Arguing with the vet...

Back from the vets, and feeling exhausted... not so much because of Miki, he will be fine, I think, but because it seems such a struggle to do the right thing.
As usual, Miki was more upset about the trip than actually being at the surgery - once there he always seems so scared he forgets to struggle - he just hides in my arms... The vet soaked his paw and poked off all the crusty bits and underneath all that gunk it isn't looking as bad as I thought - there is even a tiny bit of nail left, so that's good news.

Torn claw

Things kittens get into... and it's always Miki it seems:
I noticed this morning that his paw looked unusually 'dirty'. Looking closer it turns out it's all crusted up with blood between the toes. Ouch!!!
He doesn't seem to be bothered by it much, he doesn't limp and runs around as usual. He must have gotten his claws stuck somewhere - I wonder if he has torn one out... It looks like a bloody mess and I don't have the guts to clean it out for fear of making it worse. I can see a trip to the vet coming... Hate that, and Miki hates it too.

Kitty entertainment

My cats have free access to the garden, and all the real wildlife it comes with... I still find the notion of cat videos rather odd. But I admit I had to try it... Oscar was fascinated!

 

The site I tried here was All About Birds (great clips and sound, shame you only seem to be able to have either image or sound :(

Clicker taming

Today I used the clicker on Papa Cat. To truly baffling effect! So far the closest he will let me is that he will maybe, reluctantly sniff my hand; with the clicker I had him in front of me, eating treats eagerly off my hand, within 5 minutes!
I used the following sequence (with kibble treats):
- click/throw treat
- throw treat/click for eating
- extend hand for sniff/click-treat for sniffing
- offer treat on hand/click for sniffing, put treat down to eat next to my fingers
- offer treat on hand/click for eating off hand.

PS. Sadly, only a few days after this post Papa Cat disappeared, and has not showed up again...

Mother and daughter.

Oscar likes...

...sitting on my cross-legged lap. Whether I'm trying to do a bit of meditation, or whether I'm typing, like now, he will often clamber up on my legs and snuggle in. Love it!

Some cats feel like making themselves comfortable on rather more unlikely spots though! This is such cool little clip.

Papa Cat

Lots of cats go in and out of back gardens in London... this is perfectly normal, and most do have happy homes.
One cat seems to be hanging around my garden more regularly than others... He behaves very much like a real feral, and I think he may well be the papa of my kittens...

Show me the perfect treat

Positive clicker training requires the treat to be something of value to the trainee, something they really want! As a beginner I'm still on the big quest for the perfect treat, something my cats will go crazy for... It to be yummy, small, quick to eat, easy to handle. I'm forever looking for and trying out new ideas... If you have any ideas, let me know!

My favourite place in the world

Quail fest!

And yes, the whole quail are a BIG hit!
The first time around I just cut the whole bird up in half (yuk) and woohoo! A 'wild' reaction from the kittens: the two boys batted their bits around the kitchen for half an hour before eating them - huge fun to watch but I spent another hour cleaning blood from the floor and walls. 
Next time I tried pulling some of the feathers off with my fingers (they come off easily enough) and that seems to have calmed the situation - no more batting just munching (Miki even ate two halves in one sitting, and wanted more - maybe I should stop cutting them up?). Several quail meals later they are still really happy with it - every last bit gets munched up enthusiastically, feet, heads, beaks and all.

I tried mice too - not as huge a hit: the kittens will eat them happily, but Psipsina will not go near a mouse, not even a cut up one. Strange (but I obey and offer something else). Just like the feathers the fur seems to provoke real predator behaviour - the mice get batted around for ages before anybody will start eating. At least the mice are whole so no blood to wash off the walls!