Thought for the day - September 26th

Subject: Thought for the day - September 26th
From: katlaughing
Date: 25 Sep 99 - 11:54 PM

Cats regard people as warmblooded furniture.
- Jacquelyn Mitchard -

Subject: RE: Thought for the day - September 26th
From: catspaw49
Date: 26 Sep 99 - 12:11 AM

Oh my........gonna' leave this one alone!!!!

But it is so true......and for a lot of varying reasons. I'm never sure quite what they're thinking, but that has got to be one of their thoughts!

Spaw

Subject: RE: Thought for the day - September 26th
From: bseed(charleskratz)
Date: 26 Sep 99 - 03:34 AM

And as what do Kats regard people? --seed

Subject: RE: Thought for the day - September 26th
From: Cap't Bob
Date: 26 Sep 99 - 08:52 AM

CAT EXPERTS ~ We have one cat that takes dirty socks from the laundry room carries them across the basement floor, up the steps, and throughout the house. She then meows, drops the sock, and goes back for more. Is there any way to stop this type of behavior? Does she regard the socks as kittens? Closing the door doesn't work as she will try to tunnel under.

How many cats are toooo many?

Subject: RE: Thought for the day - September 26th
From: Jeri
Date: 26 Sep 99 - 09:16 AM

I don't know if I agree with the "warm-blooded furniture" simile. I think cats see people as servants. The job description includes providing a lap, as well as filling the food dish, opening doors and petting. Sometimes the servant receives a bonus (besides the obvious privilege of serving the cat) of what Linn the Bat Goddess would call an "L.D.G." (little dead guy) left in a conspicuous (read: "what the **** did I just step in/on") spot.

Subject: RE: Thought for the day - September 26th
From: katlaughing
Date: 26 Sep 99 - 10:26 AM

'Spaw...you turnin' chicken on us????

...seed: mmmmm...I'll have to think on that one & get back to you.*G*

Jeri, that's why my Birkenstock sandals are always by the bed, when I get up at night or in the morning first thing, to avoid that unpleasant mush under the bare foot!

Cap't. Bob, I think your cat thinks she's bringing you her bounty/kill. Does she meow in a weird way while she carries it up and places it before you? I had a cat that would do that with her toys. It was the same sound she'd make after catching a mouse or some such. She was quite proud of herself. If you really want it to stop, try putting all of the socks in a drawstring laundry bag or something like that. Then give her a catnip mouse or something and praise her when she plays with it.

Used to be I would've told you you can never have too many cats, but in my center-aged and wiser years, I gotta say it's hard to give them the attention I think they need or deserve and there can be a lot of "infighting" if you go over four or five, sometimes even less. We've consistently had 7-8 in the past ten years or so, and it has definitely been a challenge at times to keep the fur from flying. The problem usually crops up more when a new one is introduced or an old one passes on. Everyone is unsure of the pecking order at those times. Hope this helps.

BTW all: if I'd waited to post this thread until morning, I would've shared a totally different thought. In Wyoming, we almost made it through the whole of September without snow. At 5a this morning the weather report was mostly cloudy, breezy with scattered showers, highs in the 50's. Imagine my surprise, then, when I finally dragged out of bed for good at 730a to see huge, fat snowflakes coming down really fst and thick! No scattered about them, a solid bank. Luckily it is not that cold, most of them aren't sticking much and it'll probably all melt later on today. We are up near the mountain, 1,000 feet above the river and town, so it's possible they jus have showers. Ah....the Rocky Mountain west!

kat

Subject: RE: Thought for the day - September 26th
From: katlaughing
Date: 26 Sep 99 - 10:44 AM

Well, geez, I am just too hasty today! It's now almost 9a and there is not a snowflake to be seen! Liek Mark Twain said, "If ya don't like the weather, wait five minutes!"

Subject: RE: Thought for the day - September 26th
From: catspaw49
Date: 26 Sep 99 - 11:31 AM

Bob, you are lucky your cat just carries the socks...There is actually a genetic thing in cats referred to as "wool eaters" although cottons and polyester blends seem to be included. We had a red point Siamese named (you'll appreciate this Cap'n) "Luff." He would take a sock and eat it from the top down. He'd carry it around and leave it in his foodbowl at times. (I remember once my old boy Cutter (all my cats used to have sailing names)looked down at his food, back at me, down at his food, back at me as if to say, "Can't you stop him from this?" I lost a lot of socks to Luff. He was one of those "radical looking" Siamese with a huge voice and very "opinionated." I had him when I met Karen and from the first time he saw her, I became used litter. For the six and a half years he was around during the first part of our marriage, he was her CONSTANT companion. When she went to bed, she had to lie on her right side so he could go under the covers, turn around and come back up to lay covered and face to face with Karen.....then PURR, and I do mean PURR, very loudly while they both went to sleep.

Luffy died seven years ago and Karen and I still cry over that stupid cat. We buried him with his favorite playthings, an old green rope......and a half eaten sock.

Spaw

Subject: RE: Thought for the day - September 26th
From: Banjer
Date: 26 Sep 99 - 12:26 PM

You cat people don't have the corner on the market when it comes to strange animal behavior. My Chow lives for his tennis balls. He has amassed probably two dozen at this time. First thing in the morning I am greeted (before even getting out of bed) with a wet snout and a tennis ball being thrust at me. In order to have any peace at all I have to throw the tennis ball so he can fetch it. He will stack up to five tennis balls in his food dish and then carefully eat around them. He likes to keep his dish full. As it emptys, he will replace fill it with more balls. If he brings you one of his many balls to play with and you pick up another ball nearby, he will not chase it. The "game ball" must be the one he has selected. Talk about weird....The Shepherd in her younger days took great pride in sharing her finds with me. One day I was blessed with what was left of a bird laying in the center of my bed with Dee-Dee looking on with great pleasure that she was able to share this with me. I couldn't even be mad at her...she was trying to please me.

