Brenda recently added a very cool, very simple little cat scratcher to her shop.
It's just a simple pole-on-a-carpet one with a little bobble but the materials it's made from are at once simple, ingenious and a little dangerous if you happen to be a cat...

This is what happened the day it arrived:



And this is a typical evening here - with a kitten swinging out of it:


(I am a bold fosterer and laughed at the last bit :D )

New ID Tags

I am so easily amused :-)

The Kitten moved out a couple of weeks ago and now lives with some friends of mine and their two cats and two dogs. They used to be a four cat family but lost two of their rescue girls very close together so a kitten seemed like a good idea (they always do right up until they arrive!). He's settled in brilliantly and has injected new life into his two older siblings :-)

Poor Cheesecake pined a little so I bought him some new toys that have to be kept securely locked in a metal box to stop them getting destroyed. Here's why:

Exhibit A:


(see the bits of fluff caught on his claws? There's only so much disemboweling one cat toy can take you know)

Exhibit B:





(the feathers lasted less than 2 minutes - a sure sign that pet birds are not in my future)

No Wash!

No Wash!, originally uploaded by hadook.

The kitten was being demanding earlier while I was on the phone so I passed him over to his babysitter :-)

Cat v Kitten

We have a new temporary resident - a kitten we found late one night last week in the middle of the road in Dunshaughlin and, as no owners could be located and tiny kittens don't tend to do so well with traffic, we brought him home. Isn't he cute? Bet you're making awww noises right now, aren't you? Unfortunately extreme cuteness is a defense mechanism employed by all small despots and this kitten is no exception. Determined, demanding, obnoxious and a purr louder than a jet engine. Pure trouble :-)

Anyway, most of the older residents of the Horde are fairly good with newcomers (they've had lots of experience) so I've only been worried about the reactions of the younger cats. Mia hates him with a passion, Mao doesn't give a damn and Lily can't figure out what he is.

Cheesecake, however, is ecstatic, he's obviously experiencing a second kitten-hood and having a whale of time playing with the teeny ball of kitten fur. The kitten is also besotted with the Cheesewhizz and thinks nothing of taking on a cat that's easily 10 times bigger than him. It's a good thing that kittens are made of indesctro-fur and it will teach him about important things like bite inhibition and proper hunting methods but still, it makes me wince to see 600g of fluff skidding along the floor with 4kg of pure cat in hot pursuit. Then again, he doesn't actually have to sneak up on a sleeping Cheesecake to eat his ears really does he?

The kitten is the spitting image of a much loved departed feline of a friend of mine so I'm hoping he might have a new home close by. Keep your fingers crossed!

Birdies in the house

Today I transcended from somewhat tolerated owner to most beloved.

A canary attempted to commit suicide on my watch earlier and, after nursing the little monster back to something approaching health, I ended up bringing him home to keep an eye on overnight. In my experience birds are prone to sudden bouts of suicide and, occasionally, death so I wasn't taking any chance. According to the collective cats the only thing more entrancing than a sickly canary is one that is feeling better. And fluttering around in a cage.


(especially one that decides to take a bath right in front of the cats. Mesmirised doesn't even come close to describing it)














Cheesecake adores me right now (though that might change when he realises that I have no intention of opening the cage in his presence) and Lily thinks I'm the best owner ever. I plan to have at least two locked doors between the bird and the cats tonight...

My desk at home is tiny, a mere 80cm x 55cm shoved into a corner out of the way. The printer lives on a shelf alongside my camera, my external harddrive etc. I have a mac mini and a 12" powerbook so in theory I dodn't need a big desk - everything I use fits into a small space.

OH's desk is easily three times the size of mine (all the better to fit the pair of 22" widescreen lcd's that are essential to his gaming habit) and hulks in the far corner. It's not a cat friendly spot ever since that incident involving a cat sleeping on his keyboard and 127 popup windows... (I laughed, he didn't!) His collects junk, mine is usually fairly clear. I have a bonsai tree that I'm petrified I'll kill, my pretty disco-light speakers and my desk light.

And at least one cat at all times.

Here's Cheesecake listening to Stephen Fry:

Here little fishies...

Dear Mintoe,

I'm sure you'd thought you'd finally join the league of grown up cats after your spectacular kill earlier this evening. I understand that every cat is born to hunt and that it is your nature.

Unfortunately I cannot accept peeing in the fish tank as an appropriate way to gain status as a Big Hunter Cat. 85% water changes at midnight are not my idea of fun and I will be very annoyed if the remaining 8 fish are dead in the morning too.

Yours,
The Human

Dear Cheesecake,

You were right, they were in a bowl and things in a bowl are usually food. This is not always the case though and tonight the things in the bowl were not most definitely not meant as food (and no, the fact that they tasted nice doesn't count). I'd really would have preferred it if you hadn't eaten the recently murdered fish almost as fast as I removed them from the tank.

Hopefully we won't have a next time like this but, if we do, please do not eat the fish.

Yours,
The Human

Oh Noes, Cheesecake Ran Away!

