#catproofing

[mechandra]

crash course

[saraptor]

We're slowly introducing Null to Cinder, Ember, and Pepper (tho Pepper's already had a semi intro? kind of? outside), meanwhile dragonslayer extraordinaire Cinder has his favorite toy

[weaverlings]

walked into the living room to find the resealable canister of treats knocked over and with the plastic seal part ripped off at the hinge, with bitsy chowing down

and then toby joined her scavenging the rest of what fell out :l

leaving it on the end table was a rookie mistake. but it was supposedly solid plastic that one would have thought needed thumbs to open???

[leahsfiction]

maybe it's cause i got woken up early by my residual exam stress levels

but i need a Creature that goes "mraah" right this moment and i'm upset that i don't

[cuntwrap--supreme]

Cat has learned that she can bring her toys to me and I'll throw them for infinite hunting fun.

Unfortunately, she has also learned that she can smack her toys off the top step and cut out the middle man (me), much to the displeasure of both the people on the other side of my stairs and the people below me 😐

[angryraptor13]

The beloved heathens who are my cats have figured out how to turn on my kitchen sink. Unfortunately, it's got one of those fancy lever handles & I couldn't find a child lock that would fit it, so here is my attempt to thwart their mischief:

Uses:

2 Velcro Command strips (usually for hanging pictures)

About 10-12" of Velcro strap (has hooks on one side & soft loops on the other)

The Velcro strap wraps around the handle & is held in place with the Velcro Command strips. With the strap in place, I can't wiggle it enough to turn the sink on, and the Velcro is fairly easy to put on & take off. It looks kinda MacGyvered, but the Command strips *should* be removable without damaging the faucet 🤞

[stephdisturbstheuniverse]

Hobi and I are ready!! So happy and excited for JHope and the Armys 💜🖤🤍 #BTS #btsarmy #jhope #jhopebts #hobipalooza #lollapalooza #HobiBobiTheCat #catlady #catslave #catsofinstagram #catproof #catsofworld #cutecat #kittenlife #gatitosquecurantudepresión #gatitosbebes #gato #gatoslindos #gatosdeinstagram #neko #kucing #neko #pusa #puspin #rescueismyfavoritebreed #rescuedcat #teamcatmojo #tabbytabbypo #tuxedotabby https://www.instagram.com/p/CgsvbXppWck/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[niteshade925]

Lazy weekend, lazy Onion.

Put her collar on for the very first time and she's hating it (predictably).

You know what she does look a lot like the cat in Stray

[hellenhighwater]

Arson and Larceny are indoors for the winter, but Arson is nesting so they don't want to come out.

When it warms up, the doves go back to their big outdoor aviary. While this indoor setup is technically enough room for them, I love letting them have the full outdoor space to fly.

As always, I close the sunroom if the dove cage is being opened, so the cats can't come in. The cage is catproofed when closed, but even a tiny accidental injury from a cat can be fatal to a bird, due to the dangerous bacteria in their claws and saliva.

[marlynnofmany]

Kittens in Space

The first rule of keeping cats aboard a spaceship is don’t lose the cats on the spaceship. I know this. I know it better than the rest of the crew! I’m the Earthling here, the animal expert with actual veterinarian training, and I’m the one who brought them onboard. I told the captain with confidence that I could keep track of them.

Well, guess what I just did.

The problem was immediately obvious when I woke up. Every morning for the last few days had started with cutesy kitten pounces and thumps as they batted toys about the room. Sometimes I’d get a tail in my face; other times I’d hear a crash as they discovered how to reach another yet high shelf. Not once had I woken to silence.

Today I did. And as soon as I realized it, I sat up with a jerk to scan the room, my heartbeat loud in my ears.

Catnip mice and foam balls were everywhere. My shoes were still on the coat hooks; they hadn’t managed to knock them down yet. Nothing was swatted off the shelves. And no kittens lay on the floor dead after eating alien food, so at least there was that. But where were they?

I moved my feet toward the floor, disturbing a lump that meowed sleepily. Tapestry the mom cat was curled up on my bed; I hadn’t seen her. And now that I wasn’t jostling the blankets anymore, she curled back up for some hard-earned rest.

But no kittens. I stroked her tabby fur and looked for smaller balls of fluff, but found none. She didn’t seem worried. Hopefully that was a good sign. I stood and hurried to the bathroom.

My quarters were small, basically just the two rooms, since I spent most of my time with the rest of the crew. There really shouldn’t have been any good hiding spots that I hadn’t already blocked off. The bed didn’t even have space underneath it; that’s where my clothes drawers were. And I’d made sure the little fluffbrains couldn’t open those on their own, much less close them again.

They weren’t in the bathroom. Not in the closed-lid toilet, or the space-age shower stall, or the cabinet of supplies. Not in the trash can (again). They hadn’t gotten closed up in the foldable sink; I always left it sticking out of the wall. Where were they?

They couldn’t have gotten out into the hallway. No. Just not possible. I would have heard if someone inexplicably opened the door to my quarters without knocking, not that anyone would. Especially while I was asleep.

