Mooch demands security?

Last night around 8 pm Mooch, our resident stray, showed up on the
veranda for his evening meal. He was just about finished when a chubby
black and white lookalike charged up with her eye on his food, and he
took off.

It was Sally, the cat next door. A close relative had given her to our
neighbours when she was still a kitten. She looks a lot like Mooch.
Like him she wears a tuxedo, although she's a lot fatter, and the white
patch on her chest is smaller than his.

Early this morning I got out of bed to give Mooch his breakfast (yes,
he's spoiled). He was waiting, and had a great deal to say to me. It
could have been "Hurry up and put down the food and water, guy." But I
interpreted it to mean "Hey, what's with last night? Can't you provide
proper security on MY veranda while I'm eating? What's with that fat
look-alike bandit that interrupted my dinner last night? Can't you keep
her away??!"

http://www.flippyscatpage.com/moochtwo.html

Bobcat wrote---
But I interpreted it to mean "Hey, what's with last night? Can't you
provide proper security on MY veranda while I'm eating? What's with
that fat look-alike bandit that interrupted my dinner last night? Can't
you keep her away??!"

Isn't it interesting how we can read so much into what cats say? I
swear my cat thinks I'm his bumbling gopher. It even comes across in
his web-site. Cats are so expressive. Even when I've got it all
wrong, it's fun trying to figure them out.

Cheers,
Azy!


"For those of you who've never been to the vet's office, let me clue
you in on a few things." ~ Mr. Fleez


www.housecatwisdom.blogspot.com

On Tue, 12 Sep 2006 11:06:03 -0700, Bobcat wrote:

Last night around 8 pm Mooch, our resident stray, showed up on the
veranda for his evening meal. He was just about finished when a chubby
black and white lookalike charged up with her eye on his food, and he
took off.

It was Sally, the cat next door. A close relative had given her to our
neighbours when she was still a kitten. She looks a lot like Mooch.
Like him she wears a tuxedo, although she's a lot fatter, and the white
patch on her chest is smaller than his.

Early this morning I got out of bed to give Mooch his breakfast (yes,
he's spoiled). He was waiting, and had a great deal to say to me. It
could have been "Hurry up and put down the food and water, guy." But I
interpreted it to mean "Hey, what's with last night? Can't you provide
proper security on MY veranda while I'm eating? What's with that fat
look-alike bandit that interrupted my dinner last night? Can't you keep
her away??!"

http://www.flippyscatpage.com/moochtwo.html


Mooch is beautiful and if he is talked to enough, he probably will get
more tame. Good luck. MLB

mlbriggs wrote:
Mooch is beautiful and if he is talked to enough, he probably will get
more tame. Good luck. MLB

You're right - Mooch is a lovely little cat. I'm always glad to see his
pretty, suspicious little face when he appears for his meals. As for
becoming more tame, it's odd. He's talkative, but that's it. He'll only
approach us when we have food, and sometimes he keeps a good distance
from us, depending on his mood. I've had previous experience with feral
cats, and unless they're very young kittens, the chance of them
becoming tamer is quite slim, I'm afraid. I wish it weren't so with
Mooch - I'd love to stroke his fur, but at least we know we can help
him by keeping him healthy with a good diet.

On Tue, 12 Sep 2006 12:46:22 -0700, Bobcat wrote:

mlbriggs wrote:
Mooch is beautiful and if he is talked to enough, he probably will get
more tame. Good luck. MLB

You're right - Mooch is a lovely little cat. I'm always glad to see his
pretty, suspicious little face when he appears for his meals. As for
becoming more tame, it's odd. He's talkative, but that's it. He'll only
approach us when we have food, and sometimes he keeps a good distance
from us, depending on his mood. I've had previous experience with feral
cats, and unless they're very young kittens, the chance of them
becoming tamer is quite slim, I'm afraid. I wish it weren't so with
Mooch - I'd love to stroke his fur, but at least we know we can help
him by keeping him healthy with a good diet.


Will he play with a feather or a wand toy? MLB

"Bobcat" wrote in message
oups.com...
mlbriggs wrote:
Mooch is beautiful and if he is talked to enough, he probably will get
more tame. Good luck. MLB

You're right - Mooch is a lovely little cat. I'm always glad to see his
pretty, suspicious little face when he appears for his meals. As for
becoming more tame, it's odd. He's talkative, but that's it. He'll only
approach us when we have food, and sometimes he keeps a good distance
from us, depending on his mood. I've had previous experience with feral
cats, and unless they're very young kittens, the chance of them
becoming tamer is quite slim, I'm afraid. I wish it weren't so with
Mooch - I'd love to stroke his fur, but at least we know we can help
him by keeping him healthy with a good diet.


Molly was nearly two and had raised a litter before she was trapped and we
adopted her. No she isn't a snuggle bug and she has expressed her wishes as
to out vs in. (She will come in for meals, love, play and sleep. If we try
to keep her in, she is leaving for good)

But she does sleep on out feet and is acceptably tame. One of our other two
ferals was about eight months and became quite domestic. The other seemed
to have balance problems, probably from illness before we got her. She was
fairly tame. But had a fondness for walking the fence tops and teasing the
neighborhood dogs. It didn't mix well with her balance problems and was
finally her downfall.

Jo

mlbriggs wrote:
Will he play with a feather or a wand toy? MLB

No, if you make any move his way other than to put his food and water
in front of him, he bolts under the veranda furniture. He's very
skittish, and I wouldn't dare approach him with toys like you describe,
which we have for our three indoor cats. He'd take it as a threat. No,
I'm afraid that Mooch is very much the 'fraidy-cat.

Bobcat wrote:
I'm afraid that Mooch is very much the 'fraidy-cat.

Try minced meat.g
I never met a cat who, after some weeks of throwing meat in its
way didn`t come closer once I began sitting on the floor, next to the
pieices of meat.

Bobcat wrote:
I'm afraid that Mooch is very much the 'fraidy-cat.

"Lightwell" wrote:
Try minced meat.g
I never met a cat who, after some weeks of throwing meat in its
way didn`t come closer once I began sitting on the floor, next to the
pieices of meat.

Normally this sounds like a sound idea. But in Mooch's case there's an
odd problem. We feed him on the veranda, which is carpeted in rough
sisal. When he eats, bits of dry cat food fall on the carpeting, but
he's very careful to eat every last scrap and leave no trace of food.
He seems to know instinctively to leave no trace of it behind, and that
we'll take the food in once he's finished. Minced meat or its odour
would get in the carpet and attract other cats, and what's worse,
raccoons, who've stormed up and chased Mooch away while he was having
late supper. That's why we never give him moist canned cat food.

"Bobcat" wrote in message
oups.com...
mlbriggs wrote:
Will he play with a feather or a wand toy? MLB

No, if you make any move his way other than to put his food and water
in front of him, he bolts under the veranda furniture. He's very
skittish, and I wouldn't dare approach him with toys like you describe,
which we have for our three indoor cats. He'd take it as a threat. No,
I'm afraid that Mooch is very much the 'fraidy-cat.


I'd be trying our old standby favorite cat toy. Take long piece of cotton
string. Tie a small bit of paper to one end of it. Walk past the general
vicinity of the cat with the string dragging behind you. The more timid the
cat, the longer the string.

Only problem we've had, once my grandsons saw how well this worked, I kept
running out of kitchen string.

Jo