Operation cat drop, complete.

I have to share the story of dropping off Oscar yesterday...Robin came to my house early and helped me pack up kitty, the food, the litter/box, and Hadley.  We made good time on the beautiful drive to Bellingham (our old college stomping grounds) and were greeted by an ecstatic Chris (Robin's brother) who was fully prepared for Oscar's arrival.

As we open the cat carrier to let Oscar sniff around we get to talking about how Chris is going to integrate Oscar with his existing cat, Taffy. This is when I notice the baby gates...Chris had masterminded a whole plan to introduce the cats to eachother using the gates to partition off parts of the house and then alternating the cats' locations every few days for a week so they'd have plenty of time to become aware of eachother's presence. I'm thinking - can't we just let him out of the box and see how it goes?  Clearly, I am an amateur.

It gets better.  "Wow, Oscar's a big cat, how much do you feed him each day?"  Um...I feed him until he stops meowing??  Certain that this answer would not win my any points for cat owner of the year, I got the little cup out I use to measure his food.  I may have failed to mention that sometimes that cup is used two to three times a day, so sue me.  Chris proceeds to whip out his food scale (yes, food scale) to weigh the amount of food I've been feeding big fatty.  He then launches into the plan to slowly transition Oscar to Taffy's diet of organic wet food and figure out how the 107 grams of dry food I've been feeding him compares to 70 grams of wet food he feeds Taffy..and so on and so forth. 

I later confessed to Andy, I would've cold turkey'd that cat onto the wet food no questions asked. Nevermind the fact that husband of mine would never have approved organic wet cat food in the budget!

At this point I'm feeling like the worst cat mom on the planet.  BUT, I am very happy for Oscar's new home.  I know it is a better place for him.  And Chris, if you're reading this - we love you and are so grateful that you're going to take such good care of Oscar Juan Santiago Miguel....Spinks.  I just had to share this story, because it completely reassured me that Oscar is in the hands of The Cat Whisperer as we have started calling you at our house.

Back on Avalon Way, it was kinda fun to sleep with our bedroom door closed for the first time in five years (cat can open doors) and for me to be able to sleep without twenty extra pounds of cat on my abdomen was certainly a plus given my current state.  However, the house is quieter and feeling just a little empty. Oscar, you will be missed.