YinYang puts Benny the Cat through his initiation

Benny and Yinnie - will they give peace a chance?

Benny and YinYang – will they give peace a chance?

Benny the Cat and YinYang have been getting acquainted. This morning I sat to meditate and Benny was asleep in his chair, Yin on the bed.  A half hour in, I hear a MRRROW!!!! and jump up to see a real puffed up Yinnie has Ben on his back as she hisses and spits and swipes at him.  I grab her by the scruff of her neck and set her on the back porch. I tell Benny it’s ok and he jumps back in his chair. I talk to YinYang through the open door and she settles down.  I let her in and she runs to the bedroom, I follow her, everyone’s back to sleep. An hour later, Yin is asleep and Benny is gone. An hour later he shows up at the bf’s house a block away for breakfast, carrying his bindle stick…

We drive Benny back to my place and set him in front of the food.  He takes a few nibbles, then we run to the beach for a surf check. I also stop in at Wuesthoff Reference Lab for blood work, something I do a few times a year just to confirm my well being.  If my numbers get out of line, that means I need to adjust what I eat. So far, so good.

We arrive back at the bf’s house and surprise — who’s there? — Benny!  We figure we should only feed him at one place, so I scoop him up and drive him back home.  He doesn’t mind the car. I take him inside and give him a can of food. He eats half of it before YinYang walks into the dining room and hisses.  I take her right to the bedroom and by the time I get back, he’s gone again.

In Yinnie’s defense, the first time she met Benny, he charged at her and now she doesn’t trust him. YinYang appeared as a kitten in 2000, sleeping on the guest bed in the side of the house I seldom went in. She saw me, got up, walked to the kitchen, ate, drank water, then walked out the cat door. I have no idea how long she lived there. Being a street cat and having raised herself, I can’t blame her for feeling threatened. But she also has to know Benny is allowed there and she’s not allowed to throw a fit. We’re all entitled to peaceful enjoyment.

Benny showed up at the bf’s door at Christmastime, very thin and scruffy. He fed him and flea treated him, had him vaccinated and fixed.  He’d been considering getting a dog, that’s how he attracted a pet. So we’ll see how long it takes Benny to show up around the corner. I’ll keep you posted.

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