Smokey's new year's resolutions

Hi, Smokey, do you have any resolutions for the new year?

Photo by KYH

"Find more food. Go outside more."


How about losing some weight? We weighed you again recently and unfortunately you still weigh 15 pounds.

"..."

Smokey's Christmas

Smokey was very loved this Christmas. He received lots of presents from two kind and thoughtful friends.

Some yummy treats...

Photos by KYH

A fab catnip mouse with a fluffy tail... (As you can see he LOVES the fluffy tail.)

And a whole bag of catnip toys! (He particularly favors the fluffy red bell toy. He will play modified catch with it.)

On behalf of Smokey, we thank our good friends for these great toys!

Muscle building

Smokey! How did you get such big arms?!

"Always had these. Gotta keep fit for the lady cats."

Merry Christmas!

"..."

Smokey looked like maybe he was starting to like wearing the reindeer ears... 

Photos by KYH

Couch potato

This is more than just about cat tv, people. Smokey watches TV. Over Thanksgiving weekend, we watched a documentary about a man who hand raised a nest of wild turkeys. We didn't even prompt him or direct his attention to the TV. He just looked up and noticed running turkeys. And kept watching.

Ok, so I exaggerated. It's not like Smokey watches random shows. Like, we were watching Walking Dead the other night and he was not at all attracted to all the blood and gore of attacking zombies.

Big, soft couch

Flat Stanley comes for a visit

Flat Stanley recently visited us. We introduced him to Smokey. 

Amazingly, Smokey isn't not amused! 

Well, he's not exactly amused either, but at least he willingly participated in the photo op.

I hug myself

Bully

In an earlier post, I may have claimed that Smokey wasn't a bully. (I can't remember if I ever published that post.) I am wrong. He is.

A friend of ours is heading home for Christmas and asked if we might be able to take her adorable beagle for two weeks, so we introduced Smokey and Riley to each other. We thought it might be possible since Smokey lived with three dogs in his previous home.

The truth is, we introduced Smokey and Riley months before, but it did not go well. Riley went crazy in our apartment and upset Smokey when she sniffed at Smokey's food dish and especially when she ran into our bedroom. You should have seen how Smokey followed after Riley into our bedroom--you could tell he was going in to regulate.

The second time, we thought maybe we would give them more time to get used to each other. Maybe they would warm up to each other. Riley was brought in on a leash and Smokey was given free reign since I had read that it was the best way to introduce dogs and cats. Riley walked in super happy while Smokey seemed at ease.

So it turns out Smokey steps up his game with animals the same size or smaller than he. This is so unlike his cautious self during walks and laid back self all other times. In the face of other similar or smaller sized animals, he becomes the alpha cat. He was not afraid of Riley even though she beats him by about 10 pounds. In fact, in every encounter, he placed himself at strategic, higher ground to watch Riley's every move and to prepare for attack. Yes, attack. This time, he did not care if Riley licked his dish or drank his water, but he did get mad when Riley approached his bed. He would jump in to defend his territory. If Riley ever looked like she was going to meet him face to face, which was very rare because she was more the scaredy cat, Smokey would charge and threaten to scratch. It was like he was taunting Riley to come closer: "Hey, b****, you want some of this?!"

Riley did not come closer. She kept up her good spirits, tail wagging throughout even when retreating away from Smokey's reach. Ah, lots of backing away, yes, and hiding behind the people, too. Upbeat yet disappointed she didn't have the courage to meet Smokey eye to eye.

At one point later in the meeting, it actually seemed like they were going to warm up to each other. But it was just the calm before the final threat of attack.

Yes, our cat is a bully, but we still love him.

Oh, and if we ever bring a dog into the home again, it's definitely going to be a big dog (of course one who likes cats in a non-threatening way). See if he likes them apples.

TV for cats

Sometimes I indulge Smokey with a bit of cat television. 

On the move

We moved into a new apartment and when I went over to get some work done, I figured I would let Smokey tag along (read: I dragged him there) so he could get used to the new place. He was very distressed for most of it, meowing nonstop even while wandering around and sitting on the window sills.

He neglected the toy I brought to keep him company.

He used to love this toy, by the way. He would lick it until I took it away from him. Not so today.

Oh, wait, there he goes. Small head, big body!

I still have material from the last apartment, so don't get confused if you see two different interiors!

Cuddle bunny

The past couple of weeks, Smokey has taken to hopping on the couch with us when we watch TV at night. He likes to scooch in behind the other half when the other half gets up or moves to the edge of the seat.

Then one recent night:

He never liked laps before, but look at him now!!!

By the by, this is an honor reserved only for my other half. Smokey spends so much time with me he is utterly unmoved by my presence, especially since I am less responsive to his demands for food.

