Adventures in Kittysitting

As of this past Friday, I have been babysitting my friend Shawn's cats. They are two adorable tabbies - both male and moderately sized. Really gorgeous. But yes, they have been an adventure indeed. You see, a little while ago I agreed to help Shawn out while he's in Cuba by taking his cats here at my place. I'd only met them once before, but I mean, seriously, how hard could this be? Well, I've learned it's a lot of fun, but it's a real adventure too!

It's been two days since Shawn dropped the kittens off, and I've barely seen them. The one, Muffin, likes to hide so I expected that. The second, Shanks, is a little more curious, but also has been mostly MIA. Tonight when I got back from FT and a movie, I found Shanks walking around and we shared a moment - he purred and let me pet him, aww...However, I did notice something else the minute I walked in - a new not so nice acrid smell of cat. Eww! One or both of the cats had sprayed in my bathroom and the smell was overwhelming. Not cool. So, what does this mean? Well, internet research (ie Googling) suggests they aren't comfortable here yet and they are trying to make the best of their stress. Makes sense, but me no likey the smell! Further reading suggest that cats are apt to spray bedding, etc and I'm so no down with that. So I opted to bar the kitties out of my bedroom. Easier said than done.

I managed to get both kittens into my living room area, that was fine, until I noticed one thing - Muffin was unusually MIA, as in I couldn't spot him anywhere. Not cool. Finally I spied him - he was stuck between the wall and radiator under my window - the one radiator that is encased in wood! AHHH! It was a this point I began to panick! I couldn't leave him there all night! He was stuck! So here I am at 11:15 at night, with a cat behind stuck in a hot spot. So, I called for reinforcements - my lovely neighbourino, Johanna. She came over and between the two of us, we dismantled my shelfing and the wooden casing on the radiator enough so that we could pull Muffin free. He of course was scared shitless and spilt, totally ripping my hand with his claw! Ugh.

What an adventure. Good news is the cats are both safe - Muffin has since let me pet him and hold him, and Shanks has been hanging out and cleaning himself (which Jo says is a sign he's comfortable). Sigh - here's holding out for the next adventure, and here's to learning not to sleep the whole night through anymore.

Kitty steps.