Ok, I’ll try this again. Apparently I did write, save and publish this once, but then it disappeared. Sigh. Technology is wonderful when it works.

So … As some may know, Leia was not enamored with Arthas when we brought him home. My sweet kitty was less than sweet with Arthas. If I’m going to anthropomorphize a bit, I’d say she was still in mourning for Jessie and was not happy about the new addition. Maybe she was worried about her place in the house, but really, I think she was just mad.

That first month was rough. We weren’t sure we were going to be able to keep Arthas and that tore me up because he is such a sweet dog. Well, he is a sweet dog with people. Given his background I get why he doesn’t like other dogs, but cats … my cats … well, he had to learn. Leia didn’t help but once she figured out he wasn’t going anywhere, and she wasn’t going anywhere, she decided he would love her. He would be her friend whether he liked it or not.

It started simply enough. Stalk the dog. Follow him from room to room, keeping a safe distance. Make him aware of you, and make sure he always knows you are there. Slowly, get closer. Just a little closer – enter the danger zone. Make noise every time you go by, but keep going by. Let him know you are there, but be there. Constantly.

Next came the toys. Leia claimed each and every toy Arthas played with as her own. Sleep on them, and play with them and make sure the next time he plays with that toy it smelled like cat.

Leia moved to hanging around the food and water bowls and Arthas started getting closer to her. Surprisingly, there was never a fight about food; they seemed to instinctively know that they would all get fed and it was not worth trying to claim more.

And finally, the other night, Leia won. Arthas does not like animals touching him. He gets a little freaked out by the cats brushing up against him, but he has learned not to respond if they pass by and brush against him. Mostly. We do still occasionally hear a growl, but that’s it. This, however, was different.

Leia fell asleep on Arthur’s foot. This may seem like no big deal, and indeed Leia has slept on every animal and human in this house at one point or another, but Arthas was different. But he let her sleep there. There was a little growl, but Leia didn’t move and Arthas didn’t move. It was lovely.

Leia was determined that if she could not get rid of Arthas, that he would love her. He would be her best friend. She is still working on it, but I think it is safe to say, she has pretty much won at this point. And that makes me very, very happy.