Cat Views

I’m so attached to my cat Lucille that I even promised her I would never get another feline as long as she was around. As it turns out, that was a bold-faced lie. I didn’t intend for it to happen, but a friend who works at the humane society described an orphaned kitten and I just had to have a look. Needless to say, Lucille had a cuddly new roommate within the week.

The introduction went better than expected; I learned that the older cat isn’t all that territorial. In fact, the cats have already started to clean each other and play just as though they were siblings. I found a creative cat playground online to help them bond even further. Shockingly, they were happy to share the climbing apparatus equally. My friends were surprised to find how well adjusted my cats had become in just a month’s time.

Some cats are very athletic and love to show off their ability. It is amazing how supple they are and what they are capable of! Our small kitten decided he was a “high flyer” at the age of 3 months. We lived in a second story apartment with casement type windows (they crank outward to open). Accidently we left one of the windows a little more ajar than usual. Our kitten was always in the window wanting to go out. Well, he seized the opportunity to squeeze out the small opening with as much force as he could muster and shot out of the window and dropped to the ground. In a panic we rushed down the stairs and out the door expecting to find our precious little kitten severely injured. To the contrary, our kitten was full of energy and delighted with himself for finding such a quick way to get outside. We watched our windows very carefully after that! As he grew older, he loved to jump and practiced jumping from the top of his cat tree while in the house. In the evenings when the boys were out tossing the football around he would jump up trying to catch it. His trip out of the window must have spurred him on to become a high jump athlete.

Some cats can be very ornery when they don’t get their own way and will retaliate in interesting ways! We were getting ready for a dinner party one evening and hurrying to set up the table before our guests arrived. A neighbor had come over early to help set up. The table linens, china and silver were all in place on the table. Candles and a floral centerpiece came next. All that was left was to fill and place the water goblets. In the meantime, my big cat, Alex, came in and jumped up on the table to investigate. My neighbor “shooed” him off the table which did not sit well with him, however, he did get down. She continued to work on the table by filling and placing goblets at the place settings. Once her task was completed, Alex came back in, and again jumped up on the table. He gave my neighbor a defiant look and proceeded to walk over, take his paw and overturn 3 glasses, jump down and disappear into his Kitty Condo. He was satisfied and we ended up redressing the table!

There once was a cat named Sue
She was a gorgeous Russian Blue
Very prim and proper she was
Everyone says that it is because
Petted and pampered beyond belief
Their only comment was “good grief”
Lounging in her kitty hammock so fine
Is where she spends her time

The sight of a litter box can be off-putting, especially in a small apartment where the furnishings are sparse. If a litter box stands out as one of the more prominent pieces of décor, you know you’re in trouble from an aesthetic standpoint. One might to choose to combat this problem by crowding the place with large, clunky pieces of furniture in an attempt to diminish and downplay the litter pan’s presence.

Fortunately, there’s a space-saving alternative that’s as pleasing to the eye as it is functional. Cat litter box furniture, especially cabinetry, represents a major leap forward in cat box design. For one thing, that smelly, often unsightly litter pan is contained totally out of sight in a cabinet. No longer would you need to worry about guests noticing it. If your cat doesn’t mind, there’s really no downside.

We were living in a garden apartment on the second floor, and kept a small box of toys for the neighborhood children to play with when they came over. There were various small toys including marbles in the box. Our cat, Sandy, loved to play with marbles and had some of her own that would occasionally get mixed in the toy box. The little boy next door was injured and had to play quietly so we took the box of toys over for him to use. The next day his mom heard a “thunk, thunk , thunk” sound coming from their stairwell. She went to investigate and saw our cat carefully sorting through the toys and picking out her marbles! She would then go down the stairs and pick them up and take them home where she would stash them in her kitty pod mini.

Louise was a small calico cat, and Wilson a sleek black handsome male. Together they produced four very lively kittens. Louise took very good care of her family and as the kittens got older they grew more and more active! One day they were especially rambunctious and she was getting tired of constantly running after one or the other of them. While chasing after them she spotted an open dresser drawer in the girl’s bedroom and proceeded to round up the kittens. One by one she would pick them up and jump up to put them in the open drawer. Once she had all the kittens corralled, she crawled into her “Cabra” Kitten Nest and let out a sigh. She knew they were contained at least for a little while!

A big, sleek black cat, appropriately named “Midnight”, rules his household consisting of two “mini-pin” dogs, two female cats, and of course, his human family. He loves to keep everyone in line! One thing he will step out of line for is anything peppermint flavored or smelling like mint. Whenever anyone visits with a purse, they are warned to watch out for him. He will get into the purse for gum or mint candy and is very clever about getting the purses open. Finally, his human family solved the problem! They bought him a special Maow Cat Feeder of his very own. When they served his dinner in his new bowl, they added a mint leaf. Now, he no longer attacks purses or pockets for chewing gum or mints. He has his very own supply!

My daughter has 2 elderly cats and a brand-new grandson. Her daughter and the baby stayed with her the first week after he was born. After they arrived, it became an interesting week. At first, the cats totally shunned my daughter! How dare she bring that interloper in! When they realized he wasn’t going to go away, little by little, they came around. Her female cat became interested in the baby. The male cat, however, was totally jealous. Whenever my daughter held the baby he would jump into her lap and squeeze himself in between her and the baby. He would eye the bassinet when she would go to put the baby down. Thank goodness he is no longer able to jump that high. The perfect solution was to buy him a Thermo-Kitty Cat Bed to use as his own bassinet where he could curl up whenever she put the baby in his. Both “babies” were able to nap at the same time in their respective bassinets and the jealousy abated!

Years ago when we traveled across the country by car taking our cat with us, things were certainly different. She didn’t travel in a carrier; she just rode in the car. The car was an old 4-door sedan with a box of dirt on the floor of the backseat for a litter box. Although the cat was leash-trained, she refused to go anywhere except in her litter box. Travelling today with a cat is a different story altogether! We now have cat carriers, Kitty a Go-Go litter box covers, room in the back of mini vans and SUVs to place the cat and travel items, even to include a cat bed.

Some cats adjust well to travel and enjoy it while others will yowl all the way (probably thinking it is a trip to the vet). Our cat loved travelling and was especially fond of gas stations. She always wanted to get out and walk around whenever we stopped for gasoline. Usually when we passed through a state capitol we would stop and visit. She would get out of the car on her leash and parade around the grounds looking very important to gain attention from visitors and maybe a state official.