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Duffy and Holly (new photos)
This is a duplicate of the message I posted yesterday in the health+behav
newsgroup. I don't normally duplicate messages and seldom cross-post (except in responses), but someone suggested that I do this because I post frequently in the anecdotes group and often mention my two furbabies. Some of you have followed the story of Holly and Duffy. Holly is my black cat, the one we used to call "the black tornado" because she was so aggressive toward any other cat. Duffy is my blind cat (gray with white markings), adopted several months ago and integrated into an environment with one thoroughly spoiled cat. The two now get along beautifully, and I usually find them in close proximity with each other. When I wake up in the morning, I often find one cat sleeping on one side of me and the other cat on the other side. Duffy is constantly aware of Holly and follows her throughout the house. Duffy is truly remarkable. Some people have watched him play for several minutes without ever realizing that he is blind. That is particularly true when he is climbing, and that is one of the great joys of his life. He is like a little acrobat and can do maneuvers that would make Mary Lou Retton envious. You can see some new photos of him going through some of his "advanced moves" if you scroll down to the bottom of this site: http://tinyurl.com/8y56. First scroll toward the bottom (4th picture from the end), where you can see Duffy relaxing on top of the computer hutch. Some time ago, I found that he would easily climb up the "windows" of the hutch to the top. That part was easy for him, but he couldn't see to make his way back down and I was concerned that he might miss his footing. So I had a carpeted pole added to the side of the hutch, similar to one of the poles on his cat tree. He loves it, and he seems to be part cat-part squirrel-part bear as he descends. He will start at the top of the pole and start down head-first like a squirrel (shown in the photo called "Wow! The Amazing Duffy"), then he spins his body around (shown immediately above that photo on a pole at the cat tree, in a picture called "Go Duffy") and backs the rest of the way down like a bear. His claws go "scritch, scritch, scritch" all the way down as he backs and quickly releases his grip, then grabs again, then releases again, etc. until he reaches the floor. More recently, I noticed Duffy sometimes hanging down from the top of the hutch with only his hips and hind legs on the hutch and sometimes walking right on the very edge of the hutch. It is smooth wood, and I was afraid he would slip and fall (especially when in the "hanging-down" position) because he wouldn't have anything to grip. There are some sharp corners on the computer that he could hit if he fell, so we installed a carpeted 2" x 4" board along the front edge of the hutch to serve as a "safety rail." He checked out the new safety device almost as soon as it was in place. And what did he do?? -- well, he proceeded to walk right on top of it, sort of like a kid who "just has" to walk on a tree that has fallen over a river. So now he's still walking right on the edge but a few inches higher! However, I feel that it is much safer because now it's carpeted and Duffy can use those nice sharp claws to grip the carpet. The "safety rail" has become Duffy's balance beam. As I said, he's truly remarkable; and he's a delight to watch - a little gymnast. Now, let's not forget about Holly! She has made a wonderful adjustment from being "an only child" (a very spoiled and pampered only child) to sharing her space with Duffy - and enjoying it. Scroll up a couple of photos and you will see a picture of Holly on the mantle (posing nicely in front of one of my own paintings). She is solid black with a glorious, glossy fur coat and gorgeous golden/orange eyes. I hear her making a "moaning" noise every evening, and I will look up to see her bringing a little red leather mouse to me as a gift. This has been going on for several months, and it is always the same little red leather mouse - which is now showing definite signs of wear. Her favorite pastime is walking in front of the computer monitor or sitting on the computer mouse. In fact, she seems to be convinced that her biggest function in life is to position herself right in front of the monitor, with a "close second" job being her skills at dumping my papers onto the floor, one-by-one. -- MaryL (take out the litter to reply) Photos of Holly and Duffy: http://tinyurl.com/8y54 (introducing Duffy to Holly) http://tinyurl.com/8y56 (Duffy and Holly "settle in") |
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On Mon, 6 Oct 2003 05:25:33 -0500, "MaryL"
