffy was running into the kitchen from the opposite way." - Ahhhhh, yep, an unfortunate occurrence. :/ It will happen.

"I probably made it worse by running after Sapphire." - Maybe, let's see

" She slid to a stop as she saw Fluffy" - Yep

" and I was in such a hurry to prevent a dust up that I didn't really see if Fluffy tried to go after her or not. " - Ok

"Both cats got really scared and Sapphire quickly went under the dining room table and looked pretty scared." - Ok

" Fluffy ran back into the kitchen and he was also quite scared (arched back and fur raised)." - Ok

So did they fight? Or did you prevent them from tussling?

" He calmed down pretty quickly" - Ok, that is great. couldn't have been that bad then from his perspective.

"and Sapphire just hissed a bit from under the table." - Ok, how was her body language?

" I used a treat to guide Fluffy back behind the baby gates" - Great

" (another hiss from Sapphire as he walked by)," - Ok, that is fine. how was her body language?

" and he seemed perfectly fine." - Great

"Sapphire ran upstairs to her room and was still acting quite scared (more unsure and startled) at this point," - Ok, understandable

" but she came back downstairs within about two or three minutes and seemed mostly fine. " - :yess: :hyper: :clap2: GREAT so she is telling us it was not a big deal!!! GREAT!!!

"She's still a bit jumpy at sudden sounds," - Understandable.

" I think she is fine." - Great, it sure sounds like it.

"I wish I wasn't so panicked in situations" - Well, try not to be too hard on yourself. You love them and don't want anything to happen. The key is to really see the trust the cats have in each other and get your trust to their level of trust. So far, this encounter tells me that they trust each other quite a bit. It could have gone bad but it doesn't sound like it did.

" like this so I could see the full extent of what happens but I'm usually so focused on preventing a fight that I don't pay attention." - That is why how they act after is SO IMPORTANT and actually is more telling then our observations because we need to know what cats think rather than what a human thinks about it.

" I do know that running after Sapphire was at least part of the reason why both were scared (Fluffy was probably more scared of me than Sapphire was) " - ;) Yep, probably. BUT the fact you are aware of it is really great.

"so I'm guessing that they will be perfectly fine together tomorrow." - Agreed given the fast rebound but we'll see.

"Edit: it's been about 25 minutes and Sapphire is really hyper, up on top of her cat tree, playing with a string toy so Im guessing she's forgotten about the incident. " - Ahhhhhhhh, yep, she is just fine. :) :yess::hyper::clap2:

"Thought about bringing Fluffy back out, but he's already had his bed time routine and I don't want him to get worked up. " - Yep, you made the right choice. Totally agree.

kakers has really great cat instincts and is spot on with the post.

"Both of the cats seemed perfectly fine today as expected." - :yess::hyper::clap2: Always nice to get confirmation of the prediction. :)

"I really didn't do a whole lot in terms of prevention. I think they were both startled by almost running into eachother and Fluffy is really skittish whenever the backdoor opens as he's unsure about strangers and Sapphire just got scared when she saw him and turned around. " - Interesting. So they basically chose not to engage. They were more worried about the door than the other cat. GREAT!!!

"I think the sound of me running up behind her and towards him also startled them." - Yes, that can actually serve as a distraction.

" I pretty much just knelt down and started to give Fluffy some pets to calm him down and then guided him back to his room and talked to Sapphire and after a couple minutes all was well :) " - Great, reassurance is really good. Great job!!

"I don't believe Fluffy would go after her aggressively." - Totally agree

" Anything that he views as play from her, gets him really excited to play and he plays like a kitten, only one that's about 50% bigger than Sapphire." - Yep

" I was worried he'd see her running towards him and think OH MY GOD SHES COMING TO PLAY WITH ME FINALLY." - Yep but my guess is he was more focused on the door etc.

"Everything seems perfectly fine this morning so I'm not worried :) " - PERFECT!!!!

