Herd your cats here

[Puget]

The cat heating pads are back out for the season, and there is much rejoicing.

I think I need to get Ricochet one of these, since she's currently laying directly on top of the heading vent. Does anyone have a recommendation for one? Do you use the kind that is electric?

Yes, electric, but it must be one sold specifically as a pet heating pad (human ones can get too hot, or be unsafe if chewed/scratched). There are a ton of them available from online pet supply stores or Amazon-- not sure there is much difference between them.

[AmLitHist]

Kid #1 made a cat shelter for her barn cats out of a big plastic tote, insulated with cardboard and lined with a space blanket, with a flap to keep the wind out.  She gave us a couple of pieces of the leftover liner to see if our girls will like it to reflect their heat when they go to their respective nests.  (Fela has developed a fondness for sleeping on a clean furnace filter of all things; ALHS has gotten her to move onto an old thick quilt folded several times--very cushy.)  Of course, both have nice plush cat beds that Santa brought last year; only Little Cat uses hers. 

As to Kid #1's barn cats, they love the EZ Bake Cat Oven, as she calls it--it gets SO warm when they use it!

ETA:  as I was putting the turkey breast into the crock pot last night, to cook this morning, Fela arose from the dead (or a similarly deep sleep) in the basement, came upstairs, and immediately came to the kitchen with her tail straight up and stiff, sniffing the air.  Talk about a good sense of smell!

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

Youngest evil cat has learned a new 'trick.' She LOVES going into my plant room (so she can try to eat them), so we keep the kitchen door closed. However, she is allowed in there when she is supervised. So, she has learned that when I point at the kitchen door and say 'outside', that we are going on a trip to the plant room. She will run over to the door, sit and meow plaintively until I open it. She also knows how to sit (again I use a hand gesture and a vocal 'command').

[Parasaurolophus]

The wildercat dismembered a spider in the tub. Eight legs and a body. 0_o

[sprout]

I just learned about Talking Buttons for cats and I'm honestly fascinated.  I'm pretty sure we have at least one cat who would be perfect for it, maybe two.  Has anyone on here tried it?

[mamselle]

I've followed "BiiliiSpeaks" for a little while now.

It's...interesting...

I usually knew when one of my cats wanted something because they walked me to the refrigerator, wrapped themselves around my ankles, or jumped into my lap.

Not sure how the interface improves on that at times.

M.

[statsgeek]

I have an acquaintance who's used something like this with much success.  I'm just worried about how much mine would ask for food! 

In other news, our FosterFail girl only started her lap-sitting certification about a year ago, but her "velcro" is already growing in!  She's permanently stuck to me any time I'm at home. 

[Volhiker78]

Our tuxedo totally failed the lap-sitting course - no interest whatsoever.   Our tabby also dropped out of that course but subsequently enrolled in the 'crotch-curl' class and decided that was her major.  She only wants us to lie down either in the bed or couch,  with our feet apart,  so that she can curl up and drop in between using either our stomach or leg as a head rest. 

[FishProf]

Loki thinks he's a dog.  He plays fetch.

Thor thinks he's an alarm clock.  And thinks I should get up and feed him earlier.  He doesn't have a snooze button, but will escalate to biting and trying to drag me out of bed.

We certainly adopted interesting cats.

[Puget]

Loki thinks he's a dog.  He plays fetch.

Thor thinks he's an alarm clock.  And thinks I should get up and feed him earlier.  He doesn't have a snooze button, but will escalate to biting and trying to drag me out of bed.

We certainly adopted interesting cats.

My cats ARE the snooze button-- the alarm going off is the signal for one or both of them to come up on the bed for snuggles and pets, which is not at all conducive to getting up.

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

Elder evil cat is *READY* to go sit in the TV room and watch Netflix. He has been pacing and going bananas while we were eating dinner in the kitchen.

Uh oh! SO finally let him out and now he's on the couch in *HIS* spot waiting for me to sit down and watch TV.

[Puget]

Elder evil cat is *READY* to go sit in the TV room and watch Netflix. He has been pacing and going bananas while we were eating dinner in the kitchen.

Uh oh! SO finally let him out and now he's on the couch in *HIS* spot waiting for me to sit down and watch TV.

Hilarious-- mine do the same thing, but with getting me to turn on the fireplace so we can all settle in in front of it. They think this should happen when they are done with *their* dinners, not when I'm done with *my* dinner.

[onehappyunicorn]

https://imgur.com/gallery/Mqt9TsZ
My sister in-law knitted a little cat couch for us, Poe has really taken to it.
We had a stray female cat show up at our back door, she is pretty young and we didn't want to deal with kittens so she has been living in our sitting room for the past couple of weeks. She just went through her heat so we are going to go and get her fixed and see if we can adopt her out. She is a sweetheart but definitely does not get along with our other cats...

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

https://imgur.com/gallery/Mqt9TsZ
My sister in-law knitted a little cat couch for us, Poe has really taken to it.
We had a stray female cat show up at our back door, she is pretty young and we didn't want to deal with kittens so she has been living in our sitting room for the past couple of weeks. She just went through her heat so we are going to go and get her fixed and see if we can adopt her out. She is a sweetheart but definitely does not get along with our other cats...

So cute!

[AmLitHist]

Fela, our good big black and gray mackerel tabby, died about 8:30 last night.  ALHS and I were with her and petted and talked to her as she went.

She'd been slowing down and slept a lot the past week, and it seems her heart just stopped.  She was 16 or 17; we're not sure. She never had a sick day, and she knew she was loved and well-treated.  Her favorite things were neck and chin rubs, going outside to "help" me and ALHS on warm days, and spending her days burrowed under the comforter by my pillow and sleeping all day.

She was a College Cat:  our oldest daughter and some of her classmates found a litter in the gap under a shed on campus, and after a surprise late-season freeze killed a couple of the babies, she and some others took the others home. The kittens were only a few days old, so Fela went to classes for several weeks hidden in a sweatshirt pocket so she could be bottle fed every couple of hours.

RIP Fela-cat.  You were the very best girl.