Finally! My person left the room long enough for me to take over her laptop and get a good blog post written. Not that her posts aren't good but I know mine will be so much better. My name is Peanut. I am a 10 year old, male, black and white short hair cat. I actually prefer to be described as a tuxedo cat as my appearance is very important to me. I spend a considerable amount of my waking hours grooming. It is my understanding that my person writes about being happier and having more joy. I guess I will stick to her topic and give you people some tips on how to keep your cats happy and joyful. My dog pal Hurt (may he pee on infinite hydrants in doggy heaven) wrote a similar post a while ago that you humans seemed to like. So here are my tips.
- Keep the crunchies coming and the wet food too. Cat's are independent creatures who take care of themselves but one thing we cannot do is open cans of food or get the box or bag of crunches out of the cabinet. Now if you leave the box or bag of crunchies on the floor or where I can get to it I will just help myself. Honestly, it just works better for everyone if you keep crunchies available all the time and put out the wet food out on time, I repeat, ON TIME. That way no one has to clean up ripped up cat food bags and boxes and no one has to have sore ankles from your kitty gently reminding you with their teeth that dinner is late.
- Give us toys. I know the K9s have a significant share of the pet toy market but us cats like them too. Now one of the benefits of sharing your home with a feline is that we have inexpensive taste. My toy preference is for balls of used foil and the plastic tabs from cartons of juice. When my person is feeling generous I love feather toys or ones that I can bat around like this ball in the tube One day I'm going to get that ball out of there.
- Share the bed. I know you think it's your bed but who are we kidding. You sleep in it what 8 hours a day if your lucky. Who do you think is sleeping in it the other 16 hours? Us cats that's who.
- Don't neglect our wardrobe. Like I said my appearance is important to me. I keep my fur shinny and clean always. But I love switching things up every now and then with a new collar. I like a little bling on my collars. A preference for shinny things is something me and my person have in common. Now in addition to my collars my wardrobe also includes a couple of outfits. Yes they make cat clothing too. That's right clothes aren't just for dogs anymore. Now your cat may not be as progressive as I am when it comes to clothing so proceed with caution. My preference is to save my clothing for Halloween and other holidays. My person knows not to overdue it.
- Help us feel safe and secure. The best way to help your cat feel safe and secure is to give them bags and boxes that are just the right size. I tell you from experience, they will snuggle on in.
- Give us attention and affection. Now I know us cats are proud of our independence. But that doesn't mean we don't want rubs and stuff. We just want them when we are in the mood. We may not always come when you call our name. But we do like our people and will show it when we are ready. Don't be surprised when we wind our bodies around your legs or find our way onto your lap when you lease expect it. That is your cue to initiate rubs. My preference is under the chin, behind the ears, and on the top of the head.
- Keep us healthy. Honestly I don't even want to include this tip but I want my person to like and publish this post when she discovers it on her laptop. Keep us healthy by taking us to the vet. I hate the vet. I'm not going to even pretend that I like it. I scream my head off as soon as my person sets foot outside of the house with me in the carrier. (Side note, I used to love getting in the carrier until she kept taking me to the vet every time I was in it). However my person insists that I must go and get a check up. Do you know where they put that thermometer??? I don't even want to think about it.
How do you guys keep your cats happy?
