| *Kelda Khronicles* |
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| Sibling Rivalry |
| Kelda is an attention hog. It’s one of her many personality traits. She simply has the need to feel like the center of the universe. Not hard for a cat like her to accomplish. Had she been born a human, she would have been some sort of famous actress -one of those types that requires her own ‘people’. Kelda does have ‘people’. It’s us humans who reside with her. We lavish her with affection, play with her, we oh and ah over her antics and we succumb to every kitty whim she has (well, almost every kitty whim). We enjoy doing this because Kelda is so much fun. She’s the star of the house. Kelda very rarely keeps out of the spotlight. If she isn’t in eyeshot of someone, it’s only because she is having a catnap or her family is asleep. Kelda has a case of jealousy lately even though she gets the same amount of attention as always. She gets her daily does of kitty pets. She’s the first animal anyone greets when they come home. Nothing has changed in our love and affection for her. To us, she’s still star kitty and we delight in her just as much as ever. I’m not sure why she is so jealous, but I think it has to do with her needing to be the center of the universe. The only thing that HAS changed is her sister, Socks. Socks is now pregnant. With that has come receptiveness to affection that Socks has not had before. We’ve worked hard to make Socks social and it’s paying off. We are all thrilled about this. Kelda is not. If Kelda had opposable thumbs, she’d surely pack Socks in a box and Fed Ex her to Aruba. How dare this cat change! How dare she LIKE affection! How dare we give it to her!! It’s a bad case of sibling rivalry. Someone else is getting attention besides the star. Poor Socks has no idea what’s going on with Kelda. Socks minds her own business and Kelda pounces on her in a not so nice way. Socks never expects the 5-clawed swat in the rear when trying to eat. I never expect having to clean up the mess that a cat makes when leaping into the air from pure shock. It would be easier if Kelda were human. I could just sit her down and explain to her she isn’t in danger of losing our love. I can’t. All I can do is try and convey this to her by actions until she is adjusted to Socks’s new found social ease. Most people would help convey this to their cats with extra kitty treats, love and play. I can manage the latter two, but Kelda doesn’t like kitty treats. Kelda only likes water fresh from the tap and cat food. The other day, I explained Kelda’s obvious feelings of jealousy to the rest of the family, especially stressing it to the kids. Kelda sees them as her kids (a whole nother article). I noticed that the majority of her angst comes when she sees the kids petting Socks. Everyone has been really good about reassuring Kelda, while still maintaining a report with Socks. They’ve been too good tonight. The girls played chase with Kelda until Kelda had absolutely enough. The little gray and white creature stopped these two girls dead in their tracks with one ferocious hiss. Both children turned tails and ran the other direction. Kelda was out of sight until they went to bed. Then came my brother in law. Kelda loves playing with him and vice versa. She’ll allow him to do things to her I can’t even get away with. (being mom, it makes me feel a twinge of jealousy) For almost an hour he played with Kelda. For a cat, that’s a long, long time- too long. She got to the point where her body language clearly showed ‘I’m done, now I’d just like to lay here, thank you’. When he persisted in the play, she ran (she’d never hiss at him!) and that’s the last I’ve seen of her tonight. Now Kelda is getting more attention than even she can stand. It's a definite reinforcement that she is still the star and then some. I’m sure it will help ease the jealousy Kelda feels. I’m sure this will all pass and Kelda will adjust. I’m just hoping Socks doesn’t get anymore 5-clawed salutes from Kelda after today. I’m tired of sweeping up cat food. Oh. Kelda! |