Cat Views

A much anticipated long summer vacation included a camping trip to Yellowstone National Park was about to begin. With several children and a very large cat in tow, we packed our supplies in the old station wagon.

We arrived at Yellowstone Park anxious to explore. The camp was set up and the Wicker Pet Crate Cabinet placed in the car, and off we went.

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When my sister met her husband, they were both young singles sharing apartments with their respective cats. Their big concern was whether or not their cats would be compatible. After much growling and hissing, the cats came to terms and decided they liked each other. Whenever they were together they played and played and had a really good time.A bridal shower was given for my sister by her friends (many of them are cat lovers). After opening her gifts, several large packages were still sitting on the floor. When she questioned someone about them, they brought them over to her. What a surprise when she opened them! She started giggling before revealing the contents. There was a cat tree, a kitty condo, and hand painted feeding bowls! Her friends had decided that her cat needed a bridal shower too.

For the ultimate relaxation, I like to lie in the hammock I have in my backyard. I have it tied between two trees so I can look up and watch the birds build nests or just watch clouds pass through the sky. I can let my mind wander after a long day at work, bask in the sunshine, and even fall asleep if I want! Every time I go on vacation, I wish I had a hammock to bring with me so I could have that same sense of relaxation on the beaches of Hawaii or the shores of Lake Tahoe.

Cats also like to lounge around, watch birds, and bask in the sun. Why not get your cat a hammock of his own? There are hammock-style cat beds that can provide the ultimate luxury for your cat. Since they’re freestanding, cat hammocks can be placed anywhere in your home and don’t need to be tied between two objects, like mine. But like a hammock for people, a cat hammock molds naturally to your cat’s shape and weight, providing warmth, comfort and security. Since it is raised and suspended, it also gives your cat something to jump in and out of instead of just climbing into, like a regular bed.

My parents had a big orange cat who loved to travel. She liked gas stations, capitol buildings, Christmas lights and camping. One weekend they took off to go camping near the river. The cat was excited when she saw the tent and goodies being loaded in the car. They took off, arrived at the site and started to unpack. Oops! My dad had forgotten to pack the tent poles. Well, that meant a return to home. The cat was furious with him. Growling, spitting and hissing at him all the way home. After arriving home, she went in to her cat condo and ignored him. She would spit at him whenever she saw him for the rest of the weekend. By Monday, her snit was over and she was hoping for another camping trip.

My cat had a bad habit of sitting behind my mom when she was working in the kitchen. You never knew when she was there. One morning, my mom took a step back and caught the cat’s leg with the heel of her shoe. The cat screeched in pain and we rushed her to the vet thinking it might be broken. It was just bruised. The vet told the cat she needed to soak the leg, and stay off of it as much as possible. We took her home and she cooperated fully. She let us soak her leg, and then we placed her in my dad’s favorite chair (since it was also her favorite).The cat got up to eat, and while she was eating my dad came home and sat down in the chair. He had no knowledge as to what had happened earlier in the day. When the cat came back in the room and saw my dad in the chair, she stamped her feet (including the bruised leg) and growled and spit at him. After which, she immediately flew into her cat condo to continue her tantrum. Much hissing and growling was coming from the condo so my dad went to placate her. Of course, her leg was very sore when he retrieved her so he carefully placed her back in the chair where she promptly went to sleep

Animals can be as funny and a quirky as humans. If you take the time to get to know them, you know they all have distinct personalities. Some have very definite prejudices towards people and foods. My daughter inherited two gorgeous chows when she got married. She had two middle aged to elderly cats.

The female cat is rather docile but the male will stand against people or animals if he thinks his territory is threatened. The female chow was the aggressive one while the male was pretty laid back and would only sometimes follow her lead. Whenever the front doorbell would ring, the female dog (Sasha) would chase the female cat (Sugar) down the hall and into the bedroom. One day, Sasha mistakenly chased the male cat (Chess) down the hall, and reaching the bedroom door; he turned and stared her down. She was so surprised when he stood up to her; she actually backed her way down the hall. When she left, he went into the room and curled up on the top of his cat condo to keep an eye on things.

Many cat owners become very frustrated with their cats when they turn the attention of their claws to the furniture or the curtains. But one of the best ways to prevent this behavior is to understand why a cat scratches in the first place. To that end, owners should realize that scratching is a natural instinct for cats, as is nesting. That’s why a traditional scratching post might not always deter cats completely from their furniture scratching ways.

In order to completely eliminate this behavior in undesirable places, cat owners need the ultimate cat scratcher. This allows cats to nest and snuggle down while scratching. These often offer multiple sides scratching, not just one. So no matter what position you cat takes, his paws will always be in the direct vicinity of some area of the scratching post. By tailoring to this cat behavior, many owners can successfully save their furniture without resorting to extreme measures.

My grandson has a very acrobatic cat. She loves her Cat Tree House and spends a great deal of time performing regularly in it. One of her favorite tricks is to swing down from layer to layer and hanging over the edge. One day she went too far and found herself caught between the cat tree and the wall. Finally she extricated herself and decided playing on the floor next to it with her tail was safer but she soon got bored with that and was back in her cat tree. Once again she was entertaining us with her antics by swinging from layer to layer like a monkey. She really loves her cat tree!

We were having beautiful fall days; warm and sunny with gentle breezes. Our young cat, Sheba loved spending her time out in the enclosed patio. We purchased a new feeder for her, an Oval Double Diner. We purchased this feeder to put out on the patio since she was spending her days out there. After filling it with kibble we set it out on the patio to Sheba’s delight. The kibble was rapidly disappearing on a daily basis and we were puzzled by the fact that so much of the kibble was gone and yet Sheba wasn’t putting on any weight. After a week of constantly refilling her bowl, my husband came up with the idea of setting up the video camera to find out where the kibble was going. It worked! When we viewed the image on the video, we couldn’t believe what we captured! There was a mouse running as fast as it could with kibble in its mouth and Sheba chasing after it! The mystery was solved. The mouse hole was located and blocked. Her kibble was safe!

There once was a cat named Axelrod
Who really did love his Kittypod
In it he would lounge for days
There’s no hope of mending his ways
Ask him to come out and play
With him it was always “no way”
Comfy and snug in his condo mod
Axelrod really did love his Kittypod!