Cats Eating People Food

Yesterday a good friend of mine posted on her Facebook that she caught her two cats eating coleslaw. It’s not the first time her cats have gone after people food; one ate a strawberry last week, and when they were kittens she had to lock them in a room when I’d have lunch at her house. Otherwise they’d jump up on the table, put their paws in our water glasses, and otherwise view our plates as their personal buffet. When I think about it, I can recall many incidents of cats I knew eating people food. My old roommate’s cat … Continue reading

Cats Causing Countertop Carnage

While on the phone with my grandmother the other week she commented, “your critters sure are giving you a lot of trouble.” It’s true; first it was Chrestomanci, and now it’s Cole. While Chrestomanci wants to eat everyone else’s food in addition to his own, Cole won’t stop going up on the counter. I know he’s always been interested, and on occasion I would have to chase him off the counter or the tabletop, but recently he’s either started doing it a lot more or been more brazen about it. Now he’s even encouraged Chrestomanci to make the occasional countertop … Continue reading

When Your Cat Is A Food Thief

My cat Chrestomanci’s gluttony has continued to the point that it warrants another post. When I was trying to find ideas for how to address his overeating problems I scoured the internet for suggestions, but I didn’t find much advice. Thus I wanted to share my own experiences to help others in a similar situation. After observing the cats’ gluttony during the holidays, Jon and I performed an experiment. We’ve long suspected that Chrestomanci was eating some of Cole’s food. Usually we keep their bowls in the laundry room, which they can access via a cat door, so their food … Continue reading

Gluttony: Thy Name is Cat

After a week of intense holiday travels (we were on the road for at least 90 minutes almost every day), we’ve finally returned home. After doing so we discovered something that led to the latest chapter in Feeding Time in a Multiple Pet Household, or as I like to call it, Gluttony: Thy Name is Cat. Whenever we’re away for more than a few days I like to have someone check in on our cats. That was most important to me when Cole was an only feline child, as I knew he would really appreciate even just five minutes of … Continue reading

Glow-in-the-Dark Cats Fight AIDS

The other week I saw an animal story all over the internet, from geeky blogs to big news sites: researchers have developed glow-in-the-dark cats as part of their efforts to combat AIDS. Your first reactions are likely similar to mine: a combination of “wait, what?” and “what are they doing to those poor kitties?” Animal testing is always a tricky issue, but in this case no cats have yet been harmed and the research is not only for a very worthy cause for humans, but for cats as well. There is a feline version of HIV and that’s with what … Continue reading

Feeding Time in A Multiple Cat Household

It’s been about a month since I acquired Chrestomanci, so I’ve begun to learn how this whole multiple cat thing household works. Given my trepidation over a couple issues, like feeding and litter box time, I thought I’d share the tips I’ve learned for others thinking about adopting a second cat. My biggest concern when thinking about getting another cat was how to manage feeding time. Food has always been an issue with me with cats. Dogs are easy; most gobble their dinners down right away so that makes it much easier to regulate their diets. Cats, however, are another … Continue reading

Diagnosing Litter Box Problems

They don’t always use the box right… I’ve been noticing a disturbing pattern with the litter box lately. One of the cats, I’m not sure which, has taken to peeing on the edges of the inside of the box, splattering its sides. When I did my monthly cleaning of the area yesterday I noticed additional pee on the litter mat in between the two boxes. Unfortunately there are several reasons why either of my cats might be doing this. The first reason might be because one of them has a urinary tract infection. It’s more common for cats with UTI’s … Continue reading

Yappy Hours

On-leash food and fundraising events are more common, but the trend is changing Dogs and – alcohol? There’s a new trend going around in parties, often fundraising ones, which combines these two unlikely partners. Meet the Yappy Hour. Yappy Hours are times bars hold that allow patrons to bring their dogs along for some socializing fun. Bars realize they’ll get more dog owners (39% of the U.S. population, if the Humane Society’s statistics are to be believed) to come out to their normal happy hours if they allow them to bring their dogs, and the patrons are happy for the … Continue reading

Introducing Chrestomanci

Knowing how lonely Cole is when we leave him alone, I decided it was time to get another cat. After putting a lot of thought into it, I picked one I’d met through my experiences volunteering at the local rescue. He’s around Cole’s age and gets along with other cats. He’s a love bug; when faced with the possibility of affection he goes for it with gusto, emitting a loud rusty chain purr and mashing himself within the arms of whomever’s holding him. He’s perfect, both for Cole and for the whole family. He’s called Chrestomanci, after a character in … Continue reading

Scrapbooking Your Schedule

Schedules are important. For some people, they are the only way they know how to survive day to day. Everyone has one, even when they do not think they do. Waking up in the morning is even part of a schedule, even if it does occur at different times everyday. Scrapbooking your schedule might seem silly to you. But you would be surprised at how quickly our schedules change, even when they don’t feel like they do. And each member of your household usually has a different schedule, giving you multiple opportunities at different layouts. The best part is, they … Continue reading