val2525
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Post by val2525 on Jul 11, 2017 7:29:14 GMT
Mine could care less about inspecting the groceries. The thrift store purchases, however, are a different matter. Both cats check them out, and if I don't watch her, Trixie will manage to get stuff out of a bag and then jump and roll in the pile like kids do with piles of leaves.
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Post by titus730 on Jul 11, 2017 14:26:59 GMT
My Greyladdie was a grocery inspector. And would be gnawing on the celery leaves if my back was turned.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 11, 2017 18:43:47 GMT
Let me take this opportunity of a lull in the cat tales to mention a few of the things I love about cats. There's no one else I can share this with. I love how cats run, kind of bouncy. Not when they're scared and trying to get away, but that little jog they do when they're in a hurry. I love how they look pointedly at my hands, then into my eyes, clearly saying, "Your hands are empty and idle, why aren't they patting me?" I love how they inspect the groceries as I'm putting them away, and have to look in every bag or box I open. My dad's cat Bruce had to look into his dry food box every morning, even though it was always the same box with the same stuff in it. They really are wonderful creatures. They are so intelligent and curious. It seems as though they just want to talk to you and tell you something. Though some cats might want to tell you how they have been watching you and you are doing it all wrong LOL. The seems like they have that type of attitude sometimes, as if they own you and are inspecting how well you are doing your job creating the right household for them to enjoy. I also love how they run, my last cat didn't bend his legs and he sort of galloped down the hallway which sounded loud for a cat. That was something weird about him that I loved, he was like a freight train running, not an ounce of grace unlike most other cats I have had.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 12, 2017 0:25:29 GMT
Yes, the thrift store bags are quite popular around here. Now if I crinkle a plastic bag, they run in terror, but it is OK if they make noise with it.
Quincy is a strawberry sniffer. If I sit the grocery bags on the floor, he'll find the one with the strawberries in it and root them out. He will also gnaw at pineapple tops.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 12, 2017 11:45:32 GMT
I also love how they run, my last cat didn't bend his legs and he sort of galloped down the hallway which sounded loud for a cat. That was something weird about him that I loved, he was like a freight train running, not an ounce of grace unlike most other cats I have had. I doubt I'm the only one who can tell the sound of their cats' footsteps apart, lol. Many's the time I've thought, "Oh no, it's Lamington, he heard the fridge open." Kewpie has a distinct tick-tick-tick noise on tiles because she doesn't chomp her nails off. She never learnt to because her first owner clipped them. Or maybe she's just lazy. That could be it. And when she runs she takes short steps and bounces. Since she's so chunky she looks like a fat lady running in heels. I think part of what I find funny is, Why are they running? I get why they run when they hear the fridge open, or me come home, or me rustle plastic, but I don't get it when there's no external stimulus. Did they just think, "I must get to the dry food or I'll starve to death!"
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kritter
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Post by kritter on Jul 12, 2017 18:55:21 GMT
All my cats are pretty great but the most amazing ones are the 3 blind ones.
Lilly is still in the foster bedroom by herself but has figured out what toys are for and has mastered the trackball. She has one in her bedroom and one in the hall that she shares with Sabrina. Sometimes late at night when I am reading with Kenya I hear her flying the ball around the trackball in the hall. I know it is her because Sabrina just scratches on the cardboard pad. She is not a trackball player.
Lucy and Dixie couldn't be more at home in the house if they had eyes. Dixie always knows where I am going and gets there before I do. Her goal in life is to slip through the hall door and explore the rest of the house and she is relentless in trying to sneak through with me. She loves to chase any of the other cats that will join in her reindeer games. Apparently she is expecting some mail because every time she hears the mailman put mail down the slot by the front door, she is there. Both she and Lucy are avid trackball players.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 19, 2017 3:54:00 GMT
Here's something infuriatingly lovable: cat time.
As in, Yes, I will get up and move, but first I have to YYAAAAWN, then STREEEEETCH my back, then STREEEEETCH my left back leg, then STTTTRREEEEEETCH my right back leg...and then have a sit-down to rest from all that.
Or coming in a door you want to close...rubby, rubby, rubby, look at the hooman, rubby, rubby, rubby, stick tail in door jamb so she can't shut me out, meow, look at hooman, meow again, turn in circle, rubby, rubby, rubby...
