More Urp Stories

Diego-san threw up his entire dinner from last night at about 4 a.m. this morning. I'm no expert on a cat's digestion system but since I fed them dinner at about 7:30 last night the amount of nearly undigested food seemed a little odd. Then when I went down to feed the boyz their breakfast, Diego went to his dish and didn't eat any (a first time occurence). I left for work more than a little worried...

'Nuf Said

Cheapskate

Rare visitors to my house often complain about how cold it is in the winter. That's because I only heat the house to 60 degrees. This originally was a financial choice- not wanting to pay gazillion on my heating bills- but over the years I've just figured it's easy enough to throw on a sweater or climb under a blanket if I'm cold. The boyz of course aren't so lucky. Thus my heating philosophy probably has led to Theo's newest behavior. He has been climbing underneath the covers with me. He'll lie right next to me and he likes to stick his face right in my stomach.

I'm afraid if I fall asleep I'll roll over on him- he trusts me not to do so- but generally I think he gets too warm and eventually finds a spot on top of my comforter at my feet.

Another danger of being underneath my covers is that sometimes Thompson will hop up on the bed and I don't think he realizes where Theo is and he'll stand on top of him. This leads to a tiny yelp and some scrambling on both sides of the covers.

Back to Work

After taking all last week off, today I returned to the work routine. Surprisingly Diego-san seemed the most affected by the change back to normal. As I was getting ready to go he was meowing constantly, begging for attention.

Even as I left he was there in the living room, still meowing away. I guess he got used to having me around some.

Finding His Inner Cat

It's not like any cat has a sense of humor exactly but Thompson is more serious than any cat I've ever known. Thus it always makes me happy the rare times when Thompson is in a playful or goofy or mischievous mood.

He can't exactly play with cat toys very well since it's difficult for him to swat and chase at the same time with any fluidity. He sometimes tries to run after Theo and Diego when those two are chasing each other all around the house but naturally it's hard for him to keep up.

I've noticed Thompson is more playful than he used to be. It's probably impossible not to be being around Theo and Diego all day long.

Honorory Cat

I'm housesitting my friend A's two cats, Marabou and Marcel. Housesitting may not be the appropriate term since I'm just going over to A's house and feeding the two cats. Bringing two more cats over to my house would probably not work so well.

Yesterday afternoon was my first visit. Later on I went over to my nephew's and his wife's townhouse for Thanksgiving dinner. They also have two cats, Arthur and Abby. Being around four cats that aren't my boyz was kind of a weird experience. It was weird to be around cats who didn't want to hop on my lap and didn't know what to think of me and thus weren't exactly trusting me. I got home and got my usual attention which was nice.

Thanksgiving

Three things I'm thankful for:

1) Diego-san's hugs. He'll sit on my lap facing forward, put both his front paws on my shoulders and rub his face into mine.

2) Thompson's hop. I love seeing him prance down the hall towards me in anticipation of getting his face rubbed.

3) Theo playing fetch. As soon as he hears me pull out a crinkly ball he'll get the most anticipatory look on his face knowing we're about to play.

Da Kid

Theo still has a lot of kitten like behaviors. His boundless energy and playfulness are primary examples of this.

The other prominent kitten like thing about Theo is his meow. It's a tiny little mew, except when he's just about to do something he knows will get him in trouble like closing a door behind him or pulling a towel from the rack onto the floor. That's when he lets out a squeal that sounds like a chimpanzee. That sound tends to get the other boyz attention (and mine).

Squirrelly

Diego-san was a little agitated this morning. Eventually this energy took to watching a squirrel climbing the tree in my front yard. Diego ended up stretching his long frame as high up on the window as he could and yowling at the top of his lungs.

The squirrel seemed oblivious to all this. Good thing- I'd hate to have a squirrel mock one of my boyz knowing the walls and windows of my house protect them from harm.

Vacation

Taking the entire week off (well except for tomorrow afternoon). I don't have any plans really- just looking forward to resting up and spending some quality time with the boyz. I hope I don't disrupt their schedules too much.

Year of Living Dangerously

Living with cats can sometimes be dangerous. I was laying in bed with Theo last night. He was on my arm. When I moved I must have startled him because he darted from the bed. His back claw scratched my wrist pretty deeply.

My skin is pretty dry these days in the cold dry air- so the cut hurts even more than it usually would. Theo of course had no idea what he had done. He was back by my side purring away just a few hours later.

Food Obsessed Culture

I'm beginning to think I'm not feeding the boyz enough. Seems like when I'm home all they have on their mind is the next time I will feed them.

I've arranged our schedules so they get fed three times a day- that way rationing the food and ensuring none of the three eat all the food put out.

