Gracie jumps over the baby gate... and Bugsy goes Gah-Gah!

For those who don't know, Gracie has been in her own little area, separated by a baby gate and SSSCat on my computer desk since she moved in. She is terrified of the other kitties, especially of Bugsy, who absolutely LOVES her and simply can't leave her alone
I have tried everything on the book - scent exchange, the vanilla trick, have feliway running in every room, sloooow intros, etc. with no luck.
Well, yesterday as I am seating on the couch the SSSCat goes off - I have it set up on my desk for Bugsy to not jump over to her area... Imagine my surprise when I saw that it was Gracie who was actually crossing over to their area!!! She came right over and laid on the couch next to me! Above is the dialog she had with Bugsy....... right before Lucky came running as a good old alpha and put her back on her place. Gracie did have a small "fight" with Bugsy, it was kind of scary for meowmy....
Today she crossed over again! Right now she is laying down peacefully on the couch while Lucky is on the other side (also on the couch), Bugsy is on the cat tree, and Hope is on the floor on the living room! I think we might be making progress here! As they say, when dealing with cats, it is all on their terms, and their time!

Wow! That sounds so great. Go Gracie! Hopefully Gracie is thinking, "Ok - let me give this group a gair go. They were kind enough to share Meowmy with me - maybe they aren't so bad afterall"

Good luck - I hope we keep hearing progress like this.

That is great! Bugsey is sooooo patient! I wish I would have progress like that with my seven seniors and three black and whites. I don't ever see that happening.

There is always hope tho....after seeing your post!

How Exciting Carolina! Bugsy reminds me of Tolly. Tolly loves every cat and wants to make friends as SOON as they come in the house. He's been lucky though because Mazy,and Queen Eva were easy. Jennie was a little prickly at first though.

Love the captions!

That's hilarious. It's cool to see Gracie venturing out and making steps toward trusting the others.

Yay!!! Progress!!!

Poor Bugsy! He loos like he wants to be friends with Gracie, so badly!!! I bet in time they will be fast friends!!

That is awesome. I like hearing good updates on Gracie, I've been rooting for her from round 1, and I'm glad she's getting more comfortable in her new home.

I know you're so excited, Carolina! I'm so glad Gracie is feeling safe enough to venture over the gate and into the big world of your home. Sounds like progress to me!

Love the dialogue! Gracie is making so much progress - she's only been there a little over three months, right? Bugsy will have won her over completely in another three.

Gracie is getting more and more fearless! It is amazing to see, really! It is so cool that it is completely on her time and her terms! Last night she crossed over again - all the cats were in the living room, and she didn't care a bit. She jumped on my desk, over the book shelves, and came right to me to lay down on the couch. Lucky laid down on the couch too, but on the other side. Bugsy stayed on the cat tree, and Hope watched from the other side of the room. She was very relaxed and just enjoyed some loving from her momma.
I am not letting her alone at night with them though - I am locking the three with me in my room, and living her with the roam of the house so she gets more and more comfortable. During the day I lock her up again so if she wants out she needs to jump over - I want to make sure she doesn't feel threatened and she has a safe place to eat (she has a different food too, which Bugsy and Hope can't eat), and a safe litter box...
On the first day she came out though, there was a little start of a fight with Bugsy (with paws only), and Lucky ran after her with her arched back, sideways - typical alpha kind of thing.
But on the second day it was 100% peaceful, and she was not afraid of coming out at all...
I am amazed!
JCat - yes, She has been here since November 1st. Considering that she is a 13, going on 14 years old, mostly outside cat, I think this is quite a progress indeed!
I finally see some hope of having her integrating into the house... I think she feels ready!
The funniest thing of this whole "episode" was her surprise at the SSSCat - she was looking at it going "What is this funny looking cat hissing at me for?" Unlike Bugsy though, she was not afraid of, nor ran away - just stayed there, with her ears pinned back ready to attack! "Wanna a piece of me?"

Your post gives me hope.

We've only had Jasper for a week, and he's hid for more than 90% of it. He got into the house yesterday and hid under the sofa.

We came home from church, and he went from hiding under the sofa, to hiding behind the washing machine. I'm going to put it on- and he's probably going to run or have a heart attack. Because I can't "not" run the washing machine when we've got clothes that need to be washed.

I know patience...........

Cheryl

Oh I love these dialogs, Carolina!!! After 12 hours of working with a bunch of bipeds it's SOOOOO nice to come home and tune into to Gracie and Bugsy's way of "bonding." I think there is progress with Gracie getting her nerve up to venture a little bit closer to the other cats. It means she feels better and that is what we've been "vibing" for!!
Gracie may turn out to be a bossy little old lady!

So happy to hear about Gracie's progress! I hope it continues to go well!

I'm so glad that Gracie is giving the other cats a chance, and is getting comfortable around them

Oh, those ears on Gracie and Bugsy!! Well I'm glad it was just a small argument and not a big bad fight, though perhaps fights are good once in a while, to let cats know where they belong amongst each other. Of course I say that, and everytime my 2 go at each other, I panic.

Anyway, that is super news that Gracie seems to be finally getting comfortable in your house and with your other cats! I hope Bugsy will be able to win her over soon!!!

What wonderful progress! I literally giggled here at work looking at those pics, sooo cute!

You go girl Gracie . Great narration and photos. Sounds like Gracie is definitely feeling more confident and that is great progress.

Love the photo essay, Carolina!!! Bugsy looks as sweet as he is.... I wouldn't refuse to let him up onto the sofa!!!

Love those captions! LOL! I'm so glad that Gracie is adapting so well. I hope she'll be snuggling down with one of them....hopefully Bugsy.....soon.