That tells me that it was not an issue and that they are just fine, doing great. :)

Keep up the great work!!! :)
 
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"There was a minor blip tonight but nothing major and I probably made it worse than it was." - Ok, let's see

"Everything was going well as it normally does. After they ate sapphire sat in the middle of the room and fluffy didn't really care. He wandered towards the kitchen, then sat in a box, then came over and laid beside me while Sapphire sat a few feet away and watched him." - Fantastic!!!!

" Fluffy then wandered off into the kitchen and laundry room by the backdoor out of sight. Here is where the blip happened." - Ok

" As Fluffy was near the backdoor, my partner got home from work early and opened the door. Fluffy usually gets a bit scared when the door opens (he's nervous around strangers), and Sapphire always instinctively runs to the backdoor. So sapphire took off towards the kitchen as Fluffy was running into the kitchen from the opposite way." - Ahhhhh, yep, an unfortunate occurrence. :/ It will happen.

"I probably made it worse by running after Sapphire." - Maybe, let's see

" She slid to a stop as she saw Fluffy" - Yep

" and I was in such a hurry to prevent a dust up that I didn't really see if Fluffy tried to go after her or not. " - Ok

"Both cats got really scared and Sapphire quickly went under the dining room table and looked pretty scared." - Ok

" Fluffy ran back into the kitchen and he was also quite scared (arched back and fur raised)." - Ok

So did they fight? Or did you prevent them from tussling?

" He calmed down pretty quickly" - Ok, that is great. couldn't have been that bad then from his perspective.

"and Sapphire just hissed a bit from under the table." - Ok, how was her body language?

" I used a treat to guide Fluffy back behind the baby gates" - Great

" (another hiss from Sapphire as he walked by)," - Ok, that is fine. how was her body language?

" and he seemed perfectly fine." - Great

"Sapphire ran upstairs to her room and was still acting quite scared (more unsure and startled) at this point," - Ok, understandable

" but she came back downstairs within about two or three minutes and seemed mostly fine. " - :yess: :hyper: :clap2: GREAT so she is telling us it was not a big deal!!! GREAT!!!

"She's still a bit jumpy at sudden sounds," - Understandable.

" I think she is fine." - Great, it sure sounds like it.

"I wish I wasn't so panicked in situations" - Well, try not to be too hard on yourself. You love them and don't want anything to happen. The key is to really see the trust the cats have in each other and get your trust to their level of trust. So far, this encounter tells me that they trust each other quite a bit. It could have gone bad but it doesn't sound like it did.

" like this so I could see the full extent of what happens but I'm usually so focused on preventing a fight that I don't pay attention." - That is why how they act after is SO IMPORTANT and actually is more telling then our observations because we need to know what cats think rather than what a human thinks about it.

" I do know that running after Sapphire was at least part of the reason why both were scared (Fluffy was probably more scared of me than Sapphire was) " - ;) Yep, probably. BUT the fact you are aware of it is really great.

"so I'm guessing that they will be perfectly fine together tomorrow." - Agreed given the fast rebound but we'll see.

"Edit: it's been about 25 minutes and Sapphire is really hyper, up on top of her cat tree, playing with a string toy so Im guessing she's forgotten about the incident. " - Ahhhhhhhh, yep, she is just fine. :) :yess::hyper::clap2:

"Thought about bringing Fluffy back out, but he's already had his bed time routine and I don't want him to get worked up. " - Yep, you made the right choice. Totally agree.

kakers has really great cat instincts and is spot on with the post.

"Both of the cats seemed perfectly fine today as expected." - :yess::hyper::clap2: Always nice to get confirmation of the prediction. :)

"I really didn't do a whole lot in terms of prevention. I think they were both startled by almost running into eachother and Fluffy is really skittish whenever the backdoor opens as he's unsure about strangers and Sapphire just got scared when she saw him and turned around. " - Interesting. So they basically chose not to engage. They were more worried about the door than the other cat. GREAT!!!

"I think the sound of me running up behind her and towards him also startled them." - Yes, that can actually serve as a distraction.

