Originally written yesterday.
As I begin typing this, Diamond is proudly licking the rainwater and grass residue off of his paws and he is clearly enjoying it, much to my aggravation.
Then, I turned to him and pointed to his nose and started to chant my usual mantra when he misbehaves: "You're short, your belly sticks out, and you're a terrible burden on your mudder!" However before I could speak, he sniffed my finger, and then gently nommed on it, snuggled it, yawned, and walked away. Clearly, the effects of my disciplinary techniques upon him are waning.
The other night I was settling in to write some blog entries. It was about a quarter after midnight. In fact I was just about to start writing the first "how-to" entry of leash, harness, and lead-training a cat. Diamond started running band-and-forth from the bedroom windows to the dining room window that sits behind me, something he does with a fair amount of regularity; we have a lot of rabbits in the neighborhood. Sometimes I look outside to see who he's obsessing about and sometimes I don't. He was behind me in the window and began chattering softley, so I decided to take a look. To my vague surprise it was a cat and not a bunny.
I got up, opened the window, and talked to her a bit. She was a pretty grey and white little thing, and I was pleased and surprised when she responded to my voice, indeed she was more interested in me than she was in Diamond. I wanted to see if I could get her into the house to check her out and give her some food, so I opened the door slightly and started talking to her some more. Diamond jumped down from the window sill, but I didn't believe that he would actually run out. Meanwhile, the kitty was coming right up to the door, clearly happy at being about to get some loving. Suddenly, Diamond shot between my legs, out the door and after the kitty, who ran away to the front of my apartment.
I stood there in shock for several long moments, in part, listening for Diamond. I couldn't ask my next door neighbor for help; she's afraid of cats, and I couldn't get upstairs to my new upstairs neighbor. I have his phone number but in my shock I couldn't remember what his name was. I tried to call Dorrie, but she had turned her phone off. The terrain in the front of my apartment is such that I wouldn't be able to travel on it safely in my wheelchair, and I was at too much risk of slipping and falling in my crutches. Finally I ran across the parking lot to my one neighbor I could get to. I felt terrible for waking her up so late, but if Diamond got into the street and didn't hear a car coming up behind him, that would be worse. It took her a moment to wake up and get up to speed with me, but then she joined me within a couple of minutes. I turned on all of the lights in my apartment, hoping that the light would make Diamond more reflective. She went down to the street first. I went to my bedroom and opened the window, where we could talk to each other.
I suddenly spotted Diamond less than five feet away from my window, and my voice started the kitty, who ran away from my window and into the bushes. Diamond followed her more slowly, seeming to hesitate between following her and coming to me. I let my friend know where he was, and began pressing my hand against the window screen, making the stop-sign symbol that I had learned to train Diamond to recognise as "sit." The kitty seemed frightened by my friend, and ran away across the street. I was terrified that Diamnd would follow her, but it didn't happen. Diamond saw the hand, walked a couple of feet, chuffed in displeasure... and sat. Meanwhile, I guided my friend towards him. She was able to sneak up behind him and scoop him up. Diamond was surprised, but he also likes being carried by people who know how, and I clearly saw him make a contented face as she began to carry him around to the other side of the apartment.
She brought him in and we chatted a couple of minutes in which I thanked her profusely, and then she gratefully went back to bed. I posted briefly to LJ as you saw, ate some soup, and then crashed heavily in relief. Diamond doesn't appear to understand that he had done anything wrong at all. That'll be the last time for some time that I open the door to a strange animal without putting him on leash first, until he can show me that he isn't going to go gallavanting off without permission.
Sign language saves the day! ~Le flop.~
Then, I turned to him and pointed to his nose and started to chant my usual mantra when he misbehaves: "You're short, your belly sticks out, and you're a terrible burden on your mudder!" However before I could speak, he sniffed my finger, and then gently nommed on it, snuggled it, yawned, and walked away. Clearly, the effects of my disciplinary techniques upon him are waning.
The other night I was settling in to write some blog entries. It was about a quarter after midnight. In fact I was just about to start writing the first "how-to" entry of leash, harness, and lead-training a cat. Diamond started running band-and-forth from the bedroom windows to the dining room window that sits behind me, something he does with a fair amount of regularity; we have a lot of rabbits in the neighborhood. Sometimes I look outside to see who he's obsessing about and sometimes I don't. He was behind me in the window and began chattering softley, so I decided to take a look. To my vague surprise it was a cat and not a bunny.
I got up, opened the window, and talked to her a bit. She was a pretty grey and white little thing, and I was pleased and surprised when she responded to my voice, indeed she was more interested in me than she was in Diamond. I wanted to see if I could get her into the house to check her out and give her some food, so I opened the door slightly and started talking to her some more. Diamond jumped down from the window sill, but I didn't believe that he would actually run out. Meanwhile, the kitty was coming right up to the door, clearly happy at being about to get some loving. Suddenly, Diamond shot between my legs, out the door and after the kitty, who ran away to the front of my apartment.
I stood there in shock for several long moments, in part, listening for Diamond. I couldn't ask my next door neighbor for help; she's afraid of cats, and I couldn't get upstairs to my new upstairs neighbor. I have his phone number but in my shock I couldn't remember what his name was. I tried to call Dorrie, but she had turned her phone off. The terrain in the front of my apartment is such that I wouldn't be able to travel on it safely in my wheelchair, and I was at too much risk of slipping and falling in my crutches. Finally I ran across the parking lot to my one neighbor I could get to. I felt terrible for waking her up so late, but if Diamond got into the street and didn't hear a car coming up behind him, that would be worse. It took her a moment to wake up and get up to speed with me, but then she joined me within a couple of minutes. I turned on all of the lights in my apartment, hoping that the light would make Diamond more reflective. She went down to the street first. I went to my bedroom and opened the window, where we could talk to each other.
I suddenly spotted Diamond less than five feet away from my window, and my voice started the kitty, who ran away from my window and into the bushes. Diamond followed her more slowly, seeming to hesitate between following her and coming to me. I let my friend know where he was, and began pressing my hand against the window screen, making the stop-sign symbol that I had learned to train Diamond to recognise as "sit." The kitty seemed frightened by my friend, and ran away across the street. I was terrified that Diamnd would follow her, but it didn't happen. Diamond saw the hand, walked a couple of feet, chuffed in displeasure... and sat. Meanwhile, I guided my friend towards him. She was able to sneak up behind him and scoop him up. Diamond was surprised, but he also likes being carried by people who know how, and I clearly saw him make a contented face as she began to carry him around to the other side of the apartment.
She brought him in and we chatted a couple of minutes in which I thanked her profusely, and then she gratefully went back to bed. I posted briefly to LJ as you saw, ate some soup, and then crashed heavily in relief. Diamond doesn't appear to understand that he had done anything wrong at all. That'll be the last time for some time that I open the door to a strange animal without putting him on leash first, until he can show me that he isn't going to go gallavanting off without permission.
Sign language saves the day! ~Le flop.~
1 comment:
My cats tell me it is never the kitty's fault, always the human's.
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