-OUT-THE-LITTER wrote: This is a duplicate of the message I posted yesterday in the health+behav newsgroup. I don't normally duplicate messages and seldom cross-post (except in responses), but someone suggested that I do this because I post frequently in the anecdotes group and often mention my two furbabies. Some of you have followed the story of Holly and Duffy. Holly is my black cat, the one we used to call "the black tornado" because she was so aggressive toward any other cat. Duffy is my blind cat (gray with white markings), adopted several months ago and integrated into an environment with one thoroughly spoiled cat. The two now get along beautifully, and I usually find them in close proximity with each other. When I wake up in the morning, I often find one cat sleeping on one side of me and the other cat on the other side. Duffy is constantly aware of Holly and follows her throughout the house. Duffy is truly remarkable. Some people have watched him play for several minutes without ever realizing that he is blind. That is particularly true when he is climbing, and that is one of the great joys of his life. He is like a little acrobat and can do maneuvers that would make Mary Lou Retton envious. You can see some new photos of him going through some of his "advanced moves" if you scroll down to the bottom of this site: http://tinyurl.com/8y56. First scroll toward the bottom (4th picture from the end), where you can see Duffy relaxing on top of the computer hutch. Some time ago, I found that he would easily climb up the "windows" of the hutch to the top. That part was easy for him, but he couldn't see to make his way back down and I was concerned that he might miss his footing. So I had a carpeted pole added to the side of the hutch, similar to one of the poles on his cat tree. He loves it, and he seems to be part cat-part squirrel-part bear as he descends. He will start at the top of the pole and start down head-first like a squirrel (shown in the photo called "Wow! The Amazing Duffy"), then he spins his body around (shown immediately above that photo on a pole at the cat tree, in a picture called "Go Duffy") and backs the rest of the way down like a bear. His claws go "scritch, scritch, scritch" all the way down as he backs and quickly releases his grip, then grabs again, then releases again, etc. until he reaches the floor. More recently, I noticed Duffy sometimes hanging down from the top of the hutch with only his hips and hind legs on the hutch and sometimes walking right on the very edge of the hutch. It is smooth wood, and I was afraid he would slip and fall (especially when in the "hanging-down" position) because he wouldn't have anything to grip. There are some sharp corners on the computer that he could hit if he fell, so we installed a carpeted 2" x 4" board along the front edge of the hutch to serve as a "safety rail." He checked out the new safety device almost as soon as it was in place. And what did he do?? -- well, he proceeded to walk right on top of it, sort of like a kid who "just has" to walk on a tree that has fallen over a river. So now he's still walking right on the edge but a few inches higher! However, I feel that it is much safer because now it's carpeted and Duffy can use those nice sharp claws to grip the carpet. The "safety rail" has become Duffy's balance beam. As I said, he's truly remarkable; and he's a delight to watch - a little gymnast. Now, let's not forget about Holly! She has made a wonderful adjustment from being "an only child" (a very spoiled and pampered only child) to sharing her space with Duffy - and enjoying it. Scroll up a couple of photos and you will see a picture of Holly on the mantle (posing nicely in front of one of my own paintings). She is solid black with a glorious, glossy fur coat and gorgeous golden/orange eyes. I hear her making a "moaning" noise every evening, and I will look up to see her bringing a little red leather mouse to me as a gift. This has been going on for several months, and it is always the same little red leather mouse - which is now showing definite signs of wear. Her favorite pastime is walking in front of the computer monitor or sitting on the computer mouse. In fact, she seems to be convinced that her biggest function in life is to position herself right in front of the monitor, with a "close second" job being her skills at dumping my papers onto the floor, one-by-one. Duffy is one amazing kitty. To look at those pictures you would never know that he is blind. Holly is beautiful. Nan |
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"MaryL" -OUT-THE-LITTER wrote As I said, he's truly remarkable; and he's a delight to watch - a little gymnast. It is quite amazing - you would never believe he is blind from the climbing pictures, except when he is "looking" towards the camera you can see there is something strange about his eyes. Now, let's not forget about Holly! Let's not! She is truly beautiful. So glad to hear how she and Duffy have bonded. -- Marina, Frank and Nikki marina (dot) kurten (at) pp (dot) inet (dot) fi |
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MaryL -out-the-litter wrote:
Some of you have followed the story of Holly and Duffy. Holly is my black cat, the one we used to call "the black tornado" because she was so aggressive toward any other cat. Duffy is my blind cat (gray with white markings), adopted several months ago and integrated into an environment with one thoroughly spoiled cat. Duffy looks so much like my cat Smudge!! He's gorgeous. They're both beautiful. And it's great to see how much Duffy can enjoy himself and get around. Also, I'm glad that Holly has mellowed and that the two of them get along so well! Here's Smudge (with my other cat, Roxy), so you can see their similarity: http://home.sonic.net/~jwermont/cats/smudgerox3.jpg Joyce |