I feed them in the morning after I take my shower. Then I feed them when I get home from work. Finally their last meal is right before I go upstairs to get ready for bed.

Right now they are all obsessed with the procedures that proceed meal times like when I brush my teeth prior to going upstairs for bed, or changing clothes when I get home from work. They know that when I'm doing those things food is on the way so they get all excited and wait for any move toward the kitchen. Since at both Theo and Thompson's last vet visit I was told that they were beginning to get a little overweight- I put all three on diet food. I don't think it fills their tummies as much. I've thought about leaving extra food out but that kinda defeats the purpose of diet food.

I guess I'll have to find some activity they enjoy as much as eating to distract them between meals...

I Am Me

Being a multiple cat house person I'm constantly amazed at how every cat (every animal for that matter) has its own personality within the species' spectrum. In other words Diego, Thompson, and Theo are all very unique individuals and yet everything they do easily falls within what is expected of cats (combinations of aloofness and neediness; curiosity and dependence on a routine; gracefulness and clumsiness...)

If I were to list all the things I would expect a cat to be like Diego would come close to matching that description. That said, he does have such a unique personality. He's definitely the leader of the trio- the other two like to follow him around and do whatever it is he's doing. That also might be why he's the one who most likes his alone time. My relationship with him has clear boundaries: he loves to be held but only for a finite amount of time; he knows the things that will get him in trouble and yet he has to do those things on occasion just to show his independence.

He's a very handsome cat- yet his paws and his tail seem out of proportion (being so large) from the rest of his frame. He's been great with Thompson- somehow knowing that Thompson is a little different from other cats and thus needs more tolerance and patience. Diego and I have had our battles (my ripped up furniture is a natural reminder of this) but at the end of the day when he comes up and begs to be combed- that's my favorite part of just about any and every day. His charm works.

Clean Up Time

Clipped all the boyz' nails yesterday. Theo and Diego don't seem to mind too much. For them I hold them in my lap with their belly facing up. I hold each paw and try to find the nail before too much squirming occurs.

Thompson doesn't like to be held in such a fashion so for him the process is a bit trickier. I have to try and wait until he's lying calmly somewhere- then I go over and try to calm him some more. Once I think he's ready I hold him down gently, and try to clip his nails as quickly as I can. He always ends up growling a deep belly growl and I can tell he's not too happy with me. But he never holds a grudge and usually later in the evening he'll come by for a face rub.

Urp

I went downstairs Saturday afternoon and discovered one of the boyz had thrown up their lunch all over the living room floor. I suspected it might have been Diego because he tends to have the most sensitive stomach.

I monitored him carefully to see if it was just a one time thing or if he might be sick. He seemed OK.

Yesterday evening after dinner the boyz were all in their own worlds doing different things in different parts of the house. Theo was over by the front door when I heard the unmistakeable sound of a cat heaving. Sure enough I went over there and he had thrown up his entire meal. Of course the other two had to check out what had come up and I had to shoo them away so I could clean it up.

Theo seems none the worse for the wear however- I'm hoping he just ate too quickly or something.

The Team

It still warms my heart to see the bond that Thompson and Diego-san have. They don't play together as much as they did when I first brought them into the household but they clearly have a respect for one another that they don't share with Theo.

If Theo walks by Thompson when Thompson is not in a playful mood, Thompson will hiss and growl. If Diego does the same- Thompson is just fine.

Likewise if Diego is lying peacefully and Theo tries to lie down next to him, most of time Diego will move to another spot. Not so if Thompson comes by and does exactly the same thing Theo tried.

I think in a way Theo has strengthened their connection- given them something else to bond over. They were together several months in a foster home before I adopted them (the adoption woman wanted them to find a home together since they got along so well). Thus they have been together longer than they've been with me and it shows.

Curling Match Two

We won our second consecutive curling match last night no thanks to me.

I was our third and going into our last end we were tied up. My job was to knock out a rock. I missed on both my throws so it appeared our opponent was going to score two and win. Fortunately our skip, Lisa made a great throw on her first rock and we ended up winning the match by one.

Curling at its most exciting.

Life's Not Always Fair

Theo and I took a long nap this afternoon. I felt bad for him because as I lie down to watch some TV he was the first to claim the spot on my chest. A little later Thompson joined us but he all but smothered Theo who by then was lying on his back by my side. Thompson hopped up on me pinning Theo against the couch. Theo didn't seem to mind- he alternated between trying to clean himself and Thompson and napping.

Later Thompson was lying on my chest and Theo hopped up to join us again. Thompson hissed at him and every time Theo gingerly tried to find a spot to lie down Thompson growled. So Theo ended up sitting on my feet.

