We have two cats, Sam and Ellie, who are about two years older than Charlie. In general, they’re both great cats in their own ways. However, as litter mates, they couldn’t be more different. Sam is a lover and a snuggler. And, once she warmed up to Charlie, he became her best bud.

Ellie, on the other hand, is a very smart, princess kitty who acts as if all other creatures are beneath her, and likes others only if they have something to offer her.  She is very sweet to my husband and me, but since Charlie offered her nothing, he needed to go. When Ellie realized that Charlie wasn’t leaving, she decided to give Charlie his first lesson in who’s boss.

The mobile home we were renting at the time had an additional room about eight feet wide that ran about 55 feet along the length of one side. About ten feet from the far end of the room was a workbench with a full sheet of plywood along the back of it. The workbench was perpendicular to one of the side walls, making a sort of room divider out of it.  The rest of the room was just a long, open, empty space where we kept Charlie’s kennel.

A couple of days after we first brought Charlie home, Ellie and he were both at the opposite end of the room from the workbench, with Charlie trying to get a good smell of her.  Ellie didn’t want any part of that, and immediately decided to get Charlie to chase her, and so ran off really quickly. Charlie, of course, followed in hot pursuit. I was yelling for him to stop, but I was no match for the excitement of chasing a cat.

About two feet from the workbench, Ellie jumped to escape him and landed on the top of it. Charlie didn’t realize that Ellie had jumped up, and he kept running… smack into the back of the workbench.  Ellie sat on the top shelf of the workbench, just above where Charlie was standing, shaking his head. And I swear she was laughing and looking smug.

Ever since that moment, it’s been Game on! When Ellie thinks we aren’t watching, she will walk by Charlie, swishing her tail so that he gets a good whiff of her. Then she’s off, with him right behind her. She usually does this outside these days, and either runs under the car, our jumps on top of it. But he’s on to her, and rarely hits anything. And quite frequently, she doesn’t have to do anything but walk within smelling distance, and he’s after her. It’s kind of funny to watch, but they both get chastised when we witness one antagonizing the other.

After nine years together, they’ve gotten older and accepted the existence of each other. However, I do recommend that if you’re bringing home a blind dog to a house with a cat, make sure the feline isn’t a sadistic diva intent on running him into things.