" I pretty much just knelt down and started to give Fluffy some pets to calm him down and then guided him back to his room and talked to Sapphire and after a couple minutes all was well :) " - Great, reassurance is really good. Great job!!

"I don't believe Fluffy would go after her aggressively." - Totally agree

" Anything that he views as play from her, gets him really excited to play and he plays like a kitten, only one that's about 50% bigger than Sapphire." - Yep

" I was worried he'd see her running towards him and think OH MY GOD SHES COMING TO PLAY WITH ME FINALLY." - Yep but my guess is he was more focused on the door etc.

"Everything seems perfectly fine this morning so I'm not worried :) " - PERFECT!!!!

That tells me that it was not an issue and that they are just fine, doing great. :)

Keep up the great work!!! :)
I prevented a fight or tussle for sure, although Sapphire may have been fast enough to run away and he probably just would have tried to chase her.

Her body language under the table was very scared/defensive with lots of hissing, but like I said she seemed fine a few minutes later and this morning.

She spent the whole time this morning just laying in her bowl looking kind of relaxed. Unless she would move, most of the time Fluffy would ignore her with there being only a few times I wanted to get closer. I managed to even take a short video. Enjoy!

Fluffy and Sapphire Oct 15/21
 

calicosrspecial

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I prevented a fight or tussle for sure, although Sapphire may have been fast enough to run away and he probably just would have tried to chase her.

Her body language under the table was very scared/defensive with lots of hissing, but like I said she seemed fine a few minutes later and this morning.

She spent the whole time this morning just laying in her bowl looking kind of relaxed. Unless she would move, most of the time Fluffy would ignore her with there being only a few times I wanted to get closer. I managed to even take a short video. Enjoy!

Fluffy and Sapphire Oct 15/21
"I prevented a fight or tussle for sure, " - Ok

"although Sapphire may have been fast enough to run away and he probably just would have tried to chase her." - Probably

"Her body language under the table was very scared/defensive with lots of hissing, " - Understandable

"but like I said she seemed fine a few minutes later and this morning." - THAT is the key and tells us what she really thought of the whole situation.

"She spent the whole time this morning just laying in her bowl looking kind of relaxed." - Great. Bowl?

" Unless she would move, most of the time Fluffy would ignore her" - FANTASTIC!!!!

" with there being only a few times I wanted to get closer. " - Yes, that is what cats do.

"I managed to even take a short video. Enjoy! " - Great, judging by your post I believe I will. ;)

Video - Ok, bed instead of bowl. Fluffy is SO ADORABLE!!! I love how he reacts when you come up to him. And Sapphire what a GORGEOUS cat!!! They both look relaxed, fantastic. They look like two successfully intro'd, happy cats!!!! LOVE IT!!!! :)
 
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"I prevented a fight or tussle for sure, " - Ok

"although Sapphire may have been fast enough to run away and he probably just would have tried to chase her." - Probably

"Her body language under the table was very scared/defensive with lots of hissing, " - Understandable

"but like I said she seemed fine a few minutes later and this morning." - THAT is the key and tells us what she really thought of the whole situation.

"She spent the whole time this morning just laying in her bowl looking kind of relaxed." - Great. Bowl?

" Unless she would move, most of the time Fluffy would ignore her" - FANTASTIC!!!!

" with there being only a few times I wanted to get closer. " - Yes, that is what cats do.

"I managed to even take a short video. Enjoy! " - Great, judging by your post I believe I will. ;)

Video - Ok, bed instead of bowl. Fluffy is SO ADORABLE!!! I love how he reacts when you come up to him. And Sapphire what a GORGEOUS cat!!! They both look relaxed, fantastic. They look like two successfully intro'd, happy cats!!!! LOVE IT!!!! :)
Nothing really new to report since the blip. Sapphire was pretty nervous on Friday night but Fluffy was being really good ignoring her for the most part. She got really nervous at one point and ran upstairs. Fluffy was just laying down at the time so I'm guessing she heard a sound or something.