Subject: RE: Thought for the day - September 26th
From: bob schwarer
Date: 26 Sep 99 - 12:52 PM

My son has about 12-14 cats. They are(were) feral kittens he brought home from the place he works. I think they realize who their benafactor is. When he wants them outside, he just opens the door & says "OUT". They all go. Well, one is kinda sneaky. I wouldn't have believed it if I had not seen it. Also, I've never seen them fight. All have been to the vet for the appropriate operations.

This has been going on for about 15-16 years. A few have passed on & been replace, but I think a few of the original mob are still alive. I'll have to check the next e-mail.

Bob S.

Subject: RE: Thought for the day - September 26th
From: katlaughing
Date: 26 Sep 99 - 02:23 PM

Bless his heart, Bob. Good man! When we lived back in CT, we had a big old rundown Victorian house with a wonderful front porch with about ten steps leading down to the grass. I would first put our old Shepherd/Dobie mix, Montee, out on his rope tied to the apple tree it was a long rope); he would go down the stairs and off to the yard; then, leaving the door open, I would go out on the porch, call the eight cats to go "walkies" and they would all come rushing out. Some would go down on the grass, some would sit on the porch, some went to the flower patch to roll in the dirt. I herded them like a cowboy, talking to them all of the time, telling the "lightfooted" ones to get back, praising them as they stayed close by. They were really good and enjoyed their time out. When I got ready to go back in, I'd say, "Okay, INSIDE" and clap my hands. The dog would come running over and help me herd them up the stairs, through the door. They were so well trained to stay in the front yard, that one day, when Rog and I had been gone for about an hour and a half for lunch, we came back to find the hard-to-keep-shut door wide open, Montee in the doorway looking for us with the cats ranged round him. A couple were on the porch but they ran inside as soon as they saw us. I was so grateful they were all okay and stayed!

Banjer, Montee was in dog heaven before his time when my youngest daughter brought home a garbage bag full of old tennis balls from the high school athletic dept.! We still have a few of them left and that was 3-4 years ago. They outlasted him. He was pretty smart, too. He used to get the long rope wound around the apple tree int hat yard in CT. He was very mouthy & would tell the whole neighbourhood what he thought of it. I would go out on the porch, tell him to "go round" and he would cuss up a bluestreak. I fI stamped my foot & insisted, he would toss his head, cuss some more, then lope around the tree, in the right direction, until he was unwound enough to come back up on the porch to be let in. We rented and didn't have a fence. He was a people dog and hated being out alone, so this routine entertained the nieghbours on a daily basis. It really was a game that he and I both enjoyed immensely. We didn't have near the funt he apst few years where he just had a great big backyard, big high board fence and no neighbours to snoop at or entertain. But, he never did stop cussing.

'Spaw, sounds like Luff was a really neat cat. I love Siamese, esp. when they talk. I have a chocolate point and a snowshoe. My brother has a beautiful tortie point. I can easily understand crying over such a special one. My Trystan, who is a good old tabby, does that under the covers routine wiht me, but he waits until I've settled down & fallen asleep. It take sme awhile to get comfortable and if he comes in too soon, he gets disgusted with my shifting and leaves in a huff. I lvoe waking up int hemiddle of the night to his soft fur and rumbling chest, though, when he finally comes back.

kat

Subject: RE: Thought for the day - September 26th
From: Cap't Bob
Date: 26 Sep 99 - 06:53 PM

Kat ~ I do keep my socks under lock and key ~ I've learned the hard way and have about 20 socks with no match. I keep hoping that one day I'll stumble upon the mother load (where ever the cat hid the missing socks). That most likely won't happen until I finally throw away the other odd socks. My wife, granddaughter and grandson seem content to just toss their socks down the clothes shoot and hence the trail of socks.

Spaw ~ Love the name luff ~ a great name for a sea going cat. Years ago, when my wife and I got our first boat we named our dog Skipper and the folks on the boat next to us named their dog Schooner. Sounds like luff was quite a cat.

Our latest dog (Brutis) ~ part pit bull and part (?) can't seem to learn that it's not a good idea to attack porcupines ($65 a crack at the vet ~ he's had about 5 trips to the vet so far). His current interest seems to be skunks (only three run-ins with them so far and we have our own tomato patch). I just about went through the roof when our granddaughter brought Brutis home ~ I'd always heard so many bad stories about the breed, however, this one doesn't seem to have a mean bone in his body. Currently, he can't seem to understand why we won't let him in the house.

Subject: RE: Thought for the day - September 26th
From: katlaughing
Date: 26 Sep 99 - 07:25 PM

Ah, C. Bob, my daughter and I picked up a huge pit bull off the street once. We were always taking in strays until we found their owners. He never barked, never messed in the house, spent three weeks living in her room, most of the time. The only reason I didn't let him in the rest of the hosue is I didn't like the way he looked at the cats! His name, we found out, was GuySkiLee and he belonged to a pretty sad Vietnam vet, whose soon to be ex-girlfriend, had let the dog loose, after removing his collar and tags, while the guy was out of town. He'd been the runt of the litter and his owner raised him from just a couple of weeks on. Was very glad to see his dog. I have never met a more gentle and gentlemanly dog as Guy.

BTW...good thing you DO have a tomato patch! Sorry for stating the obvious about the socks. In our house it's just the washer what eats 'em!