Friday Cat Blogging

by Bryan

14 comments

1 Steve Bates { 12.15.06 at 12:37 am }

What a lovely cat! Be sure to send a copy of this picture to John Ashcroft!

2 jamsodonnell { 12.15.06 at 5:09 am }

Hmm I wonder what it takes to get a cat to accept a lead? A lot of time and perservenace and antiseptic for the bits and scratches? A lovely cat, Bryan

3 Anya { 12.15.06 at 6:54 am }

I suppose it’s possible if you begin to train them while they’re still tiny kittens who think it’s still a fun game. Rumor has it that Siamese take to a leash well, but Siamese aren’t really cats.

My cat Jessica would wear a harness and leash with no problem. The problem came with trying to get her to walk on it. I was never able to get her to walk at heel like a dog…

If you want to walk your cat, you need a leash at least 15′ (4.5m) long so they can run and explore. The usual routine is for the cat to run ahead to the end of her tether, stop dead, wait until you’ve passed her, and then dash past you again.

I could never get Jessica to walk down the street, though. Anything involving asphalt and/or automobiles invoked all manner of screaming terror. I would have to tuck her under one arm and carry her to the woodsy area nearby for our walkies. Once I was able to peel her off my jacket and put her down, it was immediately off to the races.

Nowadays, there are too many people in the complex with large dogs. The usual problem of doggy land mines all over the place which make going for a walk, um, exciting, is the least of my worries. I wouldn’t let the cat out of the apartment except in a carrier.

4 Bryan { 12.15.06 at 1:04 pm }

There is a very good reason she is called “Crazy Cat”, and the fact that she likes to take showers is only a small part of it. Her current “staff” view her idiosyncrasies as “cute,” so there’s no harm done. John Ashcroft would be justified in being wary of her, Steve.

All three of their cats have adapted to tethers, Jams, the process started when they were kittens, but the tethers are long and tied to stakes in the the yard to keep them out of the driveway. CC is actually connected to the tether normally used by the 20-pound Ninja, which is why it is so substantial. There is no attempt to walk any of the cats on a lead.

I tried getting Sox used to a ferret harness, Anya, but when I put it on him, he just flops over and refuses to move until I take it off. He apparently feels he is tied up, so there’s no point in struggling.

5 Karen { 12.15.06 at 3:40 pm }

I love the see-through eyes…like looking into her cat-soul (*wink*).

But walking cats is about a step above trying to herd them!

6 Bryan { 12.15.06 at 8:06 pm }

Karen, you should try “walking” a field trained German Shepherd who really wants to herd you.

I have never been a fan of collars on cats, but Dave seems to have some luck with his crew.

7 Modulator { 12.15.06 at 11:15 pm }

Friday Ark #117 – Power Outage Edition…

We’ll post links to sites that have Friday (plus or minus a few days) photos of their chosen animals (photoshops at our discretion and humans only in supporting roles). Watch the Exception category for rocks, beer, coffee cups, and….? We add boarder…

8 oldwhitelady { 12.16.06 at 12:40 am }

She’s such a nice looking kitty. I like her colors. I also like Steve Bates idea – to send a picture to John Ashcroft. I’m sure JA would appreciate it very much. Heh:)

9 jillian { 12.16.06 at 12:44 am }

OK…I’m hypnotized.

10 Bryan { 12.16.06 at 12:51 pm }

She does have beautiful markings, OWL, but she is a bit insane.

Not good, Jillian, she would use you like a ladder if you stood still too long, which is one of the problems with her habit of getting in the shower with people.

11 Anya { 12.16.06 at 3:48 pm }

Ok. I may not have been paying attention.

What’s this with John Ashcroft and cats?

12 Bryan { 12.16.06 at 5:07 pm }

Ashcroft thinks calico cats are evil and has said so on a number of occasions. I’m not aware that he has ever encountered CC in a shower, but if he had, he would be justified.

13 Anya { 12.16.06 at 6:58 pm }

Did a bit of Googling and came up with a couple of interesting articles about JA and CC’s

The first is on Scopes as a myth-buster.

The second is a wicked spoof. At least, I should think it’s a spoof, otherwise Ashcroft should have been chucked into jail for being a boob.

That said, I’ve been cat-mama to two calicoes (one red-black and one blue-cream) and I can verify that calico cats are as nutty as fruitcakes. Evil? No, it’s just that their (alleged) thought processes are totally incomprehensible to humans and large dogs. They’re actually small, furry aliens.

That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

14 Bryan { 12.16.06 at 7:55 pm }

Calicos are rare among the ferals, CC is only the second. They both seemed a bit odd, not the least because they both were friendly to people in a manipulative sort of way.