Yesterday took a bit more effort. Fluffy really wanted to see her so a lot of distraction was needed. Eventually he calmed down slightly and I got him to lay down about two feet away from Sapphire. She started the night off nervous but eventually warmed up.

This morning was pretty similar. I tried to somewhat ignore Fluffy and see what he would do if he got close to her. He starts off slowly but as soon as he got within about three feet of her, I could see he was getting ready to pounce. I sat down with them and gave them each some treats and love together and all was well. Sapphire was a little more growly and hissy than usual but she would stop quickly.
 

calicosrspecial

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Nothing really new to report since the blip. Sapphire was pretty nervous on Friday night but Fluffy was being really good ignoring her for the most part. She got really nervous at one point and ran upstairs. Fluffy was just laying down at the time so I'm guessing she heard a sound or something.

Yesterday took a bit more effort. Fluffy really wanted to see her so a lot of distraction was needed. Eventually he calmed down slightly and I got him to lay down about two feet away from Sapphire. She started the night off nervous but eventually warmed up.

This morning was pretty similar. I tried to somewhat ignore Fluffy and see what he would do if he got close to her. He starts off slowly but as soon as he got within about three feet of her, I could see he was getting ready to pounce. I sat down with them and gave them each some treats and love together and all was well. Sapphire was a little more growly and hissy than usual but she would stop quickly.
"Nothing really new to report since the blip. " - Great

"Sapphire was pretty nervous on Friday night " - Understandable.

"but Fluffy was being really good ignoring her for the most part." - Fantastic!!! THAT is the key to get her to trust him more.

" She got really nervous at one point and ran upstairs." - Ok.

" Fluffy was just laying down at the time so I'm guessing she heard a sound or something." - Great he was behving. COuld be a sound etc. I still just wonder if she wants to get chased in a way...............

"Yesterday took a bit more effort." - ok

" Fluffy really wanted to see her so a lot of distraction was needed." - Awwwww, in an acceptable (play) way?

" Eventually he calmed down slightly and I got him to lay down about two feet away from Sapphire. " - Great, that answers my question. All was fine. :)

"She started the night off nervous but eventually warmed up." - Great and THAT will build trust and confidence.

"This morning was pretty similar." - Ok. But as long as it is positive (meaning no negative encounters, fears not realized) it will build trust and confidence.

"I tried to somewhat ignore Fluffy and see what he would do if he got close to her." - Great

" He starts off slowly but as soon as he got within about three feet of her, I could see he was getting ready to pounce." - Awwwwww. Good body language? SO play?

" I sat down with them and gave them each some treats and love together and all was well." - PERFECT!!! Again, you answered my question. All is fine. :)

" Sapphire was a little more growly and hissy than usual but she would stop quickly. " - That is fine. As long as it is positive and the fear is not realized it is totally fine.

So overall, I would say that is great. They are like 99.9% intro'd. :) GREAT job!!!
 
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"Nothing really new to report since the blip. " - Great

"Sapphire was pretty nervous on Friday night " - Understandable.

"but Fluffy was being really good ignoring her for the most part." - Fantastic!!! THAT is the key to get her to trust him more.

" She got really nervous at one point and ran upstairs." - Ok.

" Fluffy was just laying down at the time so I'm guessing she heard a sound or something." - Great he was behving. COuld be a sound etc. I still just wonder if she wants to get chased in a way...............

"Yesterday took a bit more effort." - ok

" Fluffy really wanted to see her so a lot of distraction was needed." - Awwwww, in an acceptable (play) way?

" Eventually he calmed down slightly and I got him to lay down about two feet away from Sapphire. " - Great, that answers my question. All was fine. :)

"She started the night off nervous but eventually warmed up." - Great and THAT will build trust and confidence.

"This morning was pretty similar." - Ok. But as long as it is positive (meaning no negative encounters, fears not realized) it will build trust and confidence.

"I tried to somewhat ignore Fluffy and see what he would do if he got close to her." - Great

" He starts off slowly but as soon as he got within about three feet of her, I could see he was getting ready to pounce." - Awwwwww. Good body language? SO play?