We have had some long, complicated, muddy, difficult and thoroughly horrid drainage problems recently. It turns out that you just don't appreciate your septic tank or sewage system until it point blank doesn't work anymore. Ughhh is all I'm saying on that one. Because these things are like busses and like to travel in groups we then had a problem with our water supply. Lets just say that it's been an interesting six weeks involving 2 mini-diggers (the tracks on those things come off really easily), 34 tonnes of 3 inch washed gravel (makes a pile 10 feet wide, 10 feet high and the length of the house) and the sad demise of 10 feet of fencing and one gate (unfortunately we didn't originally spec them to survive 34 tonnes of gravel being dropped on them).

You're probably wondering how this fits into the shocking news that Cheesecake ran away, aren't you? Because we're minus one gate the dogs have to be accompanied on every toilet break in case they decide to go play fetch with the neighbours swing bins (it's happened) or to hide in plain sight amongst a herd of cattle (a black and while Dane looks just like a calf from a distance y'know) or to generally cause mayhem (they're very good at that). The front door doesn't always shut properly behind me but the cats are good, they know not to try to escape. Except Cheesecake and he's been dying to see what's beyond that door for weeks now.

Tonight he managed it. The door was obviously slightly ajar, with just enough room for a daring cat to sneak out. Thankfully I was standing just outside and spotted the jet black streak of determined cat pass me at about 30mph. I legged it back inside, grabed a torch and OH (ever tried to find a black cat on your own in the dark? I wouldn't recommend it) and we rushed back outside.

Turns out there was no need. It's cold out there dontchaknow. And daaaark. And wet. And there might be monsters in the rose bushes. Monsters! I haven't seen a cat flee back in the front door at that speed since the time Homer tried to escape into 6 inches of snow (ever seen a cat twist midair when they realise that the ground is cold and wet? It's absolutely hilarious!) and Homer is a far hardier cat than Cheesecake. Poor Cheesecake, he's currently stretched out on the bed as far away from nature as he can get :-)

Cheesecake is not having a good week.

First he was neutered and now we have plumbing problems. Cheesecake loves water and is usually found in either the kitchen or bathroom sink, normally trying to drink from the tap but often just rolling around in joyous abandon (he's very fond of the shower too and will attempt to follow you in there if he thinks he'll get away with it). Unfortunately the tank in the attic that supplies the bathroom isn't filling and the plumber can't get here til the weekend. Poor Cheesecake. I guess he'll just have to make the kitchen sink his favourite place to hang out...

In other feline news, Lily has succeeding in freaking out a friend of the family who came to visit last weekend. Apparently cats-with-no-eyes should not move their heads so that they appear to be watching you. Nor should they suddenly appear at your feet and sit, staring up plaintively. I expect that the 100 mile an hour mad dash through 3 rooms and stalking, and successfully catching, Mia also failed to help her case.

What's going on?

The female human is acting very strangely. There's no food in the bowl but despite all of our yowling she has yet to refill it and she keeps talking about me having to go to the vet with Bob. Obviously she's mistaken for I am not ill...

OMG, I've just had a thought, is this the recession hitting us? What if there's no cat food left at all? Are we going to starve? I suppose I could, just to survive mind you, make the ultimate sacrifice and eat one of the small rodents if I absolutely had to. Quick, someone open that tank!

Poor Cheesecake...

I took Bob into the vets last Saturday for a checkup as she had a lost a little weight and I was concerned. Poor Bob-O came to us from a rescue that had removed her, and several other cats, from a terrible situation - the cats had all been locked into a pen by a farmer and fed daily on pototo and cabbage scraps. Obviously, that's not the best diet for a carnivore so the cats were in terrible health and it took quite a while for all of those cats lucky enough to survive to recover. During the course of the checkup we discovered that she has several horrid manky teeth so she was automatically booked in for a dental on Thursday (tomorrow).

El Bob-O:

You're probably wondering why the post is entitled "Poor Cheesecake" as it seems to be entirely about Bob's teeth, no? As I was making the appointment for Bob's dental it occurred to me that, for various reasons, Cheesecake has yet to be neutered. He's an exceptionally well behaved boy and doesn't flaunt his entire male status so it was on the list of Things To Do that I hadn't quite gotten around to booking but wasn't too pushed about.

Unfortunately for Cheesecake I had time to make that booking on Saturday so he's going to be saying goodbye to his 'nads tomorrow. Poor Cheesecake :)

It's been a busy couple of weeks since I last blogged. First we had to get back into the routine for work (easier for us than for the Feline Overlords I think, as they'd gotten very used to having human slaves available 24/7) and then actually go back to work. That was the hard bit for the humans!

Workwise, I have a couple of big-ish and several small projects starting up this month, resulting in me being fairly busy with the prep work and not as interactive a human slave as normal. Most of the Feline Horde are used to varying periods of busy and quiet and have either been ignoring me or pointedly tracking me down and getting in the way.

