The Hooper and Ollie Show

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Twylasmom

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Today was interesting! Ollie slipped out of his room while I was leaving it and ran downstairs. He made it all the way to the living room where I scooped him up. When I stood up I saw that Hooper was right there on the couch about a yard away. They both got a good look at each other with no hissing or anything. Hooper stayed put and Ollie didn’t struggle but I took him upstairs fairly quickly before he could squirm out of my hold. Hopefully this is a positive sign. We may try a little gate time this weekend and I need to give Ollie some more time to explore as he has lots of energy to expend.
 
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Twylasmom

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Oof, I don’t know how this intro is going to go. I had Hooper in the bedroom with me this morning while Ollie was exploring the rest of the house. Hooper was curious and slipped out when I tried to leave the room. Ollie immediately chased him all around the downstairs. There was a little hissing from Hooper but he was mostly just trying to get away. I eventually caught Ollie and put him back in his room, which he wasn’t too happy about. Hooper is definitely curious, but so timid. Ollie just has so much energy but I couldn’t tell if he was chasing just for play or as aggression. Hooper is continuing to look around for him, which is better than hiding under the covers, I guess.

I need to be more careful at doors and start using my gates, which I hope will stand up to these guys.
 

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Just a thought, one of SG's favorite toys is a three/four foot length of cotton clothesline (wash it in the machine a couple of times to soften it) She loves it when you snake walk it and will happily chase it around any room.

Here is the suggestion. Consider a similar toy for Ollie if he'll chase it and run him like made three or four times a day. Hooper should be in a safe place where he is not involved. This will use up some of Ollie's energy and let Hooper know, Ollie is patrolling the house and protecting everyone with his mad skills.
 
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Twylasmom

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I usually do try and wear Ollie out with toys several times a day and he plays pretty vigorously when he’s alone. I know he is tired of being cooped up all the time so have been trying to let him wander the rest of the house when I can, but it can be difficult during the week when my at home time is limited. I’m not quite ready for introductions yet as I’m still waiting for Ollie’s testosterone level to decrease, but he does need to have some time to roam the house. I guess I’m just used to older cats who aren’t quite so energetic. I will definitely work on wearing him out prior to introductions!

The stimulation is honestly good for Hooper (though maybe not being chased, though he can use the exercise!)
 

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Sounds like you're doing it well. testosterone is a terrible thing, I'm so grateful we can work around it.

It's possible Hooper will come to enjoy playing tag. When we added a puppy my other dogs were 9 years. After six months of them sharing off keeping up with the puppy, the vet said they were fit enough to be 2 year olds. Of course, that may vary by breed.
 
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Baby steps today. Ollie got to explore the house in a couple of half hourish blocks. It is going to take a while for him to get comfortable since there is a lot to explore and many scary things (like the TV). He had two decent through the door interactions with Hooper. Lots of meowing from both sides and a little hissing from Hooper, but no aggression or growling. Definitely curiosity on both sides.
 

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TV are seriously scary things. Just like the first few times the heat flips on.
 
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Sigh….ollie has urinated outside the box (on pee pads) two days in a row (though he has also peed in the box). I’m wondering if it’s behavioral as he has just started having opportunities to explore the house and have some interactions with Hooper so definitely stressful. I have added a bigger second box to see if that helps, and my Feliway diffuser should be arriving by this evening. It is right outside the box and yesterday he did it right in front of me!I always use pee pads under the boxes just in case, but wonder if they might have some kind of attractant?

It’s a normal sized output and is not tinged with pink or blood and is light yellow In color

I am also still having an issue with him eating the litter. It is grass seed, not clay, and I think he thinks it’s food. Inwonder if he doesn’t want to pee in it if he thinks it’s food, but he is using it sometimes And poops in the box. I am tempted to try clay litter but I definitely don’t want him eating that! He is definitely not anemic, given his energy level and healthy pink gums.

Any thoughts or suggestions? I have been lucky to never have to deal with this issue with any other cat.

The good news is the coughing he was experiencing after his neuter has stopped.
 

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I'd definitely get him some cat grass, but with delivery time and time to grow you're looking at a couple of weeks wait. Still, might help later.

