An alarming situation

Not alamred, but my sister's budgie does the sound fo the neighbours squeaky washing machine. Oh well, he also does a fine range of modern music, the alphabet and the haka.

Actuakky he's going to be in need of a new home of anyone in the London area would be interested in a budgie with an impressive vocab...

My cats like to sit on top of the shower door while I'm showering. I keep telling them, "You'd better not fall...."

They also have the annoying habit of pouncing on my toes with claws extended if my foot twitches under the sheets, usually when I'm half asleep. I've lost count of how many times I've reflexively propelled them across the room. Anyone need a furry football?

Cat problems for me too, jumping on you when you least expect it, attacking feet, going crazy when a fly or similar gets into the house and other things which I´m sure people who´ve shared a living space with cats will more than appreciate.

One occasion was in the middle of the night, I went to the fridge and didn´t put the light on, half-asleep I went to open the fridge door and as I placed my hand on the handle was greeted by my (jet black) cat screaming at me for food. That was a bit alarming.

TheIT maybe you could lend your football to awatkins and solve their problem for them

newmod said:

TheIT maybe you could lend your football to awatkins and solve their problem for them

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Anne, go long!

Actually, I'm not sure what my cat would do if he actually encountered a bird muzzle-to-beak. Yes, Sparky weighs 12 pounds and is fully armed, but he's got the hunting instincts of a housecat. He'll sit on the window sill and watch the birds in the trees outside all the time doing the I-see-a-birdy meow in the back of his throat while his tail is thwapping against the window like a drum. Not a good idea as a hunter to let your prey hear you watching them.

Your story reminds me of a similar time when I went into the kitchen and heard my cat meow. Not an odd situation, right? The sound came from above my head. I jumped three feet, then realized my cat was on top of the refrigerator. It's now one of their favorite spots.

I know what you mean, the cats now (TC, he of the fridge, sadly died a few years ago after 20 years of life) are house beasts, I don´t know what they would do. But they are still less than a year old and often manic in their behaviour, but great fun to have around.

Now that the weather is so hot Coco (male) has taken to sleeping in the shower tray and occasionally startles us from in there. But fortunately he´s not much of a talker.

I always anthropomorphise when talking about cats.

awatkins said:

I'm open!

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Just don't punt.

It's those blasted cats around here!

The kittens have scared years off my life by thumping around on the window late at night. I put a piece of old furniture out on the porch until we can carry it off. They play chase on it and continually bump the window with a loud "thump". I'm forever running to see who is trying to get in.

Our oldest cat is an indoor/outdoor cat. He stays in where its cool in the day and out at night, except when the kids sneak him in at night. Also, stays inside on winter nights. Anyway, he invariably wants out around 3 or 4 a.m. He sleeps with my daughter, but comes to me to let him out. The other night he landed on all 4's right beside my face. Imagine that coming out of a dead sleep when you don't know he's in the house.

He never bothers anything in the house, but when he wants out, he wants out. He will rip through the house rustling papers, climbing furniture, zipping all over the place until he gets out.

At night he starts with me and has a different method for waking each person. For me he first goes rip snorting through the bedroom, then jumps on the bed. If that doesn't get me, he walks across my face. He stays on my side of the bed. . .doesn't mess with my husband. He meows at my daughter, which she sleeps right through. For my son, he has a special treatment. He sits on his chest and stares at him with those "hunter" eyes. If that doesn't work, he places his mouth over the boys nose. . .doesn't bite, just sits there until he wakes and of course it scares old billy hell out of him.

His name is Zip when we like him. Hellcat when we don't.

My last cat used to like to get up on a half-height wall near where I was sitting. Then, when I least expected it, she would jump into my lap. Uh, guys really don't want a 14 pound flying object landing on their private area.


And now I talk like Truman Capote . . .

My sister's cat had a unique way of waking me up when he was hungry. He'd start out by sitting on my chest and staring into my face. If that didn't work he'd press down with his paw on the hollow at the base of my throat. The lack of air would wake me up every time.

My own cat, Valentine, used to give what we called his testosterone yowl when he wanted to go outside. Normally I'd get up to let him out because I wouldn't want he waking up the rest of the family, but one morning I was a little slow. At first I thought he was just sitting on me, then I felt something wet and realized he'd peed on me! Oh, he went out that morning!

