Alpha Elvis

Our cat Sumi has always been a badass. He aggresses any feline interloper off the property, walks with swagger, supervises chickens while they free range, and brings us rodents and birds in droves to express his love. Enter Elvis at the beginning of the year.

We kept the cats separated at first, and followed all protocols regarding their integration. It seemed to go OK until Elvis figured out that hunting Sumi was great fun. It doesn’t happen constantly (but daily), and we are mindful, but it’s a huge hassle. We are fortunate that the house layout accommodates keeping them apart when necessary. The down side is this isolates Elvis.

Sumi tends to his outdoor domaine, despite coyotes, from 8am to 4pmish. Sumi can levitate up a fir tree in half a second, really. Elvis has the run of the house during this time. After Sumi comes in we have to do catagment until we go to bed. Some evening are better than others depending on how territorial Elvis is feeling.

Ideally, Elvis would be in a one-cat household, as an indoor only cat. We have doubts about his ability to defend himself outdoors against predators due to what seems like his inadequate vision, and having been an indoor kitty for at least the last 3+ years, and possibly much longer. He is sweet with us, and just an asshole to Sumi. If I could find the ideal forever home for Elvis, indoors only, where he’d be boss cat, I’d seriously consider that shift in his and our lives.

This is a very hard place for me to arrive at both because I knew Elvis would eventually be part of our household when I adopted him for mom, and because I want him to find the perfect family, and that’s a hard thing for a control freak (me) to make happen.