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Jul 19, 2017 4:23:57 GMT
I have a large bag hanging on the doorknob in the eBay room. It's for the sticky tapes off of shipping envelopes, paper trash from where I cut out the shipping labels, etc. When I shut the door to that room at night, I put the bag in the floor. As soon as I open up the bedroom in the mornings, Trixie runs in and dives into the bag and starts rooting around in it, looking for the tape strips from the shipping envelopes. She's in over halfway, tossing stuff out of the bag until she gets what she wants. It's hilarious. Now, though, I grab the bag really fast and put it back on the door before she can get in it, since I don't want her eating the strips.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 20, 2017 10:28:54 GMT
Vets are dumb sometimes. I really like this vet but she wouldn't let me do the wrangling today with Bubby. So she deserved the two scratches and the near-bite, didn't she?
I mean, who turns a cat over on its back to look at its bum? If I'd been allowed to, I would have clamped my elbow over Bubby's front half while she was standing up, then lifted her tail while saying, "What's this? Is this your tail?" She's very protective of her tail but she'll let me touch it if I say something about it.
When it came to injection time the vet, scarred and sorry for herself, wanted to wrap Bubs in a towel and call in the assistant. I said, "No, she'll be fine with me, you complimented my handling last time." (I credit my powerful scruffing skills to the regular flea poison wrassles we hold here.)
And of course it was fine. She flinched and yowled at the first shot but took the second without a murmur. Then she was lovely all the way home, even though I stopped at the shops. When I got back from the cake shop an old guy was talking to her through the passenger-side window. She didn't know what to think of that at all, but she told me all about it as we drove away.
The thing is, she's an adventurous cat. On the way to the vet she carries on, even with Feliway, but afterwards she settles down and takes a keen interest in what she can see out the windows. After the horror of the vet, I suppose she thinks that we couldn't possibly be going anywhere worse, so she lets her curiosity take over.
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Post by chapeaunoir on Jul 20, 2017 18:25:01 GMT
Last night, in the middle of the night, our two began chasing each other across the bed. I was asleep when this 8+ lb missile suddenly caroomed off my midsection, with another one afterwards. They ran several laps over the bed, chasing each other and slamming over us. I was getting to the end of my rope with this, when they slowed down and started trying to climb under the covers, pawing away at them (they were over my face), sticking their paws in my face, etc., doing that cat box digging motion. They finally settled down. Consequently, I'm a bit sleepy today.
Loudmouth Cassie lost her meow yesterday but finally found it again last night. She tends to meow every time she changes position when she's sleeping, like she's announcing the event "I'm turning around now." "I will now point east sou'east." "My paws will now be crossed." She doesn't do that unless we're there, so on top of all of this chasing around she was proclaiming her position changes.
ZZZZZZZZzzzzzzz...
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Post by Deleted on Jul 21, 2017 3:32:22 GMT
Last night, in the middle of the night, our two began chasing each other across the bed. I was asleep when this 8+ lb missile suddenly caroomed off my midsection, with another one afterwards. They ran several laps over the bed, chasing each other and slamming over us. I was getting to the end of my rope with this, when they slowed down and started trying to climb under the covers, pawing away at them (they were over my face), sticking their paws in my face, etc., doing that cat box digging motion. They finally settled down. Consequently, I'm a bit sleepy today. Loudmouth Cassie lost her meow yesterday but finally found it again last night. She tends to meow every time she changes position when she's sleeping, like she's announcing the event "I'm turning around now." "I will now point east sou'east." "My paws will now be crossed." She doesn't do that unless we're there, so on top of all of this chasing around she was proclaiming her position changes. ZZZZZZZZzzzzzzz... Well, you know, Chap, when the mood takes you, you gotta go with it. lol. The only two of mine that would skirmish don't sleep on the bed. Plus they like to have a little pre-dinner skirmish. I've never worked out what it's about because they do it when my back is turned, doling out the food.
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kritter
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Post by kritter on Jul 21, 2017 16:00:22 GMT
The Missy family gets along for the most part although there have been isolated incidents and Dori is always involved.