One of my cats once gave me a double whammy. He used to like sitting on the ironing board in the kitchen, and attracted the attention of anyone walking past by reaching out to pat them with his paw. One day I was working at the counter with my back to the ironing board, and he decided I was not paying him enough attention. So he leapt from the ironing board onto my back (all claws extended, thank you very much!) and as he took off, he kicked away from the ironing board hard enough to knock it over and send the iron flying. Claws *and* loud noises, yay!

I think I got myself about ten year's worth of grey hairs in ten seconds

A little bit of a deviation here but do your cats respond to catnip? My previous two went crazy for it, but the two I have now couldn´t care less. I read somewhere that about 50% of cats respond and was curious: is you cat an addict or not?

I put catnip on the scratching pads I get from Cat Claws, and both of the cats I've had would go crazy over it.

Woah! Backtrack here! One Sec!
Lets go back to the part where she was in the shower....

By the way, both of my cats have loved those scratching pads sold by Cat Claws: http://www.catclaws.com/ It's one of the few things they prefer over a sofa. Or me. I could never get my cats interested in a scratching post at all.

ac

awatkins said:

Teddy, you knucklehead! Hee hee (and I thought nobody noticed the shower bit).

*ahem*

Oooh, I think I'll start a new thread about catnip....

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We can if ya like start a whole new thread about showers! (Pics included)
(I bet that would be much more popular too!!)

About 15 years ago, I had just moved into a little cottage with my dog Friday. The front door was glass (like french doors). This was the first time I had ever lived "alone" (without other humans). The first night we were in the house, Friday kept standing on the rug in front of the door with her hackles up, growling. I checked outside a dozen times. I draped a sheet over the glass. I didn't sleep a wink. I have no idea what she was growling at. She kept it up on and off all night long. After that first night she never did it again.

Where I live now, a woman across the street has a parrot. We can hear him at dawn and sunset mimicking sirens, and car alarms, and cell phones. Whenever we go up the stairs to our house my husband gooses me. I shriek his name by reflex. I hate it but he thinks its hilarious and he's waiting for the parrot to start yelling his name in an aggrieved shriek.

My black and white (but mostly black) cat Huxley likes to hide in the garden at night. If, for some strange reason, I venture outside when it is dark (I'm afraid of the dark to begin with) he frequently stalks and attacks me. He leaps out from the plants and latches on to my ankle from behind. Once he pounced out of a tree directly onto my head. You can imagine the screaming. I refuse to feel guilty about flinging him off, I swear he wants me to have a heart attack.

If that doesn't get me, he walks across my face. He stays on my side of the bed. . .doesn't mess with my husband. He meows at my daughter,

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Oops, Zip (or Hellcat) made a big booboo last night. In the middle of the night, he leapt onto the bed for his stroll across my face so I would get up and let him out. He slightly misjudged his distance and landed smack on hubby's shoulder, realized his mistake instantly and just managed to pop back off the bed. . .barely out of reach of the slinging arm. Hubby never woke up; it was just an automatic reflex action for him. The cat practically ran to the door to be let outside.

TeddyG said:

Woah! Backtrack here! One Sec!
Lets go back to the part where she was in the shower....

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My cat Muss was a reincarnated plumber. He was fascinated by water. He'd watch the water go down the toilet, sit on top of the dryer to watch the washer fill, hop in the shower with you....

The first time something large, wet, and furry wraps itself around your legs in the shower -

Did I tell you that he loved ham? Everytime you'd open the refrigerator, he'd hop in on the bottom shelf because he knew that's where you kept the ham.

One day I just got tired of it and I shut the door and sat back down to read. My friend came home from work and asked, 'Where's Muss? He always meets me at the door.'

'OMG!' I jumped up and opened the refrigerator - out hopped Muss.
Just so you know, he says the light really does go off when you shut the door.

I was awoken last night to the pitter-patter of little claws on the patio door. So . . . I get up from my very sound sleep to see what was the matter. Ahhh, Mr. Raccoon was paying a late night visit to my deck ("Yum, those are some tasty sunflower seeds"). And my cat wanted to go out and "play".

I should have whacked both of them with a shoe . . .

Unique said:

One day I just got tired of it and I shut the door and sat back down to read. My friend came home from work and asked, 'Where's Muss? He always meets me at the door.'

'OMG!' I jumped up and opened the refrigerator - out hopped Muss.

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I've learned not to do things like that. Inevitably, I will be the one who ends up paying for it.