You're right about the clay litter, if he's going to eat it. I haven't looked in a while, but is there a wheat litter? What about the tofu litter? Can he tolerate soy? He might not like it, many beings that I know don't care for tofu as a food.

Maybe he's still hungry. I had one who continued to grow through her third year. She'd had a rough early years and missed some growing. You might try feeding him a bit more. As they say, couldn't hurt.

I'm thinking if it was territorial marking, he'd be doing it at the doorway, the closest place to Hooper than marked the edge of his turf. It's possible it's working on a uti, which might be from stress, or it might just be utis happen. Could you catch a bit to take the to vet? I couldn't but if he's doing it in front of you...
 
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No more peeing outside the box since I added a second box and plugged in the Feliway diffuser. Still eating litter sometimes. He is eating 3 cans of food a day and a couple of tablespoons of dry food but he is still food insecure and eats everything right away. I got a slow feeder for dry food (one where he has to fish pieces out with his paws) which slows him down a bit, though he figured it out very quickly. He is also slowly gaining confidence in exploring other parts of the house.

Hooper and Ollie have seen each other several times, mostly when I am holding Ollie (I have to pick him up whenever I leave his room or he’ll bolt). Hooper mostly just looks, though he has hissed a little. Ollie hasn’t shown any aggression - I think the chasing is just pent up energy and not anything more serious. I still don’t see making significant progress for a few weeks, when my work schedule should lighten up a bit. Not what I would like, but that’s just the reality of the situation right now.
 

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Food insecurity for people can last for years and it can be explained to them. It's something the body learned that the mind can override, but it does get better.

It sounds as though you are making a lot of progress. Undoubtedly, there is progress you don't even see. I mean cats show affection by sitting in the same room with you, no touching, several feet away from you. come to think of it small humans also show affection the same way, by playing their games in the same room with you, but several feet away, often not speaking, sharing the occasional glance at most. Your boys are building the bridges of friendship without a single word. :heartshape:
 
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We had our first planned visual contact today. I have two large, tall pet gates that I can stack which divide my downstairs in half. Together they are about 8 feet high. Today Hooper got the kitchen, living and laundry room and Ollie got all of the upstairs and my bedroom/bath. This allows each access to their primary litter box. Of course I have to go outside to move from one half of the house to the other! I had looked at some gates with doors so I could leave them up all the time, but they were really expensive and weren’t the right width or height.

It went OK. After about 10 minutes Hooper came over to check out the gate and Ollie made his way there a few minutes later. Hooper hissed a lot and made deep meows (but no growling) at one point he moved further away but came back again. Ollie showed curiosity but no signs of aggression. They were about a foot apart each time and Ollie was the one to walk away each time. He was pretty chill!
They did this three or four times. I put Ollie back in his room and took the gates down. I was afraid that Hooper might throw himself at the gate or Ollie would try to climb but that didn’t happen. Hooper was ready to eat after his “ordeal” and Ollie had playtime prior which undoubtedly helped. Hooper is definitely going to be the slowest cat in this situation, so we will go at his pace. I was on Ollie’s side of the gates as I didn’t want to leave them unsupervised for the time it would take for me to reach him and put him away (he is much easier to handle than Hooper).

Next time I plan to be ready with treats, which is a challenge as Hooper doesn’t like most treats. What cat doesn’t like Temptations? Of course Ollie will eat anything. I’m going to try to do this every day when I get home from work. Late afternoon seems to be a calmer time. Twice a day would be better, but not going to happen during the week right now. My guess is this step is going to take a while.
 
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It’s slow going here. Ollie is curious and not afraid at all. Hopper is definitely curious but also fearful. Still a lot of hissing and growling from him (which I think is fear rather than aggression) but also quietly watching from a safe distance. They did get almost nose to nose at the gate for a moment tonight and Hooper swatted at Ollie through the gate. These interactions are short - no more than 10 minutes. Hooper knows that when the gates go up that Ollie will be making an appearance.
 