He's very big.

Sometimes we forget Smokey is a big cat. He can appear slim on occasion.

Our neighbors across the way have two cats, Angel and Scamp, and when we first saw them, we thought they were big. Their owner, too, described Scamp as a bigger cat.

Then we got Smokey. Since we didn't know how Smokey would interact with other cats, we did not introduce him to Angel and Scamp. As such, we never really thought about the differences in size. Every so often we would see Angel and Scamp out on a walk and the other half would come home saying they were big cats.

One day, on a whim, I asked Angel and Scamp's owner about their weights. Angel was, oh, 9 pounds, and Scamp, probably 11 pounds. 

Smokey at his first weigh-in was about 13 1/2 pounds. 13 1/2 pounds. On his recent visit to the vet, he weighed 15 pounds. This is when the vet instructed me to put Smokey on a diet. 

To underscore how much of a fatso we have made our cat (yes, it is our fault for feeding him too much and not exercising him enough), we encountered a slim black cat on our walk home the night before. 

After two weeks of reduced food, I can feel Smokey's spine again. Yet his thick limbs, wide girth, and jowly face remain. Even if Smokey weren't so fat, however, he is pretty large scale. That is just the way his body is built. So, people meet Smokey with the impression that he is BIG.

I can't help but think of Maru's situation. I'm sure Smokey is thinking the same thing whenever we call him a chubster, fatso, or truck.

In case you worry we hurt Smokey's feelings by calling him names, Smokey can hold his own. He casts us a hearty glare to let us know how rude we are.

Roll!

Post-walk

     

Post-walk, Smokey still wants to go outside. 

"Dammit. Why did you carry me back inside."

Can you walk a cat? Out and about

Smokey looks skinnier from above...

Peeking around the bush:

Contemplating heading back to the apartment:

Okay, we can go.

Waiting for people to pass:

Wants to drag me into the parking lot through the bushes:

Displeased at not getting his way:

Okay let's go elsewhere:

Forges ahead:

What has caught your attention, Smokey? 

Like a baby

Good morning

"Myawrrrr."

"Time to get up."

Actually, we never see Smokey in his bed in the morning. Mostly at night and sometimes in the afternoon. 

Shleepy

Bunny

 For whatever reason, I like to call Smokey is a bunny. Don't you see the resemblance?

But then it doesn't look like Smokey is amused that I call him that.

"I'm not a bunny. I am a cat."

Open sesame

Scene 1: Smokey relentlessly bites toes. I chase him out of the room and close the door on him.

Scene 2: Smokey bumps against the door. I dread the possibility of Smokey doing this until we open the door again. We are fortunate that he stops.

Scene 3: All quiet on the western front.

Scene 4: Smokey jumps on the bed. How did he get in?! Both of us are still in bed and have not opened the door.

In my drowsiness did I neglect to close the door properly? Or can Smokey now open doors by himself?!

"I will never tell."

A peaceful night

Yesterday morning my other half was so sleepy, he could not be bothered to give Smokey his allotted half can of wet food for breakfast. All Smokey had for breakfast was a 1/8 cup of dry food.

When dinnertime came around at 6pm, I gave him a whole can of wet food. I wasn't sure it was a good idea because there was a chance he would scarf it all down and immediately puke it out from eating too fast. I hoped that the 1/8 cup of dry food mixed in would slow him down. 

Amazingly, Smokey did not puke. Even more amazingly, we let him sleep with us and he did not bite any toes in the wee hours of the morning. Maybe we should make a permanent switch in his feeding schedule? 

With a vengeance

This is an update on Smokey and biting. Smokey does not bite me but he consistently bites my other half in the morning.

For a while, we kept Smokey out of our bedroom because he would take to biting my other half's toes when he was ready to eat breakfast. But then, he would bump the door until my other half got up (somehow I lucked out in being able to sleep more heavily; I don't even hear the bumping half the time). Energized by his morning meal, he would be ready to play...by biting toes...at which point he would be locked out of the room again. All this was done with much frustration but without any physical altercation with Smokey.

The last few days, we've been leaving the door open. We went away for one night and Smokey seemed to miss us, so we gave him the option of sleeping with us. He was good the first night but the next night he started biting toes again. The other half responded by decisively kicking him off the bed. He said he heard Smokey hit the chair just beyond the foot of our bed. Smokey went away for the rest of the morning, probably licking his wounds.

The following morning, however, when the other half kicked him off the bed, Smokey returned immediately and bit harder, probably with much satisfaction with exacting his revenge.

No bananas

We believe in providing Smokey a proper diet of wet and dry cat food. 

But, er, he doesn't seem to like other kinds of food anyway. 

