Cat thread

[rattran]

Otto did that for a while, after he got the top spot in the house for a few months after Oscar died. Boss cat gets to wear boss human clothes? GF's little old lady cat does it to her jeans, but we always it was for warmth.

[Signe]

Right.  You have cats and YOU'RE the boss?  You are so adorable!

[Segoris]

Don't just stand there... DO SOMETHING!

It took roughly one month for them to have all of their animals adopted. Awful they're closing, but it's great they were able to have that many animals adopted in that short of a time.

DECEMBER 8, 2012: IT'S OFFICIAL...AS OF TODAY EVERY SINGLE ONE OF OUR BEAUTIFUL PETS HAVE BEEN PLACED IN LOVING HOMES! The staff of SPAC would like to extend our sincere gratitude to all of our faithful supporters for your kindness and generosity. Thanks to you we were able to remain open throughout 2012 and to find homes for an additional 450 pets who would have otherwise had nowhere else to go. PLEASE REMEMBER TO VISIT AND SUPPORT OUR OTHER LOCAL SHELTERS AND RESCUES WHO HAVE MANY WONDERFUL CATS AND DOGS WHO STILL NEED HOMES. We will miss you all...... 

Part of Lant's last post make it sound like it came out of bad romance novels or fanfic

That said, I've had a friends cat do this. I figure it's their way to remind you, as if they'd let you forgot, who runs the house in their mind.

[Sky]

Last night Dancer picked up a new pastime:  Diving into my jeans.

I'm doing my normal human bodily function thing, so my pants are down, and suddenly she's burrowing through my panties into the deepest recesses of my jeans she can manage.  I'm laughing so hard I'm pissing myself (thankful I was in the proper spot for that).  She did not want to give up that spot either, so I had to slip out of my pants which she proceeded to camp on for the next several hours.  By slip, I mean not very gracefully exit, which she didn't seem to care about.  These were now hers.  She got up at one point to get some water, then went right back to them.

Then the little bugger did it again to my PJs when I was doing my nightly get-ready-for-bed ritual.

What the hell, cat?

Hawt.  Bart went through that phase for a while when he was small, I think he stopped when he was around a year old.

Part of Lant's last post make it sound like it came out of bad romance novels or fanfic

Passed Will save to not sig it.

Fiancee just sent me this:

[rattran]

With 5 to 8 cats in the house, someone needs to be the boss. And it's nice to have cats that come when called, and will put up with bathing/grooming/nail trimming/tooth brushing whatever without struggling, just whining about it.

[apocrypha]

Haha awesome. Cats rock.

[Bunk]

Lant's story is awesome. Apoc, your picture is less so. A story would have sufficed.

Harmony's weird bathroom behaviour when she was younger, was to stick her head between my legs to look in the bowl while I was peeing. Amazingly I don't think she ever actually got hit.

[Signe]

Thanks for that update, Segoris.  Warm and fuzzy.

[Sky]

Lantyssa, you really need to shave your legs!

[Hawkbit]

Aww, crap.  That comic.

I've made cat trees, even thought about it as a hobby-business at some point.
I've cleaned the boxes for nearly 15 years we've been together.
I watch stupid cat videos.
I'd rescue them all if I could.

And I married a dog person.

[Lantyssa]

Lantyssa, you really need to shave your legs!

I might be slacking on shaving, but I don't think it's possible for me to get that hairy even if I abstained for a year.

Besides, I was already out of my pants when I took the pictures.  (Yes,  the joke has already been made about dropping my pants for some pussy.)

[apocrypha]

Lant's story is awesome. Apoc, your picture is less so. A story would have sufficed.

Harmony's weird bathroom behaviour when she was younger, was to stick her head between my legs to look in the bowl while I was peeing. Amazingly I don't think she ever actually got hit.

Not my pic, it was supplied by the intarwebs!

Sputnik has a tendency to come and watch while I pee too. Cats are weird, but also awesome.

[Sky]

Besides, I was already out of my pants when I took the pictures.

I've made cat trees, even thought about it as a hobby-business at some point.

Would you like to share some tips? We have one we bought years ago, but being subjected to a 22lb active cat, it's worse for wear to say the least. Every other piece we see is too flimsy and/or small for him.

[01101010]

Would you like to share some tips? We have one we bought years ago, but being subjected to a 22lb active cat, it's worse for wear to say the least. Every other piece we see is too flimsy and/or small for him.

I found a huge piece of broken Oak (about 5ft high +12" around, with a 3 of 4-5" branches coming out of it on one end) after TS Allison blew threw Baton Rouge. After letting it bake in the sun a few days, I made a base for it and let the cats have at it. They loved it more than the carpeted tree I had. That said, you can build them on the cheap - use the 4-5" wood posts (the rounded ones), cut them to size, and get > 5/8 ply wood, then skate over to the the carpet remnants store of find some rugs on sale and you are good to go. Liquid nails on the flat surfaces and staples in the corners. If you want to get elaborate, you can do the sisal rope around the posts... though this is a BITCH to get as tight as the store bought.

edit: got rid of the spacious pic part...

[Samwise]

One of my early carpentry projects as a kid was making a cat tree out of 4x4s, plywood, and carpet remnants.  I think my brother is still using that thing as a bedside table, actually.  It seems like cat trees you buy in stores are mostly made out of cardboard, but if you build something out of lumber it'll hold up much better.