This morning I caught the tale end of an issue. Tanji had Dori backed into a corner and he was definitely pissed about something. After telling Tanji to back off about eleventy hundred times, I finally went in and distracted Tanji long enough for Dori to slink out of the corner. Tanji doesn't carry a grudge so they are now sleeping about 2 feet apart.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 24, 2017 4:25:59 GMT
So our little black outdoor cat, Ernie, doesn't appear to want to be an outdoor cat anymore. He wants to be inside. But Simon, my beige kitty, doesn't want him inside. Simon is on self appointed guard duty that consists of staring at the door to make sure Ernie doesn't cross the threshold.
Now and then I'll just leave the door completely open for the fresh air. Ernie's got this place figured out. He'll make a dash in here and run to my bedroom and jump on the bed, curl up and act like he's been there all night. It's so bizarre. He gets tossed ( gently ) back outside. His new trick is to sneak in when DH walks in. I fell asleep the other night on the sofa and woke up during the night with Ernie right next to me. I asked him what he was doing and he seemed to hunker down even more and closed his eyes. Simon was locked in the back bedroom/toy hauler area.
Not sure what to do with this little guy. He's set up pretty well in the shop, but he wants in the house.
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Jul 24, 2017 5:50:35 GMT
Let him in and tell Simon to suck it up and deal with it.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 24, 2017 15:02:57 GMT
Simon doesn't suck anything up. He's the little prince. haha
He sounds like someone is killing him when Ernie walks up to the door. And then poor Spencer (my former feral turned sweetie with a little cat nip) gets smacked around by Simon when he walks in the door. Spencer gets along with Ernie, so Simon gets mad.
Such drama.
I'm scared that Simon will spray if I let Ernie in.
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kritter
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Post by kritter on Jul 24, 2017 16:37:24 GMT
I brought Gracie in from the cat pen yesterday because her nose is being bitten off her face by mosquitoes.
Dorie picks on Gracie when she is with the Missy family so I put her in the two bedroom area with Lily and Sabrina. Apparently Sabrina is all miffed about the intrusion because she stayed in her bedroom closet all day and when she came out and saw me cleaning the litter box, she ducked back into the closet.
Pffftttt, stay in the closet, Sabrina. When you get a job and start ordering some Purina One and Tidy Cat, you will have a say in whether you get single accommodations or share. Gracie didn't even bother Sabrina because she slept on a pillow on the bed all day.
ETA: Now that I think about Sabrina is totally out of luck on single accommodations because I now have to share my bedroom with Kenya so if anybody is going to have their own space in this house, it will be me.
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Aug 28, 2017 3:32:42 GMT
Hootie was laying on the desk on the cat blanket and wouldn't let Trixie get up on the desk. I suggested she jump off the cat tree (it's next to the desk), step over and hop up in my lap and I'd pet her. I even pointed to the floor and then my lap. Dang if that isn't exactly what she did. Hootie glared at her. She just purred. I petted both of them. I'm not stupid.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 28, 2017 4:54:00 GMT
Sounds like Trixie's not stupid either, Val.
It's like I've always said - they understand when they want to,
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Post by Deleted on Aug 28, 2017 16:21:32 GMT
Cats and butter. I'm eating toast or a waffle and they all gather round. I put a little bit of butter on my fingertip and offer it up. They make a gagging/retching face and then proceed to lick my finger. Does anyone else eat anything if the smell makes you gag?
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Post by Desire on Aug 28, 2017 18:19:36 GMT
One cat we had that passed away several years ago loved any kind of bag that he could crawl into. He was a huge orange tabby cat. One day I got home with groceries and had several of the brown paper grocery bags with handles on them. I was in a rush and was taking things out onto the counter and just flinging the open bags onto the floor to deal with them later.
Anyway, Boss started with the bags, in and out, pushing them around, etc. I went into the family room that connects to the kitchen with a step-down to check my computer before finishing up. Then I heard this loud tearing sound, figured he was tearing up one of the bags, no problem. The next thing I look up and this cat comes flying by at top speed right over the step down with the bag attached onto him. He somehow had gotten his head into the handle of the bag and must have torn the bag apart trying to get it off.
It looked just like a cape on him - picture this big head of a cat with the handle of the brown paper bag around his neck and a large piece of the brown paper bag covering his back. He somehow managed to tear the bag into a triangle cape shape, that's all I could think of when I saw him. He landed into the family room then stared running around like crazy while the piece of brown bag was still on his back. He looked hilarious when he stopped and just stared at me while I was just staring at him. He flipped over a few times then ran off with the bag still on him - he eventually got the bag off his head by himself. I wished I had grabbed my camera!