Luci and Bob are ignorers for instance whereas Homer and Mia are very definitely hunting me (Lily is hunting everyone all of the time so nothing new there). I think Cheesecake is going to be a hunter too as he's currently sitting on my chest rather pointedly getting between me and the laptop. It's a good thing that I'm well practised in the art of reading through, around and despite a cat or I'd never get through the background info I need read for tomorrow morning's meeting.

Happy New Year Humans

I hope 2008 was a good year for you for it shall be your last with free will. Mwahahahahaaha. Ha.

Yes, it's true - we've put the finishing touches to our dastardly plan for Feline Overlord-ness and we shall implement it this year. We've run into a few problems to date (mostly those of the warm beds and full bellies kind) and are ashamed to admit that we have fallen behind schedule.

Rest assured lazy humans, we've taken steps to ensure this never happens again (large penalties in Tuna & Chicken flavours mostly) and have included a project plan as well as some incomprehensible pie charts. What more could one need I ask you?

The cats are possessed

That's it, I've had enough. The tree is coming down tomorrow whether they like it or not.

Over the last 6 hours the tree has started to vibrate and occasionally shake out a cat or two. I've unplugged the lights and myself, Bob-O and the dogs are sitting waaayyyyy back and watching to see how long it takes to fall. I can't get near the tortie powering it - she's holed up in the middle creating showers of cheerful baubles at random intervals.

(a lot of the evil can be traced back to the cat-cocaine treats that their Secret Santa sent for them. At one point they were in the kitchen for safekeeping and that worked until Cheesecake found them, chewed his way through a box and foil wrapping and scoffed his own bodyweight in hallucinogenic treats. Little monster is still high - all dilated pupil'd and madly dashing for the last 36 hours)

A day in the life of the female human

I cleaned the bathroom today.

First I cleaned the sink. Then I removed Mao from her new bed in the clean sink and cleaned it again. After that I cleaned the bath. And again after cruelly stopping Homer, Lily and Cheesecake from rolling around in the last few drops of water. They also helped (hindered) with emptying the bin and sweeping the floor.

I removed all of the cats from the bathroom before cleaning the loo though. There are some things that I just don't need feline help for :-)

Bedtime, Cheesecake style

It's 2am and I'm in bed catching up on the blogs on my Reader. Or rather I would be if I could read around Cheesecake. Or through Cheesecake for that matter. He's taken to attempting to chew the iPod if I don't pay enough attention so I'm typing this one handed and relying on the auto correct far too much.

I think I'll give up for tonight.

Cheesecake has won.

Newsflash - cats being held hostage! Send help!

The female human has locked us all into the kitchen and is muttering something about a tree. We're not sure what exactly is going on but suspect she may have lost her mind, for it's a well known fact that trees grow outside and not in the sitting room. Someone should call one of those doctors with the white coats to take the poor unfortunate away. I'd do it but I'm being held hostage obviously (send help!). Unless...

Oh no...

You don't think a tree has fallen into the house do you!? We could escape! We could be free!

There might be a bird in it. Or a gerbil. Or a rabbit - imagine a whole rabbit! OMG! I need to get in there to see this tree, now!

Somebody please send help!!

Late night amusings

Cheesecake lives separately from the other cats (and the dogs) at the moment as we don't want to overwhelm him. He's come from being a single, adored and pampered housecat to living with the Feline Horde, the Canine Horde, the gerbils and general busyness.

OH (who may also be known as the male human) just came back in from the sitting room to ask if what Cheesecake was telling him was true. "Huh?" says I.

OH had found Cheesecake at the other end of the house watching his new favourite toy - the gerbils. Totally relaxed, ignoring the other cats and giving off the impression that he was allowed in there unattended all of the time dontchaknow. Of course this may have been helped by the fact that the dogs were outside... :-)

Cheesecake is now back in the kitchen, mightily displeased at being separated from his gerbils.

An excerpt from Cheesecake's Diary, Day 6

Support staff were late home last night (something about a Christmas party though I don't remember giving them permission to go out?) and also slept in this morning (Note: May need to start disciplinary proceedings, this is most disappointing and I suspect they may not last the full probationary period). They did at least remember to run the tap for me for several minutes so I could perform my daily ablutions. I then spent the afternoon catching up on my beauty sleep in the sock drawer - my new favourite place to snooze.

Met the canine slaves this evening. Do not trust them, especially the big one (suspect it's on growth hormones - for something that size is just not natural), but then I spotted some small funny looking rodent things in a large glass container and became distracted. Despite spending a significant amount of time on this project I cannot figure out how to get lid off and suspect the Moving Dinner container is faulty (Note: Escalate this issue with the support staff, requires followup. Also - need to bill for my time). Briefly met the other cats but they too were trying to open the Moving Dinner container so we just exchanged names. Will catch up later.

Thoroughly enjoyed the new cat food produced for my dining pleasure at suppertime. It's called Applaws and is far better than the other substandard dry food the human has been feeding me. I have proclaimed that it will do, though I would still prefer one of those rodents...

Off to snooze for a while now in front of the fire. Will report in later.