Home

Finally, after a couple months with us, Smokey found his bed.

He arrived in our home with his bed, he just never slept in it. We even physically placed him in the bed but he would immediately get out. Perhaps he slept in the bed without us knowing?

Then one day a month after, he went in all by himself. He slipped behind the bookshelf, then behind the television stand next to it, entered his bed at the end, and proceeded to "make bread." Shortly thereafter, he curled up to nap. 

It was a delight to watch him look so comfortable. I felt bad that we were going away that weekend, knowing that it would take him another few weeks to get comfortable again. 

But, he did get comfortable again. Now he regularly takes naps in his bed. I hope this means he knows he's at home.

Little vampire cat

Just in time for Halloween.

Confucius cat

Your laptop is my pillow

Um. Hi, Smokey. You sure look comfortable plonked down on my keyboard. 

"You are right, I am very comfortable. What a nice pillow."

Can you walk a cat? Part 5: Off and on the leash

I mentioned in the last post that I take Smokey out for walks on the leash, so I figured since the cat is out of the bag (hur hur), I better update our walking adventures.

In the previous installment, I stated my intent to walk Smokey off the leash. I did it, but I don't think I'll do it again. While Smokey can sometimes be like a dog, coming when called, he is still a cat and prone to ignore his caretakers when he chooses.

The first walk started blissfully enough. It was a beautiful afternoon and Smokey did not hesitate as he stepped out the door in his harness. I let go of the leash as he nosed into the bushes outside the door so he could wander in. But then he decided he wanted to go to the parking lot. And under cars. I hung out with him for a while, trying not to look suspicious. Eventually I had to drag him out from under the car. He grudgingly returned to the grass but started to growl from deep in his belly. That was when I realized that I better pick him up and go home before he decided he wasn't going to put up with me anymore and run off by himself.

The second walk also started out well. I kept him on the leash this time and he was okay with it. We wandered outside for quite a while when people started coming home from work. By this walk I knew that Smokey usually lays low and otherwise ignores people walking by, but there were too many for him to handle calmly. Every time one would look like he/she was walking toward him, he would dart away. Thank goodness I had him on the leash or I would have lost him. I resolved never to let him off the leash after this experience.

Since the two walks above, Smokey and I have had some decent walks. In fact, I have some pictures to share in the next post. Stay tuned!

On his own two legs

I took Smokey to the vet today. The vet was amazed when at one point Smokey sat up on the counter and stood on his two hind legs.

"He does some cool stuff!" the vet marveled.

One day I will catch Smokey on his hind legs on camera.

The first time I took Smokey to the vet, the other vets and vet assistants came to ogle at him because he's such a handsome jowly cat.*

This guy, he always attracts a crowd.

Oh, and about the visit to the vet, not to worry that Smokey is not well. Apparently cats are very good at vomiting, especially after they eat grass. No more grass for Smokey during our leash walks.

Also we have to feed him much less food. The poor thing gained 1.5 pounds because we love him too much.

*In case you're wondering how Smokey has such cool jowls, it's because he was neutered some time after he reached sexual maturity. I read somewhere that his jowls could mean that there are little Smokeys running around somewhere.

Surveying his kingdom

Innocent

When dogs do something wrong or embarrassing, you can tell by their face or body language. Cats have no such sense of shame or remorse. Or maybe they eventually learn it?

Smokey did not scratch much when he arrived, so I assumed that we would not have to worry about him ruining our furniture. I bought him one of those long cardboard scratchers just in case. Then on a whim I bought him a sisal mat scratcher. He liked it very much compared to the cardboard scratcher. It was kind of like his place mat. Wherever we left it on the floor, he would lounge on it, he loved it so much. 

But then one day I caught him. There he lay sprawled on his side against the bottom of the couch. His paws stretched forth and began to scratch. 

No! Bad Smokey! 

He looked up at me. "What?" 

Nevertheless, he stopped for the moment I was staring at him. Then the moment I looked away, the scratching sound began again. 

SMOKEY! 

Again, the blank look on his face. 

The above exchange happened intermittently over the next few weeks, with me trying to remedy his desire to scratch elongated by shoving the cardboard scratcher on its side against the bottom of the couch. No dice. He even started on the arm of the couch. Then he really began to freak me out when he decided once that scratching the door frame would be a good idea. I immediately ran out and bought a tall vertical scratcher. He loves it, so I thought problem solved.

Yet today there I found him, again, on his side, at the bottom of the couch...and the scratching sound restarted. 

BAD SMOKEY! 

This time, his paws shrunk back and he stared up at me inquisitively. Was that a twinkle of shame I spied or did he put on a mask of remorse just to appease me?