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wrote in message ... MaryL -out-the-litter wrote: Some of you have followed the story of Holly and Duffy. Holly is my black cat, the one we used to call "the black tornado" because she was so aggressive toward any other cat. Duffy is my blind cat (gray with white markings), adopted several months ago and integrated into an environment with one thoroughly spoiled cat. Duffy looks so much like my cat Smudge!! He's gorgeous. They're both beautiful. And it's great to see how much Duffy can enjoy himself and get around. Also, I'm glad that Holly has mellowed and that the two of them get along so well! Here's Smudge (with my other cat, Roxy), so you can see their similarity: http://home.sonic.net/~jwermont/cats/smudgerox3.jpg Joyce You're right ... there is a definite resemblance. Of course, you understand that "in my eyes" there are no other cats as beautiful as Duffy and Holly!! ;o) But yours are certainly beautiful. MaryL (take out the litter to reply) |
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On Mon, 6 Oct 2003 05:25:33 -0500, "MaryL"
-OUT-THE-LITTER wrote: snip Duffy is truly remarkable. Some people have watched him play for several minutes without ever realizing that he is blind. That is particularly true when he is climbing, and that is one of the great joys of his life. He is like a little acrobat and can do maneuvers that would make Mary Lou Retton envious. You can see some new photos of him going through some of his "advanced moves" if you scroll down to the bottom of this site: http://tinyurl.com/8y56. First scroll toward the bottom (4th picture from snip computer that he could hit if he fell, so we installed a carpeted 2" x 4" board along the front edge of the hutch to serve as a "safety rail." He checked out the new safety device almost as soon as it was in place. And what did he do?? -- well, he proceeded to walk right on top of it, sort of like a kid who "just has" to walk on a tree that has fallen over a river. So LOL Isn't that just like a cat ;-) snip Now, let's not forget about Holly! She has made a wonderful adjustment from being "an only child" (a very spoiled and pampered only child) to sharing her space with Duffy - and enjoying it. Scroll up a couple of photos and you snip Very pretty girl, and glad to hear that she's decided Duffy can stay Great pix - I bookmarked them and will go back later to look at the rest - but that is truly some amazing pix of the "handicapped" Duffy. |
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"Steve Touchstone" wrote in message ... On Mon, 6 Oct 2003 05:25:33 -0500, "MaryL" -OUT-THE-LITTER wrote: snip Great pix - I bookmarked them and will go back later to look at the rest - but that is truly some amazing pix of the "handicapped" Duffy. Shhhhh. I don't think he knows he's supposed to be "handicapped." But, thanks!! MaryL (take out the litter to reply) |
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Hi Mary!
I was thinking about Duffy the other day, (although I couldn't remember his name, I was thinking about the blind cat), so great to see the update! He is quite amazing, isn't he? That one where his two front legs are hanging over... I wonder, is that how he gets down, sort of drops his front legs till he hits something? And also, when he and Holly play, does Duffy still do that lay-the-ears-back while staring at each other move? Thanks for the piccies! Stacey "MaryL" -OUT-THE-LITTER wrote in message ... This is a duplicate of the message I posted yesterday in the health+behav newsgroup. I don't normally duplicate messages and seldom cross-post (except in responses), but someone suggested that I do this because I post frequently in the anecdotes group and often mention my two furbabies. Some of you have followed the story of Holly and Duffy. Holly is my black cat, the one we used to call "the black tornado" because she was so aggressive toward any other cat. Duffy is my blind cat (gray with white markings), adopted several months ago and integrated into an environment with one thoroughly spoiled cat. The two now get along beautifully, and I usually find them in close proximity with each other. When I wake up in the morning, I often find one cat sleeping on one side of me and the other cat on the other side. Duffy is constantly aware of Holly and follows her throughout the house. Duffy is truly remarkable. Some people have watched him play for several minutes without ever realizing that he is blind. That is particularly true when he is climbing, and that is one of the great joys of his life. He is like a little acrobat and can do maneuvers that would make Mary Lou Retton envious. You can see some new photos of him going through some of his "advanced moves" if you scroll down to the bottom of this site: http://tinyurl.com/8y56. First scroll toward the bottom (4th picture from the end), where you can see Duffy relaxing on top of the