A peaceful household with three cats, is that so much to ask for? Well, apparently it is.
Prinny and Lulu are two very different cats, and that was made painfully clear to us by Prinny. Lulu loved to tease her, and basically tell her in her own way: “lighten up.” Unfortunately, our new little kitten didn’t know when to stop and did not understand the kitty-lingo variant of ‘NO.’
The occasional scuffle through the household didn’t seem to be a problem until Prin decided she had had enough.

At that time, I had a room filled with boxes, blankets, your typical I-desperately-need-to-clean-up-here-but-I-don’t-get-around-to-it room. And of course, one day, there is something in that room that I need, and as I dig it out, I find what most cat owners cannot appreciate: a room used as a litter tray. So I started clearing out, forced to make it my priority. And I found that Prin had filed a protest against the Lulu, and that Trini occasionally joined in. And I can tell you, their protest was hard to ignore.

So I turned again to my books, trying desperately to find a solution, because I can tell you, there is nothing fun about having to clean up after your kitty at least three times a day(and that’s on a good day). And I watched the interaction between my cats until finally…I understood Prinny.

It turned out that when Prin went to the litter tray( I had covered trays at that time), and started digging the hole in the sand, Lulu would turn into a little possessed monster. She would hear the sounds in the box, and, enjoying a good hunt, she would sneak up to the box, climb on top of it, and wait for the Prinny to get out. The unsuspecting Prinny would then be pounced the moment she set a toe out of the box. Naturally, Prinny did not enjoy this treatment, and filed for a ‘Remove the black little monster’-complaint.

It took me 9 months to get Prinny to kick the habit of peeing in my couch and bed (because, since she had such a strong bond with me, she considered my smell to be safe and wanted to mix hers with mine in her own little way *sigh*). She got a lot better after I removed the tops of the boxes, so she could see Lulu coming. She only peed in the wrong place once a week from then on. I started interactive play with her to give her more confidence and a way to release all that stress she was so sensitive to. That meant she only peed in the wrong place once every three weeks. I tried to play with the Lulu, so she would not go after the other cats so much, and gave her lots and lots of toys, which also helped it reduce.
But whenever Prin and Lulu had had a big fight, or whenever Prin deemed there was too much of Lulu’s smell in the tray( especially if I waited just a little longer to clean out the tray), she would fall of the wagon. It took eventually the coming of the ‘Three Musketeers’ to break this habit fully, and even now I am still paranoid about it.
What did I do to survive those months? I put a plastic sheet on the couch during the night, and that same one on the bed during the day (my boyfriend is home during the day so he can watch the couch then). That way, the clean up was far easier. And I washed the couch…a lot. And the bed. I discovered along the way that vinegar, mixed with water is the best way to remove cat urine.

Did I ever consider bringing my cats to the shelter? Hell, nooo. Did my boyfriend? Hell, yes! It is my belief that this is still my house and I make up the rules, not the cats, not even Prinny. And that includes who gets to live here. Now Lulu might have been a handful, but she was also an adorable, sweet jack-out-of-the-box. All I needed to do is show Prinny the ‘light’. Stubborn as she is, it took a while, but they now have a truce. Prinny is still top cat, and although Lulu will occasionally try to change that, she knows better than to push it all the way. They can now sit next to each other, and even the occasional wash isn’t wasted on them, provided it does not take too long.

Trini was sweet enough to show Lulu she does occasionally want to run around the house and go absolutely bonkers with her, as long as she doesn’t push it. Trini, in her own gentle way, also helps to educate the Lulu on cat etiquette. And as the Trini finally feels at home and secure, she is not a cat to be trifled with. Even Prin will occasionally be put in her place by Trini. Although she has no ambitions to be top cat, she is not about to take any beatings anymore, and she has those huge paws of hers to back this up.

Once again I had a semi-peaceful household, and I did intend to stop at three, at least for a couple of years. But life never follows the path you set out, now does it?