So this morning I sat down in the office and thought “I think I’ll do a quick blog”, then after sitting quietly for several minutes thinking of what to blog about, it all became very clear!
As if on cue, Thunder decided to jump up onto the desk beside me and do what he does best…. sleep!! It is a pastime he is very found of, and he can pretty much sleep anywhere.
He is a “Pixie-Bob” cat, a cross between a Maine Coon and a Bob-Cat. There are two variations, a short haired version with polydactyl feet and a long haired version without the extra toes but both with a tiny “bob tail”. He was an ex breeding cat, and has contributed to several litters, before he was spayed by his breeder. Thunder came to us when he was 2 years old. I had researched the breed. Pixie-Bobs are a very people orientated cats, similar to a dog in many ways. Liking to be in water and eating huge amounts with his big jaws, Thunder is a law unto himself. He demands the most expensive cat food we have ever seen, but he is worth it. If we don’t give him that, and try to change his food, he literally starves himself and won’t stay in the house. We suspect that he may frequent several people’s homes and ask for food in each (pretending that he has not been fed for days!). The dogs are probably pretty jealous of this fact as they are only fed once a day!
We have just had a huge amount of building work done to our property. It was a pretty messy experience for all of us, including the animals. The dogs were covered in dust, rubble, plaster for weeks. The cat decided that he did not wish to visit during the day when the workmen were here, so he got up at 7 am each morning and went out for the day until about 8 pm at night when he decided that they had all gone home. He has still not really got used to the new lay out of our home, the bedrooms were the sitting room, and the living/dining room was our old patio, so it looks incredibly different. We now have all wooden flooring, which is great with pets but I think Thunder used to recognise the house by the smell of the carpets (which had to go!). So now he arrives home and yowls very loudly until he has been fed on his perch (an oak drop leaf table in the kitchen where the dogs can’t reach) and then yowls to go back out. We are trying to get him to stay in through the day again, as I think cats are safer going out through the night.
Thunder is so strong minded and he will do exactly what HE wants to. That is why he is such a big character within the family unit. He makes it his business to come over and greet visitors, as our dogs do and demand some attention if HE is in the mood.
We have already found a fabulous local cattery and he has stayed there for 5 days previously. I do believe he was quite grumpy initially, but as he had his very expensive food to hand, he soon settled into a routine and “was a pleasure to have stay”. However, on his return home he chose to ignore the whole family including the dogs! It took us another week to win him round for cuddles again. I guess not even Thunder can resist the charms of Scooby Doo 😉