settling in

[llywela]

Three weeks after the move, I have started this weekend (in between torrential rain showers that have caused flash flooding across the city) to introduce the cats to the great outside world beyond our door, aka the back garden. One at a time, a little at a time, just so they can begin to get familiarised with what's out there.

It looks as if this could be quite a lengthy process.

I started with Poppy. She clung to me like a limpet, all "no, no, I got out here on my own in the dark last week and IT WAS SCARY DON'T MAKE ME GO OUT THERE!!!" and tried to get back in through the window she'd escaped from the other day (which is still closed). She relaxed enough to sniff around a tiny bit, but she was very nervous about it. Her stir craziness was completely cured by that brief escape! She's so freaked out, it's going to take ages to get her comfortable with going out again. Which is fine, the slower the better, really.

Then I took Alfie out and he was far more excited, "yay, outside world, new smells, it's all so interesting, I want to explore all the things, this is brilliant...okay, that's enough excitement for one day, time to go home," and that was that, he's had enough now!

We'll try again next week...

Comments

[wildcard-sej.livejournal.com]

Doing it while the weather's so wet and miserable is probably a wise choice in that they'll be less inclined to want to venture too far from home comforts. ;)

BTW, congrats on your new home. :)

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

There is that! I'm not letting them out unsupervised just yet, mind - way too early for that, still. This weekend was just a first taster for them to let them see what's out there.

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

The cats are struggling a bit with the fact that we have people living above us who they can hear but can't see - they aren't used to that, having had a whole house to ourselves previously. What wigged Poppy out about the garden, though, was having freaked herself out thoroughly the other week by escaping before she was ready! They are mostly fine within the flat itself now, though. It's just going to take a little while to familiarise them with the garden and surrounding neighbourhood ready to start going out properly.

[femsc.livejournal.com]

I've been very lax at checking LJ recently and even worse at updating. Are you still in the same area of Cardiff?

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

Oh, I'm also very lax about checking, updating and replying at LJ these days!

I'm not too far from where I was before, but a bit further out from the centre. I'm at the Fairwater end of Llandaff now, where before I was the Riverside/Leckwith end of Canton.

[femsc.livejournal.com]

Oh I say, you're in Llandaff! Sounds a lot posher than Canton to those in the know :)

I know the area reasonably well: when Charlie and I first got married we lived in Duxford Close, off Tangmere Drive (top end of Waterhall Road).

[(Anonymous)]

I'd prefer they were safe at home rather than rampaging around too soon!

(Sorry for late comment; my phone line has been down at home since last Thursday and being without internet is like having my arm cut off. Thank god for the office...)

Carol

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

Yikes @ the lack of internet! I struggled for the few days I was internetless after moving.

And yes, I prefer the cats safe at home than rampaging around too soon. Hence this was a brief outside excursion under strictly controlled conditions, heavily supervised and one at a time. And won't be going out again until next weekend, since the evenings are already so dark by the time I get home. It's still early. It was just a good opportunity to let them have a first look at what's out there. They aren't really asking to go out since - well, Poppy's so freaked out that she does not want to go out ever again as things stand. Alfie cried a bit Sunday evening because he wanted to go out to do a wee, now he knows there's a garden out there, but he gave in and used the litter tray again thereafter - way too soon to let him out in the dark when I can't see him!