cat grass

'I didn't like catnip either, and this cat grass is overrated'

Mittens demonstrated her agility skills this evening and claimed the table as her terrority. She also has mastered climbing right up my leg, most fun while I'm cooking apparently. I wish I had the photo of her claws in my jears and hanging off my butt. Next time.

la la la

Happy birthday Sarah!

Ok, so I promised pictures today, but I probably lied unless i have time before I head off to Amsterdam tonight for some afforementioned birthday celebrations.

Hey, here's an idea... what about a photo of Aisling's cat, who is called Princess Emma.

Mitten's breath smells like cat food

Oh dear Brendan, I think I have to visit the petstore again this week... to buy some scientific kitty food. My friend the internet told me a kitty can't survive on grown up (Felix) food. On the topic of food, today I found out the user manual was incorrect when it said feed her only cooked meat. Aisling's vet said raw chicken only and I doubled checked with the internet, who agreed: cats who eat raw food are healthier.

I'll post some more photos or a video tomorrow. This blog looks boring.

baptism

So it's finally time to name the kitty. The poll winning name was grace/grijs but Emme had a valid objection: her bull terrier is called grace and as she put it they are on opposite ends of the pet spectrum. Second poll winning name was mittens. It's definitely a cute name (and it rhymes with kitten - thanks Papa) but I wonder how naff I'll feel calling a grown up cat mittens

... but today after I came home and the cute furrball was balancing on my knee I noticed she has an M between her eyes. Seriously!

Brendan you won... our cat is called mittens.

Adventure

Yesterday, after Brendan came back from his 30km run in Almere, we took kitty to Amsterdam to visit Dave and Sarah. She cried a bit in the car at first, but eventually settled down. We kept her in the lounge, and she ran around, played with her table tennis ball and then fell asleep on the hifi. Oh, and how could I forget the spicy sausage from the braai?

Second Sunday

Us, playing with kitty. (soon to be named)

outside...

Last night kitty discovered the patio area... pot plants to hide behind, herbs to chew and earth to dig - cat joy? Last night Brendan gave her a tiny piece of pork chop.... yummy

Listen up, the name poll is closing soon

The little thing can't be called just kitty any longer, so folks, if you haven't already voted, do so now. The main contenders are 1. grace/grijs and 2. mittens. Sorry to those of you attached to catbert!

The next poll is going to be titled, how long can I keep up a daily blog about my kitty :)

Let's not talk about the unspeakable

and imagine she is at home playing with the ping pong balls, crumbled paper balls and springy mouse or snoozing quietly on the couch.

Darn she is still cute. We have been encouraging her to use the litter box by putting her inside at opportune moments (first thing, after she's eaten or drunk water)... and she is extremely obedient. But that's as far as her compliancy goes ... if she wants to do something (like climb in the cupboard) nothing barring an obsticle is going to stop her.

Still cute but has poop

So much for kitty settling in smoothly. Yesterday when I got home she had left a "calling card" on the bed. Lucky (and I can't believe I am saying this) it was just poop because a wee would be sooo much harder to clean. Then later she pooped in the paper recycling box and then, to top it all off she pooped on my pillow this morning. Horrors.

I'll have to consult the user manual tonight after yoga, but I found some informative sites which said I should be cleaning the litter box every day, not every second day, and that we should put her in there first thing. I'm also going to get rid of the plastic bag in the box which was when the troubles started.

But, the dear thing is still cute. darn cute in fact. She likes Brendan's shoes and the buttons on my shirt.

Isn't she so cute?

Playful little thing

Brendan kindly shared a tiny morsel of the left over spare ribs with kitty, but she turned up her cute little pink nose. What a difference to dogs who probably would have taken a piece of your finger too. I consulted the user manual and it said we could feed her (occasionally) some left overs like cooked fish or meat, but perhaps it's a bit too soon. We had a tasty spare rib and salad with a garlic and yoghurt minty sauce wrap. YUM.

Anyway.... back to the subject. The manual also told me about toys. Kitty hasn't had much interest in our play offerings up to now (except to fight with the stuffed monkey), so I when I read table tennis ball, I fetched one out the shed (useful place to store stuff we never use). Well well well, it was a hit. I'll post a video of her playing cos it's just too adorable for words.

First night ...

She's settled in easier than I expected .. not too much crying. She wasn't too upset after I left her at home for five hours alone last night to meet up with Brendan, Stu, SD and Gareth in Amsterdam, but she was hiding underneath the couch.

This morning she woke us up at 6am and bit my earring into my ear - painful. Had to lock her outside the room to enjoy a Sunday sleep-in, but she seemed quite happy underneath the couch. :)

photos

Time to blog?
Yawwwwn
Ja hoor! (Don't look at the dirty wall)

Over to you

What's your vote for the no-name-brand kitty?

Which name do you think suits her best?
catbert
ibhubesi (Zulu for lion)
september
august
grace or grijs (grey in Dutch)
volgensmij... (in my opinion - Dutch)
mittens (Brendan's fav)
Current results

We met for the first time last week and today we are living together. My new friend, a poesje. She is grey with black stripes and bits of white. I am totally inexperienced with looking after a cat. I've had dogs, fish, birds, hamsters, guinea pigs, but she is uncharted territory. I've bought the user manual though, so I should be fine (any tips welcome).

"zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz". That's her on the keyboard now, and I'd say that describes her first few hours home susciently. A bit of sleep (cos she is a baby after all, just 8 weeks), and now she's woken up feisty and doesn't fancy sharing my attention with a laptop.

"I left my mum today and all my brothers and sisters in Voorthuizen." [A nice place for camping and caravan holidays] "I did cry and searched everywhere in case one of the others came with me. No, but my new friends are decent... they sang a song for me. I like the box of firewood in their house; the smell reminds me of something."

So this is the beginning of the story, but the lead actress doesn't yet have a name. Brendan and I have been debating and have come up with a shortlist. As usual we can't decide. I'll be adding a poll shortly.