Last week we talked about cats in the office. As comforting, sweet, and fun as it can be to have a cat or two (in some cases several) keeping you company in your home office, there are hazards. A favorite pen might go missing, the cat shreds your incoming fax messages, he knocks an important note into the waste basket, she might fall off the desk…and then there are the dreaded dangers. Place your latte or tall glass of lemonade too close to your computer and the cat will inadvertently (or purposely) bump it—spilling it into your keyboard and, heaven forbid, all over your computer. Ever have that happen?
There’s also the issue of cat fur getting into the computer. Do you clean the little vent on 
the side of your computer often? If you’re like most cat owners, you have to open the computer up from time to time to clean out the cat hair. And what about the wheels on your office chair–ever run over your poor kitty’s tail?
My biggest fear is the kitten (or large cat) on the keyboard. Ah, yes, cats do like to do a little typing of their own. My Himalayan, Katy, once stepped on the wrong key and the entire book manuscript I was working on disappeared before my eyes. Panic!!! I was able to hit a key that brought it back. Whew!!! Since then I have fashioned a cover for my keyboard for when I’m not using it. We extended the lid from a box of typing paper to fit over my ergonomic keyboard. Works purrfectly. Have you had any “Kitten on the Keys” CATastrophes?
Some pets chew cords and other plastic and rubber items. I know a cat who has been banned from the house because of her taste for this activity.
For those of you with a kitten in the house, contemplating adopting a kitten, or with a cat who has a hankering for plastic, here’s a site showing how to protect your electronic “gadgets” https://lifehacker.com/how-can-i-protect-my-gadgets-from-pets-755556722 Here’s another one: https://www.consumeraffairs.com/news/how-to-protect-your-electronics-from-your-cat-030413.html
Many of us work at home these days. And home is often where the cat is. How do you manage your cat in your home workplace? Is she welcome there as she is in the rest of the house? I guess if you manufacture cat toys or climbing apparatus for cats in your garage, you use your cats for testing. Good idea. But if you cater large parties or make baby food at home, it might not be kosher (or legal) to have your cat in the kitchen with you when you cook.
throughout the day. Lily will come in for attention or to remind me it’s lunch time. She likes to get up on my desk where she has a perfect view of the outdoor bird feeder. And she enjoys playing with some of my supplies—paper clips and pens, for example. She entertains me with her antics, especially when she steps on the wrong side of a sticky note and begins dancing around trying to shake it off her foot.
There have been CATastrophes in my office as well. Max once fell off my desk. I accidentally closed Lily’s paw in my desk drawer. And I’ve rolled my chair over a cat’s tail more than once.
many other writers and artists. I’ve always wondered, though, how you keep your cats out of your paint. It’s hard enough for some of us to keep track of our pens. Yes, we still use pens to make notes while we’re creating on the computer—at least I do.
the things I use most and I’ve organized my office in that way. I also want things that inspire and delight around me—my best photographs, a display of my book covers, awards, and pictures of my cats and my grandkids/great-grandkids. Oh yes, and I like a spacious desk and a comfy chair.
Not all cats will tolerate being kept inside. My mother has such a cat and he drives her crazy when he doesn’t come on command when she wants him inside. He’s 8 and he has survived nicely over the years. Many cats do. But what do you do when your cat causes problems in the neighborhood? Some do absolutely nothing. There’s little recourse when it comes to retraining a cat. Most owners won’t go through the hassle of trying to keep an outdoor kitty inside. Some neighbors come up with their own solutions—and some of them aren’t pretty.
yard, however. Build an enclosed catio. Run a string of electricity around the top of your fence. One little zap will generally keep the cat in the yard. One of my friends has just started allowing her kitty outdoor time and she says that he will return to the house when she calls him? How is this possible? She doesn’t just open the door for him. She greets him with exuberant petting. Gives him a wonderful massage AND offers his favorite treat.
I wish one of our neighbors had done something like this with their cat when he was terrorizing the neighborhood. He ruined a couple of our screens trying to get at our indoor cats. He broke into another neighbor’s home and attacked their elderly Abyssinian. Thankfully they moved and took their cat with them.
Actually, I used to love having my cats with me when I puttered in the yard. But we have totally indoor cats now and it works well for us. No more painful abscesses to deal with from attacks by random wild or domesticated animals, no more sleepless nights wondering why she didn’t come home, no more cat-less neighbors blaming your cat for using their garden as a litter box, and no more heart-stopping moments when you hear car tires squeal. Oh yes, then there’s the hassle of letting cats in, then out, then in again, then out…or forgetting to close 
up the kitty door at night.