" I sat down with them and gave them each some treats and love together and all was well." - PERFECT!!! Again, you answered my question. All is fine. :)

" Sapphire was a little more growly and hissy than usual but she would stop quickly. " - That is fine. As long as it is positive and the fear is not realized it is totally fine.

So overall, I would say that is great. They are like 99.9% intro'd. :) GREAT job!!!
The last bit is by far the worst part. I was hoping he wouldn't try and play with him and they would just sniff and go about their way but I guess that's not the case yet.

Sapphire was smacking him and hitting him through the gates this morning as well and he just ignored her completely haha
 

kakers

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The last bit is by far the worst part. I was hoping he wouldn't try and play with him and they would just sniff and go about their way but I guess that's not the case yet.

Sapphire was smacking him and hitting him through the gates this morning as well and he just ignored her completely haha
I wonder if he would actually pounce ON her, though I can see why you'd be hesitant to find out! I know I am. I've given ours some opportunities to see what would happen and yes sometimes Bastian pounces on them and we separate them but more often he actually pounces NEAR them and pauses to see what they will do. Usually they give him a little warning and he backs off. The way Fluffy was not reacting negatively to Sapphire batting through the gate and how relaxed she looked in your latest video I wonder if he would do the same thing and pounce near her to see if she wanted to play but back off if she gave indication she didn't want to. Sometimes it's not a sniff and walk away it's a hiss/growl and he walks away and that's ok. They communicated, he responded appropriately, trust was built.

We always have a cardboard handy in case to separate and block view, and it's definitely a high stress breath holding situation but it's gone better than expected the majority of times and when it hasn't gone as well as we've wanted it's taught us what signals to look for that we need to distract/block view/separate more quickly. It's so tricky cause I'd love for them to enjoy playing together but also constantly scared that it'll turn into a fight instead.

It's tough cause on the positive side, it could go great, they could communicate and feel each other out and be OK and there's great progress like we want but there's always the chance it doesn't go great and we have to take a step back.
 
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Graham18

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I wonder if he would actually pounce ON her, though I can see why you'd be hesitant to find out! I know I am. I've given ours some opportunities to see what would happen and yes sometimes Bastian pounces on them and we separate them but more often he actually pounces NEAR them and pauses to see what they will do. Usually they give him a little warning and he backs off. The way Fluffy was not reacting negatively to Sapphire batting through the gate and how relaxed she looked in your latest video I wonder if he would do the same thing and pounce near her to see if she wanted to play but back off if she gave indication she didn't want to. Sometimes it's not a sniff and walk away it's a hiss/growl and he walks away and that's ok. They communicated, he responded appropriately, trust was built.

We always have a cardboard handy in case to separate and block view, and it's definitely a high stress breath holding situation but it's gone better than expected the majority of times and when it hasn't gone as well as we've wanted it's taught us what signals to look for that we need to distract/block view/separate more quickly. It's so tricky cause I'd love for them to enjoy playing together but also constantly scared that it'll turn into a fight instead.

It's tough cause on the positive side, it could go great, they could communicate and feel each other out and be OK and there's great progress like we want but there's always the chance it doesn't go great and we have to take a step back.
I think he definitely goes for her directly each time, although it's not often anymore. This morning was a prime example. I gave them breakfast as usual and then they were out together for about 20 minutes distracting as needed. Sapphire seemed nervous but also playful. I was giving them pets and treats about two feet from eachother and Fluffy was acting as good as can be, ignoring her, laying down, etc. A few minutes later he wandered off and then came back so I was doing the same thing and then out of the blue, he tried to lunge straight at her with no warning. He only managed to get a few centimeters before I stopped him, but sapphire was already scared and growling at him and then she took off to her room upstairs.

Fluffy acts like a kitten in a full grown cats body haha. It makes allowing interaction tough because I would like him to go up to her calmly so she could tell him to back off, but given the opportunity, he will try and lunge at her as soon as he gets close which usually scares her because it comes out of no where.
 
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