Friday, September 19, 2014

Tommy woke me up for her usual 3:00 reminder that she had used the litter box and now it was my turn in the bathroom. She also woke me up another time and wanted to chat. She sat up near my head and tried to carry on a conversation. I just petted her to warm her up, reminded her that if she wanted a warmer spot she should sleep closer to me and use my body heat, and also reminded her that when it’s pitch black outside, I am not ready to wake up for the day.  She then let me sleep until almost 7:30.

During the morning I realized just how much Tommy had gotten used to some of my routines.  I had to take her bagged “offerings” from the litter box and later out larger bag of garbage to the trash chute down the hall. When I first started doing this after Tommy moved in, she would follow me to the door and try to come with me. Later she progressed to just going to the door after I left and waiting there for my return. Now she doesn’t even move. She sees a garbage bag and must know that I’ll return shortly.

I guess that’s even how she handles my comings and goings. She knows that I’ll return and she’s got what she needs, food water, litter box, television on to usually the Games Network (she does love Family Feud) and a light on just in case I’ll be late. She’s settled in and now feels secure and safe.

We’ve had some claw issues lately. Her claws are always getting caught on the carpet. I found out that the place where we went to have her nails trimmed didn’t have a certified cat groomer. I can only image that the person who clipped Tommy’s claws just did the ends and within less than two weeks she was again having trouble on the carpet. We’re going to be trying a new place and hopefully they’ll do a better job so that Tommy won’t have as much trouble on the carpet.

I gave her a cardboard “rug” to help alleviate the problem when we play with the fleece teaser. She absolutely loved it. We played on it and although she did slide a little when she attacked the fleece, she played longer and didn’t have to stop to lick her paws.  She also enjoyed exploring the cardboard and checking underneath to see if anything was hiding there.  I’ll have to remember to put a treat there once in a while as a surprise.

When it was clear the Tommy was in a good mood and ready to travel, I put a couple treats in her carrier, she strolled in, and I zipped it up. Step 1 was a success; now hopefully the rest would be the same.  We traveled down in the elevator and Tommy let the other people know that she was going for a ride. We traveled down the garage elevator and went to the car. Although she let out a couple yelps, she didn’t appear nervous or skittish.

We drove along and she talked and pushed her face against the mesh so I could rub her face.  All was going very well. We got to Petco and waited for Stephanie, the cat groomer and manager. While we waited a dog came in and I must say that Tommy handled herself much better than the dog, another good sign.

When Stephanie came in, she took Tommy out of her carrier, petted her and began clipping her nails. When Tommy’s head or tail were in the way, Stephanie expertly repositioned Tommy. In only a couple minutes, Tommy was done and we left to pay the bill and return home.  Tommy had been an excellent kitty. She was so clam while Stephanie clipped her nails. I credit both Stephanie and Tommy for an easy excellent experience.

When we got home, Tommy quickly exited her carrier and she barely stood still while I took off her collar. She got her treats and we began our Friday chores. I started the laundry while Tommy napped. In a few months I may feel confident enough to again attempt clipping Tommy’s nails myself, but for now, I’m glad that we have Stephanie.

When we played after Tommy’s nails got clipped, she moved faster and seemed to be playing more. I’m sure that it had something to do with the fact that her nails weren’t constantly getting caught in the carpet.  Although she still enjoyed playing with the fleece teaser, she also played with a variety of toys.

She spent quite a bit of time napping after our extended play time.  She did occasionally get up to either check to see what I was doing or handle her personal needs for food, water, a litter box, or just a change of napping location. When I was working in the study, she still came in napped in the sun by the window.

After her late night nap, we had another play session. While we were playing with the fleece I moved into the bedroom so we could play with it on her scratching post.  She really likes that arrangement and plays wildly. I thought it might burn off some excess energy since she’d just gotten up from her nap.

She took a break and I closed the door, thinking I could alleviate a later issue. I was wrong (again). She got very upset and moved under the bed. I tried to coax her back out with the teaser, but she only would pull it out and after a while completely stopped playing. I got down on the floor and we talked.

I put a treat on her scratching post and pretty soon she was out from under the bed enjoying it.  I then prepared for bed. When I got into bed Tommy didn’t follow. She knew that the rest of her late night treat was up on the bed. After “making her statement” about my deviousness, she jumped up on the bed, ate her treat and curled up by my feet ready to go to sleep. It was a good way to end our day.