Hey Dude, I Need Some Attention

Diego-san has really been misbehaving the past few days, likely because I haven't been around much. There are essentially three things he does that gets him in trouble and he managed to do all three the other evening:

1) He likes to scratch the living room sofa even though there is a scratching post sitting half a foot away;

2) He likes to try to crawl up the window screen on the upstairs window. This has led to me not ever opening that window since the screen has tears in it and I don't like the idea of him leaning against the screen of a second story window.

3) He likes to swat the water out of the water dish. I'm not sure what explains this particular behavior. I read in a newspaper that some cats are far-sighted so they have difficulty determining where the top of the water is in their dish thus they use their paws before sticking their face in the water. That article suggested putting a floating object in the water dish to help the cat know where the top of the water is. I tried this but Diego took it as another toy to play with and thus he was even more active swatting water all over the kitchen floor. He hadn't done this for awhile but the other day I found him standing in a puddle of water.

When he first moved in I used to holler at him whenever he misbehaved but this just seemed to bother Thompson more than the intended recipient. I hope this recent misbehavior is just another phase to our relationship.

Thompson in Action

I love how when Thompson decides he wants to get somewhere he bounds off with his little hop walk. He wastes no time or energy. His singlemindedness in getting to his destination often causes Diego or Theo to follow and they of course can sometimes run right by him. But he doesn't seem to mind. He's very good at keeping the end goal in mind.

Leftovers

Worked around the clock yesterday. Didn't get home until around 2 a.m. and then it was back to work at 7 a.m. The boyz seemed a tad discombulated at my brief appearance and the change in schedule.

I left the boyz double the food in the morning to last them until I got home. Of course Thompson just ate his normal one meal amount and then Diego and Theo finished up his leftovers. Poor guy.

I myself am tired, but it's a good kind of tired.

Election Day

I'm sure the boyz don't have any ability to understand the importance of what is going on today. I think that's not necessarily a bad thing.

The Observer

Diego seems brighter than your average bear (or cat for that matter). A lot of this comes because he watches things carefully. If I move a box or bag to another part of the room- he's always there to check out the difference he notices.

He's constantly watching me (in a noncreepy way) and if I do something he hasn't seen me do before- he's right there to check out the implications and results. I admire that.

Curling

My third season of curling began and we won our match 6-4. The first rock I threw was perfect, ended up just where my skip wanted it and led to us getting an early lead.

Problem is given my rudimentary curling skills that probably means I won't throw a better rock all season and it's all downhill from here...

Kneady

Yesterday and today Thompson hopped up onto my chest as I was lying down and he tried to do that kneading thing that cats do with their front paws. Of course since Thompson is missing one of his front legs this wasn't working too well for him.

He grabbed onto my chest with his claws and tried to maintain balance. He didn't give up trying even though he was having a difficult time staying standing up.

I do wonder what he thinks about when he can't do something that is instinctive for cats to do...

Theo's World

Theo has pretty admirable world view. He is as sweet as can be around people. He loves rubbing up against legs, mindlessly walking in between a standing person's two legs. He loves sitting on a person's lap or chest.

He loves playing- either chasing a ball or chasing after Thompson or Diego.

When it comes to meal time he's got a one track mind. If I make any movement toward the kitchen and it's around meal time no matter where he is in the house Theo will make a mad dash toward his dinner dish. He's a much slower eater than Thompson or Diego but this serves him well because if they leave any food in their dish, he'll finish it up for them after he's done with his own meal.

His life therefore is about affection, play, and looking forward to the next meal (which he cherishes).

Water Watcher

Thompson has developed a fondness, like Diego, of drinking water straight out of the tap. He also, like Diego, has become fascinated by the sight and sound of running water.

He will sit on the upstairs vanity and I'll turn the tap on for him. After he is finished drinking he'll sit with the most curious look on his face watching the water stream from the faucet. I think he'd watch it for hours if I didn't have water bills to pay.

More Tricks than Treats

Halloween was as expected. Diego spent all evening strategically perched on the living room coffee table where he could keep an eye on everything going on. Theo rushed to the door each and every time the doorbell rang as he quickly caught on to the routine and wanted to check out all the visitors to our house. Thompson stayed in the safety of the stairs leading to the upper wing of the house.

We had about 15 trick or treaters- not a very big number (lots of extra candy). My sister's family came over for their traditional visit to my house. The boyz greeted my two nieces but were nowhere to be seen when the rest of the family (my sister, brother-in-law, and two nephews) arrived.

I spent the rest of the evening wondering when I should go to bed- was 8:30 too early to stop answering the door? Turned out no one showed up after eight, but still I couldn't help but remember back to my days dressing up for the occasion- how I so looked forward to Halloween- all the candy and pretending to be something else for just one day...