(fakeedit: what Binary said.)

[Hawkbit]

Pretty much what these folks are saying.  4x4s for big cats, 1" ply for base and top levels.  I like a good 2'x2' or 3'x3' base and platfoms.

I only attach remnants by glue and staples to the base and platforms.  For the posts, my cats like carpet, but I have to replace them every year because they shred the carpet.  So instead of gluing them or stapling, I simply wrap a piece tightly around the post, then tie it in 3-4 places with sisal.  Easy to remove and replace.

Hardest part is working with carpet; the fibers dry my hands out terrible.

With 4x4 posts the thing will be HEAVY.  Though I spend $50-60 to make a stronger version of what they make in the stores for $250.

Here's some ideas: 

http://jacksongalaxy.com/2012/08/07/catification-build-your-own-custom-cat-tree-using-re-purposed-dresser-drawers/

Cat bridge is awesome:  http://jacksongalaxy.com/2012/06/24/catification-the-cat-bridge/

[rattran]

I use 2 2x4s sandwiched for posts. You can staple the carpet inside one before you screw them together, then wrap it around and glue or tie the overlap. I did get to refurbish a Cat tree by putting a 10' section of 4" schedule 40 pvc up the middle. Sturdiest cat tree ever.

[rk47]

i want to be a cat.

[Miasma]

i want to be a cat.

That's a thing now.  A horrible, nauseating thing.  Of course judging by the images you find you probably already know of it.

[rk47]

That is vewy interesting read, Nyaaaaa

[apocrypha]

First thing after the article?

miss-shoesniffer likes this

 

[Tebonas]

WTF?

I hope somebody is on Suicide Watch when her cat dies.

[Sky]

Much love for Jackson Galaxy.

Good call on the replaceable carpet posts, my tard ignores the sisal post completely and the carpet got so shredded I had to duck tape parts of it. Which is hideous in the living room. The tree is on its last legs, so I'll have to slap something together. I've been hesitant, because I don't want it to look like shit (in the living room).

I'm also trying to balance size with a good layout.

[rattran]

GF's cats would ignore sisal, I got some catnip, steeped it in a bit of boiling water, and rubbed the resulting mush into the sisal. After a few days of doing this, they LOVE sisal.

My cats prefer very narrow sisal wrapped around posts to the heavy thick rope wrapped ones.

[Sky]

Carpet selection? I read somewhere that you're not supposed to use a loop carpet, rather you should use one with cut ends. The carpet on both his tree and little round thing he doesn't fit into anymore are looped and he's always pulling it out when he scratches it.

Not a big deal except he will then eat it because he eats everything that fits in his mouth.

[Bunk]

Harmony loves her post but completely ignores the rope wrapping. If I could find a simple way to replicate the back of my dining room chairs on to a cat post she'd be in heaven.

[rattran]

I use outdoor 'marine' carpet from whatever box store is nearby. It's non-loop, fairly cheap, and easy to clean. I go for the version that feels more like carpet than astroturf though.

[Hawkbit]

I've always used basic cheap apartment grade carpet.  Snag a 3' section from the hardware store for less than $10 and it will be enough for a full project and post replacements for a least a few years. 

However, my jackasses don't eat the pieces that they pull off.  For that, I would talk to a carpet dealer and see what the strongest carpets are, then buy a small amount for the job.

Good call on the catnip mash, I might try that.  However, my boys become raging fucking assholes around catnip.  Claws come out and they attack anything in sight.  It's like angel dust for cats. 

[01101010]

Harmony loves her post but completely ignores the rope wrapping. If I could find a simple way to replicate the back of my dining room chairs on to a cat post she'd be in heaven.

I think I lucked out with my two cats. Second day I had them, Spi started to claw the mat by the door, so I casually moved him to the rope scratching post, put his paws on it, and he immediately went to town while giving me a look like 'this is how to do it?' He taught the other one and that was that. Never scratched anything else in the house, and loved the sisal. As much as I'd like to get a cat in the future, I hesitate because I lucked out on the two I had.

[Sky]

For that, I would talk to a carpet dealer and see what the strongest carpets are, then buy a small amount for the job.

Oh, good call. I know a guy.

[Ingmar]

Ours naturally gravitate to the post/cat house/cardboard scratchers for the most part without any training, though Lizzie occasionally decides to use the carpet in the doorway to our bedroom. The most important thing for her appears to be the ability to stare wildly at one of us while she does it so we could probably solve it by putting a cardboard tray there too.

[Sjofn]

It really is sort of unnerving how it seems like she HAS to stare at us. Jack just likes to scratch where he is supposed to, eventually stretching his butt so far back and his front paws so high up, he flops over. Then Lizzie licks his head.

And then she bites him.

[Trippy]

She wants to make sure you know that she could shred you to pieces if she wanted to but as long as you treat her well she won't.

[Hawkbit]

I had to go to Petco recently and noticed they have these $30 cardboard castles for cats to play in.  People will buy anything.  It's a cardboard box with holes in it.  For $30.  Heh.

[Sjofn]

She wants to make sure you know that she could shred you to pieces if she wanted to but as long as you treat her well she won't.

She does seem worried we'd forget!