more cat tales

Random Cat Tales, Part Deux

From ~Nov 2005: I had been getting lots of lap-time with the psycho kitty while Kosh was away on his rotations in St Louis and Iowa. And the cat seemed to be *so* passed out on my lap that sometimes I'd momentarily panic wondering if she’s breathing anymore, then I'd have to stop what I’m doing (usually sudoku or reading or watching tv) and just watch her to make sure there *was* movement in her chestal area.

From ~ 1999 or so: Here’s a tail tale of a stray male cat that was strutting its stuff, when some friends and I were at this outdoor stall in the Ampang Point area (before the crackdown on not allowing mamak shops to put extra tables & chairs on the pavement & road at night to accommodate their customers). I noticed the male cat exploring, sniffing at peoples’ legs, looking for food… then… I saw that arching of his back and wiggle of his tail: he had “marked” someone’s leg!! The guy didn’t realize what was going on since he was wearing jeans so didn’t feel the spray… but man oh man I bet he would figure it out soon enough once the smell hits him LOL!

From a few days ago [maybe last Friday?]:

So week after I got back to the U.S., on one of our random shopping trips, Kosh was looking for a cat bed for the kitty to sleep in. After all, the poor cat was having to make do with hardwood floors compared to the previous apartment in urbana that was fully carpeted! I thought it was a bit on the small side, but the kitty seemed to like it well enough: often you could find her all curled up snugly in it - very the cute :-)

Then. One fateful day. perhaps last Friday. I looked up as she got into the kitty bed, did a half-squat, and, well, I could have sworn she was peeing! In her bed! Not quite believing my eyes, I nudged Kosh and brough his attention to the cat. Oh boy did he get mad! Yep, the cat was indeed a-peein in its bed. We didn't feel like salvaging it, so out into the trash it went.

Perhaps she was objecting to the kittly litter not having been cleaned out [i'd planned to do it the day before, and forgot...]? Or is she having a UTI? She's due for her annual check-up and shots anyway, so we'll find out soon enough [once we find a reasonably-priced vet in the area!!]

And on a related note: she's had a tendency to occasionally pee on the bathroom rug too! So we keep the bathroom door closed. But it's such a poorly ventilated room that she shower curtain seems to be blossoming as a result. Grrrrr!

This morning:
I heard the ugly sounds of her coughing up yet another hairball - tracked her down just as the slimy hairball was ejected: she was right by the bedroom/bathroom doors. Then, she slunk off and jumped onto the bed. Slunk off. Now, usually she seems much better after puking, so to have her slinking off had me uneasy. So I followed her into the room.. only to see her start heaving again. On the bed. So i yell at her incoherently, grab her and throw her off the bed onto the floor, where she ejects some little bit of fluid before running off. Again, I follow her, and find her under the table, looking at me with this hurt and "pity me!" look on her face. Gave her a little lecture on NOT puking on the bed, then went about cleaning up her mess.

Kinda pissed me off, especially considering earlier in the day, I'd sat with her and gave her 100% of my attention stroking and petting the cat till she was purring loudly - probably like 10mins of nothing-but-kitty time. And I get rewarded a few hours later with puke. Thaaaaaaaaanx! :p

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This whole hairball thing - I'd always "heard" about it when reading all those books based in the Western World. In Malaysia, at one point in my life I had two cats, and as far as I know, hairballs were never a part of their life! Now, in theory, hairballs have nothing to do with the length of a cat's fur, but most cats in malaysia are short-haired, so I wonder if that has something to do with it? All I do know is that this kitty of Kosh's ours pukes waaaay too often for my liking.

Also, like I'd mentioned before - the Malaysian cats that I know do not drink from the faucet. I still find it amusing that cats on this side of the world/hemisphere demand running water to drink from.

Anyone with explanations for this Asian vs Western feline difference?