One of the special things about this year’s BlogPaws conference in Kansas City was the opportunity for Cupcake and her littermate Chanel to be together again. The sisters have not been together since June of last year, when Chanel and her brothers went off to the adoption center, while Cupcake, then named Dior, waited to fly down and join our family. Chanel ended up coming back from the adoption center to make a permanent home with Random Felines, but by then, Cupcake was living in Florida.
Cats don’t remember their family members when they are separated for a period of time. Just a trip to the vet is enough for some cats to not be able to recognize longtime companions because it disrupts their familiar community scent. So it wasn’t surprising that Cupcake was cautious about the unfamiliar tuxedo cat already in the hotel room when she arrived.
Both Cupcake and Chanel were curious about each other, but Chanel was more confident and interested in playing. Cupcake was wary hissed if the unfamiliar cat made playful overtures toward her.
Even though she wasn’t ready to play, Cupcake was interested in whatever Chanel was playing with. This led to a cycle of Cupcake sneaking closer, Chanel noticing, Cupcake hissing and retreating, and then the cycle would start again. The first night in the hotel room wasn’t restful for anyone, human or tuxedo cat.
Cupcake is accustomed to getting her way in all things, because all of the cats in our house back off when she wants something. What Cupcake clearly wanted was for Chanel to vanish, and Chanel wasn’t doing that.
Over time, the sisters would get closer to each other before Cupcake would hiss. When in the hotel room where she felt relaxed, Cupcake would have relaxed or even happy body language, but she would still hiss. It almost seemed like it had become a habit. See the tuxedo cat. Hiss.
Slowly there was more approaching and a little less hissing.
Then Cupcake made the mistake of climbing into Chanel’s stroller while we were in the hotel’s mezzanine.
Cupcake doesn’t have a stroller, and it looked like an interesting place to hang out. Chanel approached the stroller to go back in and found her sister already inside. Cupcake hissed and swatted at Chanel, defending her position in her sister’s stroller.
And Chanel hissed right back, telling Cupcake in no uncertain terms that she needed to stop being such a princess and get out of Chanel’s stroller.
The humans were sure to deescalate that situation before it got too much further out of hand.
The last full day of the visit, the sisters were getting very near each other. Chanel wanted so much to play, but Cupcake still wasn’t sure.
Cupcake would creep closer, intermittently hissing, but her body language was displaying curiosity and playfulness. Chanel decided to ignore her sibling’s hissing when the chance to play presented itself.
Cupcake got into the spirit of it a bit, pouncing out from behind the curtains at Chanel, still periodically hissing.
The morning we had to leave, both tuxedo girls chased each other all through the hotel room. After five days, almost all of the hissing had stopped, and the fun had finally gotten started!
After racing around like crazy kittens, Chanel and Cupcake stretched out on the carpet to rest together. Finally, there was peace and no hissing. Just two sisters, hanging out together in a hotel room together.
Sadly, the fun had to end that morning, because Chanel had to start the long trip home to Ohio, and Cupcake had a flight to catch to Florida. When the humans rolled the bellman cart into the hotel room, both sisters came out together to explore it.
Then it was time to say goodbye. Chanel and her human got on the road back to her home. Cupcake and her human loaded into the shuttle to the airport for their flight home a short time later.
We know someone is going to ask, but we don’t know if the two tuxedos will be together again or not. The next BlogPaws conference is supposed to be in Florida sometime next year, so there’s a good chance Cupcake will attend.
Whether they visit again or not, Chanel and Cupcake will always be sisters. And their humans will always remember their tuxedo cat reunion in Kansas City.
