Why in GODS NAME did I ever allow cats to adopt me

[LynneSin]

:grr:

Evita got into the garbage back I forgot to take out yesterday morning and when I got home from work Friday Night it looks like she used my carpeting for toilet paper. There was an empty Ice Cream container I'm guessing she got into because it was torn apart.

That'll teach me! Thank god for Bissell Little Green Machines

BTW, she was all smiles and love today - go figure!

[Rosemary2205]

1. I hear you.

It's just awful to love those pesky little devils! :)

[DainBramaged]

2. Well, there's always dogs

[Solon]

4. Don't get me started on that...

My Dog, Lucky, RIP buddy, had a good life. Anyways, we were having a BBQ out in the back of the house, and Lucky wanted to go into the kitchen. So we let him in, we then were outside cooking, no biggy. Unknown to us, the case of canned beer we left on the floor of the kitchen was broken open, and Lucky spilled it ALL over the kitchen floor. I walk into wetness, and at first thought he peed on the floor, not common, but not THAT unusual, except for the fact that this didn't smell like piss, and piss doesn't normally foam like this did. I see the cardboard box of Budweiser torn apart, and at least half the cans torn apart, and Lucky, lapping up this stuff!

He wasn't a large dog, more medium weight, weighed around 35 pounds, and he just looked up at me and gave me his "puppy dog" look, like he KNEW he was in trouble. Then he tried walking, and I fell on the floor laughing, he walked straight into a wall, stepped back a step, shook his head, and fell over. I had to grab him by the collar and guide him to the backyard to clear his head. At the time, I have NEVER seen anyone who was blind drunk before, I was only like 13 at the time, and the beer was for my Uncle and Mom, anyways, it was just messed up.

Though I will say that I think he was an alcoholic, ANYTIME he heard a can opening, he would perk up and try to get at the can after that day.

[murielm99]

6. Oh yes.

Last year my dog ate her leash and then threw up little pieces of leather, all over the carpet.

A couple of days ago, she went outside and rolled in shit. She had a nice bath right after that. Why do they do those things?

[mzteris]

10. oh yeah, they're soooooooo much better.

:sarcasm: (just in case you missed that!)

I have a dog (well three dogs actually) but this one dog is VERY large and a food addict.

He had gained up to 165 lbs so we put him on a VERY strict diet. I think he was starving. He whined constantly for FOOD!

He'd eat anything not nailed down. Pantry doors had to be secured with a bungee cord. Baby locks on the cabinets. Trash can outside. And godforbid we should forget to put the lunchbox up up up out of his reach. He's totally destroyed at least 5 or 6 lunchboxes.

He eats whole loaves of bread. Packages of uncooked rice, spaghetti, egg noodles. Cookies, cereal. He'll steal food off of the table, the counter. Out of upper cabinets (he's taller than I am on his hind legs.) He LOVES pizza!! Never ever leave the pizza unattended!

He once ate three months worth of heart worm medicine for three dogs! I called the emergency vet in a panic. He had me repeat his weight three times - then laughed - "he'll be fine - if he were a little dog I'd be worried, but with that size, he'll be ok... "

Fortunately we discovered he had a thyroid problem and he's lost about 20 lbs. He's not quite so aggressive about getting food - but we still have to be careful.

However, he has discovered a definite taste for - er - the kitty litter box. :puke:

Speaking of the kitty. Sometimes we think they work in tandem. We put stuff on top of the fridge to keep away from the dog. But we've caught the cat knocking things off the top, the dog rips open the container and then they all join in dining happily.


Here's a picture of the big lug - and one of my other dogs:

[Generic Brad]

3. Maybe they are "Supercats"?

That would account for much of thier behavior.

[Solon]

5. That's OK, we have two cats who are a sugar addicts, and one who loves...

tea. Sylvester and Reeses are sisters, the sugar fiends both. They both love that creme sugar that's for Cinnamon Rolls or Toaster Strudels. Whoever said cats can't taste sweets never met THESE cats. Reeses also likes to dip her paw into coffee mugs, only those with creme and sugar in them, and then licks it. Cocoa, on the other hand, LOVES iced tea, and takes a more "direct" approach to drinking it than Reeses does with coffee.

Cocoa will stick her head in an unattended tea glass, usually with the tea at the bottom, some of the glasses are narrower at the top than the bottom, and one time she got her head stuck in a glass this way. I turn around in the kitchen, and I saw her try to extract her head from the glass, and pulled the glass straight off the table. She, of course, immediately panics, so I try to grab her on the back of her neck, so I could pull the glass of as gently as possible. I miss, of course, and she ends up shattering that glass on the corner of the table, spilling tea and glass all over the place. She was unhurt, thankfully, she took off and hid under the bed, as she always does when she does something wrong, like when she TP'd the house one time, THAT was interesting.

[zanne]

8. I've been sharing my bedside glass of water with my cat...

I always keep a glass of water near the bed because I usually wake up thirsty in the middle of the night. The other night, I went to reach for my glass and saw my cat "Minou" lapping water out of my glass. I've had the glass of water there and the same cat for years, so God knows how long we've been sharing the same glass. Yecch.

[LynneSin]

9. I had to switch to putting the water in a bottle

I do the same thing - water by the bed every night. And one night I woke up and Abbott was drinking out of the glass. So now I refill an old bottle of water and keep that next to my bed. The have their own dish wish is filled twice a day with some fresh water

[Haole Girl]

13. Reminds me of this photo someone sent me once...

[DawgHouse]

7. You had no choice in the adoption.

They use their cute charm to put a spell on you and you are unable to resist.

[Haole Girl]

11. Sounds like you could use some tips on cats:

It might be late for the ones you have now, but for next time....

1. Give them cat food *only* and never, ever, ever people food. This way, trash does not interest them. I've never (knocking on wood now) had my cats get into the trash.

2. Reward them when they do good things.

3. After a cat has done something bad, they will quite often go to their owners and seek affection....this is a cats way of asking, "Is it okay?"

As harsh as this might sound, and it usually only works immediately following something bad (like clawing at the carpeting), try to ignore the cat...just for a few minutes...don't even acknowledge the cat. Cats really hate this...and when they don't get their bad behavior "reinforced" with affection, it's usually all the "scolding" they need. It's tricky, though, because later on (maybe an hour or so later) you'll need to give you cat some extra attention!

There are many other tips I've picked up from cat books, etc. When I was only 10 years old, the cat trainer (yes, there really are cat trainers) for Purina Cat Chow came to talk at our school. I've been fascinated by the idea that cats really can be trained ever since!

Good luck....most important things to remember----positive reinforcement when they do good things (like little cat treats), but *no* attention after they've done something very bad.

[bertha katzenengel]

12. She was a street cat when you took her in? Or was that Abbie?

Yeah . . . they have their ways of teaching us, don't they? :grr:

[Reciprocity]

14. Sounds like Evita had a bad breakup with her boyfriend and needed an ice cream fix.