Update on Riley - Page 2 - WritingForums.com - Writing Forums, Writing Challenges, Critiques and Help for Writers

mi is happy · 05-23-2008, 04:12 PM

Buy a dog. Train your dog to beat up your cat when your cat's beating you up. Or take it like a man!

Remedy · 05-23-2008, 07:02 PM

I have five indoor cats and, with the exception of one, they're all well behaved in the does-not-attack-humans way. They're all inside cats, which I feel guilty about to some extent, because they obviously want to go outside, and they all were outside cats previously. However, we have coyotes around here, and they've eaten the neighbors' pets a few times, so, ah, no. They're staying in.

I got a cat leash specifically for them, but it doesn't work too well. One of them is terrified of it and seems to be convinced that he cannot walk standing up if it's on him; he slinks with his belly on the ground instead. Another can get himself out of it. A third walks around like everything is dandy, then bolts for the nearest bush and gets stuck. The fourth doesn't like it and will sooner scratch your eyes out than wear it. The fifth... well, the fifth is too much of a hazard regardless, so we don't even try.

Ox, if your cat is young, he might grow out of it still. They tend to be more frisky as kittens. But then, if you've got a con artist, he might just stay crazy. One of our cats is a con artist; he destroys everything, then flops over and meows, looking adorable, and thus gets away with it all.

Papertears - I know some places actually sell plants of the good catnip, so you can garden it if you want (presuming it grows in your area). We have a catnip plant (just through fluke; it was here when we moved in), and one of our cats in particular goes nuts over it.

mi is happy · 05-23-2008, 07:20 PM

Is your cat fixed, Ox? That might get ride of his aggressiveness.

The Backward OX · 05-23-2008, 09:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mi is happy

Is your cat fixed, Ox? That might get ride of his aggressiveness.

That (coy word) was when all the trouble got bigger. I think he knows what's been done and he objects on principle. Just kidding. Hopefully he'll grow out of it - like in about three or four years.

And thanks to everyone who made suggestions. Sprays and bells - I like that; perfume as a deterrent - already put that one in place and yep it works.

And congratulations to all the responsible cat owners, and to Malone for being an animal lover.

Any of you people ever read anything by that Freidman guy? Richard, aka "Kinky"? He has a nice quote about dogs and cats at the end of each book.

ash somers · 05-23-2008, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Backward OX

My week? My past three months, more like.

Some of you may remember we acquired a kitten at Christmas.

We named it Riley, although Olly agreed Adolf was a good alternative.

Three times it peed on the bed. Three times it nearly went back. Three times I relented.

And now? Who would have imagined that sweet, lovable, affectionate, fluffy li’l bundle of black and white fun could turn into a savage human-eating and house-destroying monster? My arms are a mass of bite-marks from my knuckles to my elbows, this monitor has been tipped on the floor – somehow it still works – upholstery buttons are being torn from the back of a lounge chair, venetians have holes bitten through them (that’s blinds not people, although give him time) indoor plants are being slowly devoured . . . . .

And then he curls up on your lap and purrs, and rolls on his back, and wants to be scratched.

Bah.

I think maybe Adolf was a better name.

i have no time for cats, drown it now, be done with it *nods*

The Backward OX · 05-23-2008, 09:17 PM

YOU may return my flower! The deal's off. I hope your chooks turn into emus and kick your dunny down.

joifulartist84 · 05-23-2008, 11:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by papertears

Its a long stick with some feathers on it.

I'll bet we have that exact toy. And several others. Unless Layla is in a crazy mood already, she usually ignores them. We also have a small circular scratching thing with replaceable cardboard. We need to get her a nice tall one so she can stretch while scratching and stop tearing up the furniture (its old, so we don't mind right now). We considered getting a Nerf toy to shoot styrofoam darts at her so she stays off the table.... but that problem goes away when his parents do (sometimes they visit on the weekends).

We don't know what she was like as a kitten. She's so adorable now that it's hard to imagine her any cuter. My bf and his ex found her wandering around the parking lot of the local movie rental store; she was well-fed and fairly well-groomed, when she was about 6 months old. They deduced that she went into her first heat and the owners abandoned her. So they took her in and got her fixed. He says that Layla never became cuddly until I started coming around and I deduced it was because I'm more cuddly than his ex.

She doesn't seem to mind the leash; we think her previous owners must have kept a collar on her. She can get out of it, though (it's sort of a harness which doesn't seem as mean) if the leash is taut so we have to keep an eye on her.

Good luck Ox with the kitty training! Sounds like you're already succeeding.

mhswinds · 05-28-2008, 10:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Backward OX

Who would have imagined that sweet, lovable, affectionate, fluffy li’l bundle of black and white fun could turn into a savage human-eating and house-destroying monster?

I know that feeling. I have an American Cocker Spanial named Mollie. When we brought her home she was the cutest little thing in the world. Three years later, she's the most loudest dog I've ever heard. She goes on "puppy binges" sometimes as well.