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Introductions are going slowly, but with some promising signs. In the mornings I have Hooper in the bedroom so Ollie can have the run of the house. They have long conversations through the door (they are very vocal kitties) and play swat the paws under the door. Hooper is quite relaxed in those encounter, even laying on his back and putting his paws under the door. We are up to about 40 minutes of gate time in the evenings. I try and rotate which side I’m on. Eating food or treats during that time is a nonstarter since Hooper is too nervous. Both of them will come right up to the gate, Hooper is still hissing and growling a little when they get a few inches apart, and will sometimes give a single swat. But definitely curious and keeps coming back for more. Ollie is non-aggressive and will back away a step or two when Hooper gives a warning. Tonight he laid down and showed Hooper his belly! So getting used to each other and doing some boundary setting.
 
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Hooper actually ate a treat about two feet away from Ollie and the gate today. He is getting more comfortable for sure. They have to be almost nose to nose for him to hiss at Ollie. Ollie is being really good and will play, sit or rollover right at the gate. He got a lot more time to run around by himself this weekend which is making him more confident of his surroundings. About 3 hours today and about an hour of gate time.

I expect setbacks this week as I have at least two 12-14 hour workdays so not much time to devote to introductions.

ETA - Ollie isn’t as confident as I thought. I just discovered he peed on my bed while the gates were up. Hooper spends a lot of time there so I’m sure his scent was strong. It was definitely pee and not scent marking. Hope it was a one-time thing.
 
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Margot Lane

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The Hooper and Ollie Show is building up to…The Great Episode! When will they become best buddies? Stay tuned. (Cue kettledrums).
 
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I am starting to wonder when it might be time to try a meeting without the gate. They are both so interested in each other, sometimes rubbing up against the gate with the other one right there. Today they ate bits of flaked salmon cat treats within a foot of each other and had a nose touch with no hissing! Hooper also really wanted out of the bedroom this morning when I let Ollie have the rest of the house.
 
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It feels like we aren’t making much progress. Eating treats about 18” apart is good and they both repeatedly approach the gate and walk away without incident. Ollie will come right up to Hooper and lay down, or rub against the gate. When he gets too close Hooper will hiss and even swat through the gate. Yesterday Hooper got a good sniff of Ollie’s rear which really caused him to hiss and swat. To be fair, Ollie can be a lot - he is very high energy and runs back and forth on his end. I realize this is most likely just Hooper setting boundaries but I am really apprehensive about what will happen when there is no gate. I am able to get away with just using the 4 foot tall gate and neither has tried to climb or jump it.

I feel like Hooper is less tolerant than he was last week but at the same time Ollie is pushing the boundaries.

Any thoughts about what to do next? I know I need to increase these sessions to more than once a day, which will happen soon. I’ve got one more 14 hour day to get through and then I should have more time.
 
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I think we are getting close to interactions without the gate. Today we had two sessions of gate time totaling about four hours - one hour with Hooper in the bedroom with me and three hours in the afternoon with the house divided in half and me going back and forth if needed to put out food, etc. Hooper was a little territorial about the bedroom (hissing and swatting through the gate) but this afternoon was great. They ate treats and a meal about two feet apart and both would leave and come back to the gate (Hooper took a nap at one point). They got nose to nose without incident a couple of times, at others they would just observe each other, or Hooper would watch Ollie running around playing like a crazy thing (seriously he is super high energy, but I have never seen him hiss or growl). I have a stick that they both like to play with and I will sit at the gate and pass it back and forth between them. I also spent time doing regular things around the house so I wasn’t hovering over them the whole time.

I am a little apprehensive about the initial attempt without the gate but will be armed with treats, toys and a blanket to block line of sight. Any other thoughts? It may not be tomorrow, but soon! I have the whole week off so lots of time to spend with them.
 
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Twylasmom

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I tried a meeting without the gate. It was really bad. Hooper went over to Ollie and there was lots of hissing and growling. Before I could block their line of sight to each other Ollie began chasing Hooper all,over the downstairs and there was some tussling with lots of growling and yowling before I could get Hooper behind a closed door. I don’t think anyone is hurt. Ollie is back in his room and Hooper is hiding under the covers in my bed.

This is after several weeks of gate time, where they seemed to be getting along well. What do I do now? How do I stop the chasing? I know this was just a first try but I’m afraid they won’t ever make progress.
 
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