Thursday, June 9, 2011

Life with a kitten

Cagney is getting bored in my bathroom.  She really wants someone to play with.  While the dogs and other cats were eating tonight, she was in the bathroom SCREAMING.  Please release me, now!  When everyone was done and the dogs had licked the cat bowls clean, I put the dogs outside.  I then opened the bathroom door, and out Cagney dashed.  FREEDOM.  


Chow-Li, my gorgeous, but gigantic, long-haired Siamese mix was  lounging on the other side of the wrought iron gate between the living room and the hallway.  Cagney proceeded through the gate and started swatting Chow-Li.  I cannot begin to describe the ensuing “play/fight” session, but I’m going to try. 

Chow-Li  is easily 10 times the size of Cagney, however that did not deter Cagney from going on the offensive.  Cagney batted Chow-Li’s paws and Chow-Li returned the attack.  She kept her claws sheathed.  She rolled onto her side and Cagney tried to bite her tummy.  Chow-Li rolled back onto her stomach and Cagney swiped at Chow-Li’s face.  After several thrusts and parries, much like sword play, Chow-Li finally put her front paw on Cagney’s head (her paw being the size of Cagney’s head) and pinned her to the ground.  That didn’t stop Cagney.  She escaped the paw and ran behind the nearby bins.  She apparently decided on a sneak attack and approached from the rear, thinking she would catch Chow-Li off guard.  It didn’t work.  Chow-Li turned around and continued the play.  All I could do was stand there and watch the exchange, finding myself laughing out loud at times.  It was, seriously, such a cute and funny spectacle.  There is nothing like a kitten to make me smile. 

The dogs were barking to come inside, so I had to track Cagney down.  She had stopped the play and decided to venture further into the living room.  New territory to discover, other cats to bother.  They, however, weren’t interested in having anything to do with her.  I didn’t see her at first, so I called her name.  Don’t let anyone tell you that cats don’t know their name – she came running out of her hiding place and raced back into the hallway.  I managed to corner her and put her back into the bathroom.  I can’t wait until she’s a bit bigger and I won’t worry about her being around the dogs.  At this point my concern is that they won’t understand that she’s nothing more than a smaller version of the very same cats they ignore day in and day out.  When that day arrives, she’ll have all the company she could want and I’ll be able to reclaim my bathroom and clean it up.  For such a teeny thing, she can certainly make a mess.

4 comments:

  1. Kittens are sooooo cute aren't they? In my adult life I have only had rescue cats who came to me as adults, until the summer before last when 2 seven-week-old kittens appeared on my back deck out of nowhere. After careful investigation I determined that they had been dumped in the ally in a sealed cardboard box, and somehow had managed to claw their way out, and miraculously made it all the way up onto my back deck - a pretty long haul for a 7-week old kitten.

    I swooped them up and brought them inside, and after the requisite vet visits and tests decided to make them part of the family. After all, I thought, how much trouble can a few kittens be?

    Ha! I learned a lesson pretty quickly on that one! They're almost 2 now, and their grown up psyches have finally (almost) caught up with their adult sized bodies. Everything breakable is still packed away in the basement, and thank god the curtains were nothing to behold in the first place because they're full of holes now. But I love my boys and wouldn't trade them for the world!

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  2. Ecocatlady responds to Ecocatwoman and I am still so confused by the two of you, but I try to keep you straight. What a cute kitten and what a gorgeous big Siamese.

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  3. Mission accomplished - confuse Jody. Chow-Li is the size of a fat poodle and waddles when she walks - much like me. I only wish I had a video camera to record the exchange last night. Chow-Li was so patient with Cagney's pent up kitten energy. She's at that age that she would normally be tumbling, racing, and play-fighting with her littermates, but she doesn't have any.

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  4. Ooooooooooo, that little tuxedo kitten is adorable!

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