Diary of a Cat Care B&B: The Test

by Aimee Amodio | More from this Blogger

29 Jun 2008 02:38 PM

Some days really test your coping skills. Today was one of those days at the cats-only boarding facility.

Let me say right off the bat that I have some pretty awesome coworkers. The gal I worked with today did a HUGE share of the work while I dealt with one surprise after another.

The worst surprise was the first one... but it really set the tone for the entire shift. The cat who was in the playroom overnight must have gotten spooked or upset or just plain sick -- this morning, the room was full of poop. And when I say "full of poop" I mean there were piles by the window, by the door, and on the shelves. Poop was smeared in a swooping arc across the floor, linking one pile to another.

Poor little guy. I cleaned him up first -- he had poop on his paws and stuck to his bottom. My best guess is that some folks from the nightclub at the end of the shopping center were fooling around and scared him? There have been rowdy folks yelling and throwing things and generally acting like idiots in the parking lot before.

I fortified myself with some caffeine (sweet, delicious caffeine) and attacked the mess in the playroom next. After picking up the piles, I found that most of the mess had hardened and was well stuck to the floor and climbing shelves. I sprayed it all down with a cleaning solution and started scrubbing. Three attempts later, I went for the hot water, Pine-sol, and a scrub brush.

Most of the playroom floor had to be scrubbed by hand with the brush. Two out of four climbing shelves also needed a good scrubbing -- they have ridged surfaces for traction, and yes there was poop in the treads. All in all, it took me close to an hour to get the playroom cleaned and sanitized.

Shortly thereafter, the little poop factory's owners showed up. I explained what had happened and we gave his poor hindquarters another cleaning with the waterless shampoo.

As for the rest of the day, it wouldn't have been SO bad without the poopstorm that started things off. We had two guests show up without reservations, and two more go home ahead of schedule. But after the bad start, I spent the rest of the morning feeling like I was so far behind I'd never catch up again.

Don't you just hate that feeling?

Learn more about Aimee Amodio

Aimee is a fiction writer... dog lover... music lover...

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