Since I first saw the neighbor’s flame point I wanted to be friends (it has to be said I want to be friends with all cats, so). After getting him fixed, I was certainly persona non grata. My eldest befriended first, with the help of a few treats. Then I took the hint and gave some treats, then some surreptitious scratches. He now walks right in front of my feet demanding treats and scratches. So much so that it is hard to walk. Be careful what you wish for.
But he is such a pretty boy.
We originally put welded wire no climb fencing on the top of the chicken’s run to keep out hawks. It also works to keep out cats. Or as a platform for cat TV, depending on your perspective.
Izzy is only allowed outside in the catio without supervision. Sophie comes to the catio to ask to be let inside. Multipurpose structure. I thought this photo op too good to pass by, as they stare at each other through the divide. (They are not buddies, if you didn’t know.)
Our local pet shelters strongly recommend “If you feed them, get them spayed or neutered.” So if I helped take them out of the kitten making business, I don’t feel guilty giving them an occasional treat. Their main meal station is still my neighbor’s house, but Mr Tom is so pretty. Which is good, because his social skills need work. He is charming enough to get an egg now and again, though. Maybe one day he’ll stop greeting me with a hiss, then a meow. The hiss has no accompanying body language indicating fear or aggression (tail is high, head is high). Maybe that’s just his name for me. “Devil woman, give me treats.” Hm.
Mr Tom has a long-haired black buddy that hung out in the meadow with him before their abduction (a.k.a. neutering), that he brought with him to the egg station recently. Even though Mr Tom has a name, in my head they will now be Paul and Stevie.
Izzy the cat’s favorite litter box is the one in the catio. I’ll admit, we didn’t discover this for years; poor kitty had to do her business inside until we finally placed a box outside. Then the rain came. Scoopable litter is really gross when it gets soaked in rainwater. Even though there is a cover on the box, the lid design is not good for outdoor use. As this is the biggest litter box I’ve found, I decided to fortify it to keep the rain out. On other blogs, they will show you cute little huts they built with coordinating paint and curtains. Here, you get the duct tape version. With an old baking sheet.
If you don’t want it to move, use duct tape. This is not an elegant looking solution, but it did the job. During our biggest rain storm this year, the litter stayed dry (at least from the rain).
Critters and Craft 