Cats are creative beings. The more cats you interact with over time, the more unusual behaviors you witness. I’ve known and cared for probably 3 dozen cats over my lifetime and Lily is the first one I’ve known who carries her toys around in her mouth. When she thinks no one’s looking, she’ll go to her toy basket and choose one. She picks it up carefully in her mouth. Then she cries out as she approaches me, drops the toy at my feet, and looks up at me as if waiting for my reaction. I think it’s cute and I always praise her.
Persian cat, Crystal, brought a dead mouse into my bedroom. I woke up to see her sitting proudly next to the bed with the mouse at her feet. And according to what I’ve learned about Lily’s behavior, she is actually emulating what Crystal did that time. It’s hunting behavior. She doesn’t have access to actual prey, so her stuffed toy turtle, kitty, moose, possum, lambie, teddys and so forth become her prey. Oh, as we speak, Lily just brought me her baby otter, dropped it at my feet, mewed, and sat down waiting for praise, which of course she got. She’s so cute when she does this.
According to experts, when Lily brings her toys to her food bowl, this is similar to bringing prey to the nest and when the toy ends up in the water bowl, she is most likely drowning it. So it isn’t necessarily Lily’s sense of love for me—she isn’t blessing me with her favorite objects, it’s probably her instinct to hunt and feed her family (me) that kicks in when she does this activity.
Friday I got to leave my office, mingle with cats and talk to readers about my Klepto Cat Mysteries. Friday was a good day!
known cat cafés in 28 states. Here’s the rundown.
Cat cafés are all so different. They are created with the same premise here in the states—primarily to find homes for shelter cats and kittens through socialization and familiarization. It’s difficult to learn much about a cat in a few minutes when visiting a shelter. The cat café gives you time and space and opportunity to get to know a cat before you sign those adoption papers. And there’s coffee and snacks involved for you as you consider which lovely being to take home.
I’ll write about the experience Monday and, if you live here in the Ventura area, you might be part of that experience. I’ll be signing books today at The Purrfect Cat Café at 5800 Santa Rosa Road (#142) in Camarillo, CA at 11 until ? this morning. Come meet me, see my array of Klepto Cat Mysteries, tour the quaint gift shop and meet the beautiful kitties that are up for adoption.
Are you like many cat people—you sometimes feel as though you live to make your cat’s life peachy? Are you always thinking about your cat and her comfort, whether she’s bored or happy—getting enough exercise and the right food. Sure you are. That’s your job—well, it’s what your cat demands of you, anyway.
spreading them throughout the house. So every few days I put the toys back in the basket so she can busy herself bringing them out again. We have a tunnel for them to play inside, a two-chamber tent-like thing where they can hide and chill, a huge wooden cat tree we inherited from another cat family, a scratching bowl, and a regular carpet-covered scratching post/cat tree. We change up these things to give them the illusion of something new—move the tent and scratching bowl to another spot, for example. We might lay a blanket over a chair or sofa for them to hide under, provide a box for them to play inside.
A couple of nights ago, I turned the small cat tree upright. Here’s a picture of Lily playing queen of everything on top of it. Now why would I put a cat tree on its side when cats love to climb? It was because of a fear. (My fear.) Lily was just ten-weeks old when Sophie managed to upset that cat tree with Lily on it and Lily was seriously injured. I could not bring myself to place that cat tree upright for eight years. They enjoyed playing on it, hiding in the tunnel, scratching on it, just the same. But for some reason, the other night I seemed to get over my fear of that thing where the cats are concerned and I set it upright. You’d think we’d brought in a brand new, exciting toy, the cats were so mesmerized. Here’s Lily enjoying the moment as queen of everything in the living room that night.
Does your cat use facial expressions? Can you tell by looking at her when she’s contented, angry, irritated, frightened? Some cats, it seems, display a larger array of expressions than others. In fact, I’ve known cats who seem to have the same look on their face no matter what their body language is saying.
sleep in, and Lily and Sophie were patient only to a point. Usually, I get up pretty much on their schedule. Not because of the cats as much as, it’s a habit I’ve fallen into. And I’m greeted by sweet-spirited kitties, happy to see me and eager for breakfast. Every morning Lily greets me nose to nose with her tail waving. She welcomes my affectionate petting and seems to express her pleasure at seeing me awake and her joy at facing a new day.
I want to invite those of you who live in the area to a book signing with cats!!! I’ll be signing my Klepto Cat Mysteries at this county’s first and only cat café, The Purrfect Cat Café, Friday, October 5 at 11 am. It’s at 5800 Santa Rosa Road #142 in Camarillo, CA. Come mingle with the beautiful cats and visit with me. (The photos I’ve used in the blog today are cats I met at The Purrfect Cat Café last time I was there.) I’m not the only game in town—check out their website and learn more about their cats and the activities they offer. 
named Emily who currently has seven cats, some with special needs. The focus of her Kitty-Cat Chronicles seems to be to share stories and challenges related to adventuring cats. She takes her cats on canoe trips, sightseeing excursions, and more.
