It's no surprise that the kitties have suffered since J's arrival. They are still petted, cooed over and fed copious amounts, but the raw time they spend with Mom and Dad is WAY down.
Tonight I realized that observing J and seeing her learn can show me ways to love the kitties better, too. After all, I spend lots of time each day experimenting to see what J likes: a certain sitting position, a new toy, having her back or tummy rubbed a specific way.
I haven't done that with my cats in a LONG time -- just paid attention to how they react to new ways of being scratched, petted or talked to.
Mundane example. This evening I serendipitously discovered that my 14-year-old male cat loves to have the pads of his back paws spread apart and have the skin between the pads scratched.
Fourteen years I've owned this cat and his sister, and I never noticed this. Meanwhile, I notice new things about J hourly, it seems.
Why should they be afforded any less attention? Certainly they lag in terms of quantity, but with regard to quality they are deserving and unique creatures, just as J is. I'll certainly never understand them as deeply as I might another human being, but it was an important reminder to me today that they are just as...specific...as babies in terms of their idiosyncrasies, wants and needs.
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