The changes in his life revolve around the adoption of two suite-mates, Catso and Thomas. Those two adoptions took place within a week of one another, and, since then, there seems to be a restructuring of the pecking order taking place. The FIV+ suite is normally our calmest, but there have been at least a couple of genuine fights as some residents try to figure out their new places in the hierarchy. To the best of my knowledge, Jeremiah hasn’t taken part in any of these skirmishes. I don’t think he needs to; none of the other cats seem to mess with him. He isn’t a mean or intimidating cat, but he does manage to convey an aura of quiet power.
Jeremiah continues to spend a lot of his time in the solarium connected to his suite (see photo above). It really is funny to see how such a big cat can clamber through what would appear to be slightly too narrow a plexiglass tube, but he hasn’t gotten stuck yet! His personality appears to change once he’s in the solarium. In his suite, surrounded by the other cats, he’s very reserved and dignified. But get him by himself in the solarium, and he comes running up to you to ask for attention. You can make Jeremiah supremely happy just by sitting on the solarium floor; if you do, he’ll rub endlessly against you, purring madly. Sometimes he’ll throw himself on the floor in front of you and demand a good scratch on either side of his neck; he’ll even climb into your lap.
When not in the solarium or eating, Jeremiah prefers to spend time in “The Basket”. Some time ago, we placed a large wicker basket in his suite, and of course it’s always lined with comfortable material just right for a cat nap. Jeremiah has apparently decided that he needs to occupy it whenever he’s in his suite, which is a bit of a problem because a number of his suite-mates find The Basket ideal for their own sleeping purposes. Jeremiah is really quite clever in his approach to this difficulty.
If another cat is sleeping in The Basket, he won’t attack or disturb them, but he will wait nearby, perhaps on top of a crate or in a cubbyhole. He might doze, but he won’t sleep. The instant the other cat gets out of The Basket, he happily climbs back in and swiftly settles down for a nap, ’kneading’ the material lining and purring. I have seen him do this on three separate occasions now, when Thomas, Gus, and Jack had been sleeping in ’his’ place. So fond of The Basket is Jeremiah that people will sometimes pick it up with him in it when he needs to be moved (this usually happens once a week, when his suite is being given a thorough cleaning).
Enjoy the summer! I know Jeremiah will. As always, thank you for helping us to keep Jeremiah healthy, well-fed, and comfortable!