Dear Fisher,

I have a small problem. I am a cat who likes to steal my mom’s shoes and bath mat. I will chew on them and then drag them to my food dish. Sometimes I will go months without stealing them and one day I just got to get that shoe or bath mat. When I do steal a shoe or bath mat my mother gets very mad at me. Help – what can I do to stop this?

Sid

Dear Sid.

You have quite a problem and I admit, one of the most interesting I have heard. I must disclose to my readers that we had a few more notes back and forth because my first thought was, how big are you? Then in a follow-up to that, I asked if your mother wears tiny shoes. To my surprise, you are a wee 4 to 6 pound cat, and no, your mother does not wear tiny shoes, and the bath mat is 12” by 32” with rubber backing! That, my friend is a fine example of what focus and intention can do for one small kitty.

People are often not aware that cats are very strong when they have a mission. The key here is determining the nature of your mission. Cats are by nature, hunter gatherers. Even when spayed, a cat may have fierce maternal instincts. Add to these the fact that cats really do know the value of their possessions. Yours are #1, your mother, represented by her shoes and bathmat. Your food dish, of course, is your #2 most treasured possession,.

If we look at each of the above, we can explore possible solutions:

1.Hunter/gatherer: Your mother could place little treats in odd places around the house, requiring much of your waking time to seek and destroy.
2.Maternal instinct: Shoes and bathmat could be replaced with small cuddly toys for nurturing.
3.Prized possessions: Move food dish into bathroom with shoes and bathmat – a shrine, if you will, saving your strength and her angst.

Two other possibilities are separation anxiety or boredom. Please visit Our Happy Cat Our Happy Cat to discover many great ideas for your entertainment.

In all my research, I found it is not uncommon for cats to haul around socks. Dirty socks are preferred. Some cats will choose all types of undergarments, and some have been known to clear out entire laundry baskets. This leads me to the conclusion that you, Sid, are definitely an over-achiever. Your mother may just want to appreciate that.

Your friend,
Fisher

I am an older cat and I nap a lot, but the other times I’m just plain bored. I live in a high rise and am safe from bugs and other living dangers. My life is good from most points of view, but what am I supposed to do when I wake up and my peeps are gone to work all day? I love it here but the scenery never changes and it’s quiet all day long. Boring, boring, boring. Do you think my peeps think it is all OK just because I sleep a lot? I think not! What should I do?

Darryl

Dear Darryl,

Boredom happens when day after day, everything stays the same. You may all be in a rut. Your humans get up, feed the cat, go to work. They get home, pet the cat, feed the cat, and they are done for the day. When they come home and you are sleeping (again), they think you are fine. Your humans likely do not realize you are bored. “After all”, they would say, “Whoever heard of a bored cat?” But we know it happens, do we not?

Your humans must understand that a bored cat may turn to his own devices for entertainment which can lead to a roll of toilet paper strewn about the living room on the same day they bring a guest into the home after work. Or, you might think of trying alternative snacks from the garbage pail and proudly leave the evidence for them to clean up. Sometimes boredom causes one to become obsessive. For instance, cats tend to be extremely clean. You may overdo cleaning your fine long hair, and the humans come home to “here a ball, there a ball, everywhere a hairball.” Soon, everyone is unhappy.

Your task is to get your humans involved with you. Several ideas for boredom relief are:

1. They could get you a companion cat or dog depending on your personality. However, it would be very sad if you mistook it for punishment.
2. Your humans must get into the habit of controlled playtime with you. They should build 15 minutes into their morning and evening schedule. If you want less time, just act sleepy and they will move on to their daily routines.
3. Boredom can easily be relieved if you have something to watch. There are “mewvies” made especially for cats, or they could install a nice aquarium full of fish for you to watch.
4. An ordinary cardboard box with holes cut in the sides and a few toys stashed in it could inspire your imagination and keep you busy well past next nap session.

You could all have happy bonding time if you make your own toys. Take a look at this site for a ton of neat toys any kid can make. Add to the fun by hiding them around the house. Hunting is a natural cat instinct.

These are just a few ideas I have come across. Oh, one more! Drop a couple of ping pong balls in the bathtub and have a game of feline racquetball. Now, wouldn’t that just be the cat’s meow.

Your friend,
Fisher

Dear Fisher,

Hi, my name is Zelda. It is great to finally write you. My human reads your column and sometimes brings it home to show me.

Anyway, I am having some trouble in my new home here, and I was wondering if you could help me. My human and I met through his X and when they split up, I stayed with him. Even though he gets up REAL early in the morning and wakes me up, and then to school and work, and back home late at night and I have to yell at him for attention – I love it here! And, his parents have 2 Pomeranian dogs who are fun to play with.

I share a room with my human, and have a special pillow on the bed. Everything would seem great to the outside observer, but there is a dark side. My human’s parents already had a cat. Her name is Kitty-Lynn and she is a stick in the mud. She never wants to play and it seems like every time I come outside of my room to roam around, she is always there. We always end up just in the middle of a stand-off, hissing at each other and just staring. There are times when I try to be nice, but it just doesn’t work. I was wondering what can be done so we can finally live in peace. Sure, I have my room and she has hers, and as long as we stay out of each other’s way we are fine. But I would like to be able to share the living room and family room with her. Is there anything that can be done so we can finally get past our petty differences?

Zelda

Dear Zelda,

It sounds very encouraging to me that Kitty-Lynn and you are not getting into anything worse than hissing and staring. The process of getting along can be slower than you would like but it is very possible. Kitty-Lynn is probably a little miffed at your unexpected arrival. If you can try to not take that personally, it will help you both. She had her territory all laid out and was happy as the only cat.

There are some very interesting things you can do to make things better. All household members will need to cooperate and I think you will all get some good fun out of the exercises in the long run. Think of them as “character building” games.

Since you have already developed a pattern of hissing and staring at each other when any boundaries are crossed, it is best to start over at the beginning. That means that you, Zelda, will be confined to your own room for a short period of time. You will keep your litter box and food dishes in there with you, and of course, you have your own pillow on the bed. If it makes you feel better, go ahead and sleep directly on the bed cover and just use the pillow for your head.

The next step is for your human to put your food dishes very near to the door of your room before he goes out for the day. His parents should put Kitty-Lynn’s dishes on the other side of the door. The door stays closed a while longer. But, you will both start to associate each other’s presence with something pleasurable, like eating your dinner. Kitty-Lynn will start to get used to your smells, and you will start to get used to hers.
Stay with me – this is getting fun. Next step is to put a brick on each side of the door so it can remain open a tiny bit, not enough for either of you to break on through to the other side. Lots of opportunity to peak at each other! Good old cat curiosity will take over and you will both probably forget the staring and hissing shortly.

And now the Grande Finale! You, Zelda, can come out of your room and into the main house. Yes, the whole house! Kitty-Lynn will stay in your room with your things for awhile. Oh, I know, there is going to be a whole lot of snooping and sniffing going on while you get accustomed to each other’s smells, but as long as you have hidden away your really personal documents, there should be no problem. As you get to know each other in this very subtle way, you will become ready to face each other with a different attitude. You may not end up snuggling together, but I foresee some playtime together. Or, you might end up just peacefully tolerating each other which is pretty good, and we all know cats are masters of tolerance!

I also want to mention that our Tampa Bay SPCA also has a FREE Behavior Helpline. Call 727-586-3591, then ask for or dial extension 133 and follow the prompts.

Your friend,

Fisher