computer hutch. Some time ago, I found that he would easily climb up the "windows" of the hutch to the top. That part was easy for him, but he couldn't see to make his way back down and I was concerned that he might miss his footing. So I had a carpeted pole added to the side of the hutch, similar to one of the poles on his cat tree. He loves it, and he seems to be part cat-part squirrel-part bear as he descends. He will start at the top of the pole and start down head-first like a squirrel (shown in the photo called "Wow! The Amazing Duffy"), then he spins his body around (shown immediately above that photo on a pole at the cat tree, in a picture called "Go Duffy") and backs the rest of the way down like a bear. His claws go "scritch, scritch, scritch" all the way down as he backs and quickly releases his grip, then grabs again, then releases again, etc. until he reaches the floor. More recently, I noticed Duffy sometimes hanging down from the top of the hutch with only his hips and hind legs on the hutch and sometimes walking right on the very edge of the hutch. It is smooth wood, and I was afraid he would slip and fall (especially when in the "hanging-down" position) because he wouldn't have anything to grip. There are some sharp corners on the computer that he could hit if he fell, so we installed a carpeted 2" x 4" board along the front edge of the hutch to serve as a "safety rail." He checked out the new safety device almost as soon as it was in place. And what did he do?? -- well, he proceeded to walk right on top of it, sort of like a kid who "just has" to walk on a tree that has fallen over a river. So now he's still walking right on the edge but a few inches higher! However, I feel that it is much safer because now it's carpeted and Duffy can use those nice sharp claws to grip the carpet. The "safety rail" has become Duffy's balance beam. As I said, he's truly remarkable; and he's a delight to watch - a little gymnast. Now, let's not forget about Holly! She has made a wonderful adjustment from being "an only child" (a very spoiled and pampered only child) to sharing her space with Duffy - and enjoying it. Scroll up a couple of photos and you will see a picture of Holly on the mantle (posing nicely in front of one of my own paintings). She is solid black with a glorious, glossy fur coat and gorgeous golden/orange eyes. I hear her making a "moaning" noise every evening, and I will look up to see her bringing a little red leather mouse to me as a gift. This has been going on for several months, and it is always the same little red leather mouse - which is now showing definite signs of wear. Her favorite pastime is walking in front of the computer monitor or sitting on the computer mouse. In fact, she seems to be convinced that her biggest function in life is to position herself right in front of the monitor, with a "close second" job being her skills at dumping my papers onto the floor, one-by-one. -- MaryL (take out the litter to reply) Photos of Holly and Duffy: http://tinyurl.com/8y54 (introducing Duffy to Holly) http://tinyurl.com/8y56 (Duffy and Holly "settle in") |
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"Stacey" wrote in message ... Hi Mary! I was thinking about Duffy the other day, (although I couldn't remember his name, I was thinking about the blind cat), so great to see the update! He is quite amazing, isn't he? That one where his two front legs are hanging over... I wonder, is that how he gets down, sort of drops his front legs till he hits something? And also, when he and Holly play, does Duffy still do that lay-the-ears-back while staring at each other move? Thanks for the piccies! Stacey Hi Stacey, Thanks for the message. Duffy does a variation of the legs-hanging-down when he wants to get down. He will often do that and feel around with one of his legs until it touches something. However, he also does it just to play -- and then will sometimes twist himself onto his back, shift his body up onto the flat part of the surface, and kick his legs up into the air while twisting back and forth. He makes these cute little "myop-myo" sounds while he plays. When he uses a pole to get down, he always starts down head-first, then swings his body around and backs down (as you can see in a couple of the photos toward the end of the new group). Holly and Duffy do sometimes "stare" each other down. Very often, though, I will see Duffy head his body toward Holly even when she isn't paying attention to him, shift his hips back and forth (and I will know he is about to pounce), then jump on her. Depending on how Holly feels about it at the moment, they may play or may briefly tussle or Holly may just extricate herself and take off. Duffy will often scramble after her. He always seems to be completely aware of where she is. One rather endearing type of playtime is that they will sometimes lie on the floor facing each other and play a game with their paws going in circles around each other, sort of like the children's game of "patty-cake." I have some of it on video tape, and it's really charming. MaryL (take out the litter to reply) |
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