I told myself that there was no way they could be wandering the ship and getting stuck in the engine room. Mimi would notice animals hiding among his engine parts. Heck, the entire ship was bound to have someone around, ready to spot the furry little troublemakers, no matter how stealthy they were. I was pretty sure they resembled food on at least one homeworld. My crewmates weren’t the sort to hurt them, though; everyone knew full well that I had them here. The kittens wouldn’t be mistaken for pests.

Hopefully.

I really don’t want to announce to everyone that I’ve lost them, I thought, leaving the bathroom. They’ve got to be in here somewhere. What am I missing?

I surveyed the toy-covered room, trying for the umpteenth time to see catproofing opportunities that I hadn’t addressed.

Bed, bookshelf, other shelves. Bedside table with the lamp bolted down. Desk and chair. The litterbox was in the bathroom, with the food and water dishes along the wall beside me. There were no curtains to climb, and hardly any decorations, just the digital window with its chunky gold frame — someone’s secondhand idea of class — and the fake plants on the shelves. The bite marks on those weren’t new.

But the positioning was.  

I stepped closer, staring and second-guessing, and yes they were definitely pushed out of place. And now that I thought about it, the digital frame was slightly crooked too. That spectacular alien sunset with the planetary rings in the background was out of alignment with the corner of the room.

Like someone stepped on it. Now where would they—

I froze in place, feeling stupid. Ah. Right.

Ever look at something so often that you stop noticing it? I may have mentioned that this was a spaceship. Metal walls, plasticky floors, no real windows.

A ceiling covered in twisty pipes.

I hadn’t considered catproofing the ceiling; it was too high to reach (ha), and surely not the kind of place that kittens would hide.

But as I stepped onto the bed and brought my face up close to the lowest curve, I realized that the faint engine sounds I’d long gotten used to sounded an awful lot like purring.

There they were. All five of the fuzzy little bastards were snuggled into a happy pile among the pipes without a care in the world. They meeped sleepily when I stuck a hand in.

“I can’t believe you,” I murmured. They ignored me.

The air was warm but not hot, and the pipes were vibrating faintly. While Captain Sunlight had assured me that there was no radiation to worry about, I figured it couldn’t hurt to double-check. Sleeping on top of the things could easily be a different prospect from sleeping in a bed below.

“All right, down for now,” I told them, scooping up the kittens despite their protests and setting them on the bed. “Be good little fluffbrains and sleep here while I — no? No, of course not.” They were already tumbling to the floor with strident mews for food. Tapestry stretched and jumped down as well.

I sighed and got out the cat food. If I was quick about it, I could get out the door before they tried to follow me. That net I’d tried to rig up as a baby gate hadn’t stopped them crawling under.

“Good kitties,” I said, tugging my shoes on as they ate. “You behave yourselves. I’m just going to make sure your favorite new hiding place isn’t going to give you extra eyeballs or something. Maybe I’ll set up a new shelf there so you don’t fall on my face during the night.”

I slipped out the door just as the first kitten finished eating — appropriately enough, it was the gray shorthair who Mimi had insisted I name after him. There weren’t any green cats in the litter, so gray was close enough.

“Meeeeee,” declared Mimi-the-kitten as the door closed.

“Yup,” I agreed.

Once I was sure the latch wasn’t about to pop loose, I took long strides toward the engine room. My heartbeat was totally calm and normal; why do you ask?

~~~

The ongoing backstory of the main character from this book. More to come!

[alexseanchai]

😾 catproof trash can

😸 additional ledge for cat jungle gym

[asheepinthenight]

loooooooooooove the work so far! and you’ve included my favourite trope (arranged marriage) i am sooooo weak for Hawk right nowwwwww, i’m playing a sweet, curious kinda shy (but surprise! snarky) MC who’s put duty first all their life. their dynamic with Hawk is very much one of a very put out person (hawk) constantly scooping their cat (mc) off of the most absurd locations

Thank you so much, anon! Hawk does kind of have the energy of a first-time cat owner who hasn't realized that cats will get into anything not specifically catproofed. And many things that are specifically catproofed.

[actualbird]

my sister's cat made a TOTAL MESS out of one of my luke merch shrines, knocking things over and sending them crashing to the floor. thankfully nothing broke and i aint even mad, thats on me to further catproof my displays, but i did still catshame her

[jenthebug]

❤️ HAPPY GOTCHA DAY, SOBA❤️

One year ago today, you were a tiny, scared, sick handful of kitten.

Today you are BIG and you are BONKERS and I freaking love you for it. You've learned to wear a collar, come when called, and you've even learned how to sit. You're still a jerk, because you're a cat and it can't be helped, but we're better at catproofing now.

I wish you many, many years of lounging in your favorite chair (shown above), playing with toys, chasing bugs, eating your favorite wet food (and sneaking a couple kibbles of dog food if you're fast), doing legit pull-ups on your cat apartment, and continuing to enjoy the hell out of life.

❤️, Food Human