Kittie Critters

Cats are perplexing animals. I didn't like them when I was a kid. Then I met a woman (who is now my wife) who had a cat named Max. Max and I seemed to have a lot in common, and in time, Max became my best buddy.




But Max left this world far too early in September of 2004 while in surgery. He had a tumor that turned out to be inoperable. I miss him dearly, but now we have two recent additions to the family.

First, there is Zoe.




When we got Zoe, she looked a lot like Max, but with shorter hair. She was shades of gray like Max was, and was even missing the same fang as Max and had a similar nick in her ear (though Max's was from a cat fight). We got Zoe from a woman who could no longer care for her, and I think she didn't care for her very well, because when we brought Zoe home, all she did was lick.

Lick, lick, lick!

It was incessant and constant and repetitive and annoying. She also wasn't affectionate and didn't like to be touched. I think we have had her for about 9 months now, and we think she is about 6 years old, but now she is not the same cat we brought home. She still licks occasionally, but nothing out of the ordinary. We no longer have to call her "Monk". She has also changed color! Her coat is now vibrant with shades of orange and black, and her gray streaks are more well defined, and her hair is soft. And she even purrs now and demands attention at times, and even approaches me on occasion wanting me to pet her! This is truly a different cat than she was nine months ago, though she still doesn't like to be touched on her back or to be picked up.

But just as Zoe was beginning to feel at home...perhaps for the first time...we dropped a bomb shell on her world by bringing home little kitten Kala.




Zoe didn't like that at all. Suddenly, Zoe was yet a different cat than we had ever seen. Such strange noises she made. We thought she might take to a kitten, so did not quite expect the behavior we witnessed. And for weeks on end. When Zoe wasn't hissing and batting at Kala, she was leaving the room in disgust, wanting nothing to do with us.

Zoe would not be shared.

But Kala was (and is) a playful thing. Actually, it is more like she is possessed. There is this switch inside of her that will just suddenly turn on, and it's like the Energizer bunny with too much juice, and she is all over the room like a wild boomerang on steroids. She loves to climb up on things - especially things we don't want her to climb on. And she is the stretchiest, most wirey cat I have ever seen. She's like a rubber band and a rubber ball all rolled into one.

She also thinks she is a dog. She chews on things and digs in the plants. And she plays with rocks of all things. But the most hilarious thing she likes to do is to play with a paper grocery bag. She runs and dives right into it, then rolls around inside, chasing her tail, then she'll jump out and attack Zoe, then run back into the bag.

Kala is also deaf.

I realized one day that Kala can't hear, because she was always startled whenever I came up to her from behind. I did some tests to see if she would respond to various noises, but got no response. She is stone cold deaf. Therefore, she can't hear Zoe hissing and growling and screaming at her.

As a result, Kala was persistent and insistent about playing with Zoe. Kala just wanted to play (though she plays rough), so she would follow Zoe around like a shadow. Finally, one day, Zoe began to relent a bit. And now, once again, Zoe is a new cat.

Zoe and Kala play together a lot these days. Zoe still hisses and growls when Kala gets a little rough (and sometimes I have to step in to cool things down a bit), but now Zoe is picking up behaviors from Kala. And she seems so much happier. We think Zoe has had some litters in the past, and this may be the first time she has really had the chance to just be herself. She's becoming a real cat! And as for Kala, well she is a little terror (when she is not being incredibly sweet) and is growing up fast.

Zoe has no problem with being shared now, because she knows she will get all the attention she needs - that there is enough of Chris and me to go around. They even share the same sleeping space now - and Zoe doesn't mind Kala touching her. Kala can be seen often, draped over the edge of a chair. She must like being inverted.




How sweet they look together. That's only when they are sleeping.

When Kala's switch gets thrown - LOOK OUT! She is quick and fast, but not always coordinated. She has learned not to jump up on some things while we are around, or she will get sprayed with water. But when we are not around, it is free reign, man! And I don't know how to stop her. I put some adhesive sticky tape stuff on the furniture to keep the cats from scratching, but Kala just chews it off and plays with it. She's not intimidated. And Zoe is beginning to think that because Kala can get up on things (regardless of whether she is allowed) that she can, too. But we're trying to discourage that.

Sisters!

Last night - Halloween - was very odd. Instead of going out to celebrate, we were out selling another car. We sold off the Honda Accord. So, now we have the Toyota Celica and are bringing home the Mazda Protege 5 on Saturday. But that has nothing to do with the cats.

When we came home after selling the car, the cats were rather subdued. Zoe snuck into the bedroom that morning (where she is not allowed due to my allergies) and went to sleep on the bed before eating breakfast. I let her stay, thinking she must need a break from Kala, and she slept there the entire day. That night, I came home and sat in my chair, and Kala just plopped down next to me and purred and rested quietly. Zoe came in and hung out with us, too. Later, we fed them, and they ate, and then they just came back to hang out with us.

This was very unusual. Where was that switch? Were the evil spirits that normally possess these cats at night out partying somewhere? Were the cats just too pooped to play? It was very weird.

But it was very nice for a change.