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Aug 28, 2017 18:38:29 GMT
OMG Hootie did that too,but with a plastic grocery bag. Looked like a scared superhero! He won't go near a plastic bag now.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 29, 2017 12:42:30 GMT
OMG Hootie did that too,but with a plastic grocery bag. Looked like a scared superhero! He won't go near a plastic bag now. Lamington's the same - has never gone near a plastic bag since he got his head through the handle and couldn't get if off. As for the butter - mine salivate at the sight. Well Bubby did and Lydia does. Kewpie will even eat mashed potato if it's got enough butter in it.
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Sept 14, 2017 5:21:56 GMT
This last road trip, I put one of the back seats down so the cats could go into the very back of the car (trunk) if they wanted to. The newer seats are curved on the bottom and the back, so when you put the back seats down it makes a nice little cave. As soon as I put Trixie in the car, she hightailed it to the back and discovered the "cave". A little later I hear this squeek and look in the rearview mirror and Hootie is standing on the seat that Trixie is under. Every time he walks on it, she squeeks. I managed to tell him to stop in between laughing at them both. Trixie figured out if she'd move just a little more to the front she wouldn't get squished when Hootie stepped on her.
On day 2, I put Hootie in the car first and took the carrier back to get Trixie. I put her in the car and she hightails it to the "cave"... and discovers Hootie is already there. She was not happy. She ended up in the front passenger floorboard keeping me company. Hootie wandered out to use the litter box and Trixie hightailed it to the cave. Hootie goes back to the cave and glared at Trixie for a bit and then gave up and came up front with me and snoozed in the cat bed.
Cats. Children. What's the difference some days?
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Post by Deleted on Sept 15, 2017 2:38:14 GMT
I've done it with no problems but I feel I ought to say: you know they're not supposed to be loose in the car, right? The classic example of risk is them getting between your feet and the pedals so you can't break or whatever.
I once knew a woman who used to drive to the nightclub, get riotously drunk, then go and sleep it off in the boot of her car, getting in via the back seat as described by Val. She felt it was safer than sleeping somewhere visible like the back seat.
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Sept 15, 2017 3:57:58 GMT
I've done it with no problems but I feel I ought to say: you know they're not supposed to be loose in the car, right? The classic example of risk is them getting between your feet and the pedals so you can't break or whatever. The kittehs don't get on the front driver side floorboard. They both tried it once, both got yelled at, and neither tries it now. They don't like being yelled at They also know not to try to get in my lap when I'm driving. They're good little travelers. I've pulled over before and put them in the carrier if we were getting into some really bad traffic, though.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 26, 2017 21:50:28 GMT
I read the other day that if human faces were the same size as they are now, but with the features scaled as a cat's are, our eyes (both together) would be eight inches wide.
This explains why a limpid gaze from a cat melts my heart, while a limpid gaze from me leaves them entirely unmoved.
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Nov 25, 2017 22:15:25 GMT
User review of a cat tree on Petco.com: My cats like it just fine, but I have to wedge it between a table and the window to keep it upright. It's fine with no cats on it, or two sleeping cats, one on each upper perch, but otherwise it tips over. This can be mildly amusing if one cat wakes and leaps down, but only to you. The second cat does not see the humor. It's okay for the really low price, but I wouldn't buy another one.
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kritter
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Post by kritter on Nov 25, 2017 22:18:33 GMT
the trees that we like should be going on sale soon. I have them marked for a markdown alert because I can't pass them up at the low price.
I looked at some trees that were 1/2 price at Pet Supplies Plus yesterday and they were really flimsy for the same price as the good ones will be.
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val2525
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Post by val2525 on Nov 25, 2017 22:29:46 GMT
I found 2 skinny ones at Petco that are on sale thru tonight. I can't decide if I should buy one of them or just get the cushioned cat window shelf. Obviously space here is limited but I think both cats might like the window seat since they've both gotten comfortable enough to look out the window here. Hootie never really got excited over the cat tree. The window seat would be used by both cats. I could always wait for the good ones to go on sale and then put it in the storage unit and assemble it when I get in an apartment.
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Post by titus730 on Nov 26, 2017 0:07:36 GMT
Here's a vote for the window seat.
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