June 18, 2004

• jim_t and I have three cats. Misha (a.k.a. The Fluffonator or Fluff Monster) is a Maine Coone and almost as fluffy as the bunnies . He's quite fluffy (obviously) and he meows A LOT but he'll curl up on your lap at any opportunity and purrs loudest when you're holding him and giving him hugs. Dextor (a.k.a. Squeaks like Mouse) is a black and white stray I adopted who is very shy, but so very sweet. If you rub his tummy the right way he will scootch across the floor like a caterpillar. Jackson (a.k.a. Spawn of the Dev-eel) is a black and white stray jim_t adopted and he is the spazz of the family. He's got wonderful personality, he's very cuddly, but he will roll on his back and show you his biiig fluufffy tummy to rub but it's a TRAP! every. single. time. That doesn't stop you though. He's the drawer opener, "What's that noise?" "Oh probably Jack getting into trouble" cat.
• I used to have a fish, but it escaped.
• BBF: Didn't you try to follow his tracks?
• I don't have any pets (mom doesn't like animals), but I do get along very well with the cats downstairs from where I live. "Fatty" is a huge brown striped cat. Not just fat, but big too. He's always getting bullied by the other cats though, and he takes it without a meow (but he's definitely not mute). Will passively lie down in my path, confident that I have at least a minute to rub his chin and chest. "Whitey" is a dirty white cat, skinny as a rake. He's the tyrant of the lot. Insists I sit just *there*, and prepare my lap for occupation. He'll curl up on my lap and if I stop stroking his back for one second, will glare up at me. Enjoys marking my bags with his cheek glands. Sooner or later someone more interesting will walk by, and he'll jump off without a backward glance. Bastard. "Blackie" is a slim, deceptively long all-black cat. We have a "hello-goodbye" sort of relationship. Some mornings I almost walk by her, thinking she's a wet oil patch on the ground, she's that glossy and black. But she likes the occasional shoulder massage and I oblige. There are about another five to six cats (especially one with a crooked leg and an incredibly hoarse voice) who have a nodding acquaintance with me, but either territories or schedules don't quite match mine and I see them infrequently.
• Alendra...you don't have to have a pet 24/7. In my opinion, pet friends are good for the soul too. From your post I gather you have cat friends. :)
• I had fish also, they didn't escape per se, they just moved to another bowl.
• I have three dogs and a cat. - Usually I have four dogs at any one time, they just circulate - a foster for a while, a rescue dog for a while, my siblings dogs when somebody goes on vacation or just needs a break. So - Zooey - 12 year old black lab, all tired and full of arthritis and love.Her best friend is Ms. Kitty, 11 years of hairballs and catpiss. Fritz - 2 year old German wire haired pointer/spaniel mix, very mellow and funny. Ava - deaf dalmation/smooth-coated terrier mix, an ass clown of the highest order. VERY energetic, very smart, knows more hand signals than the other dog's voice commands. But a real handful.
• 1 cat - Mythra, whom I affectionately call mien meowlein. Not that it matters, as she doesn't respond to either.
• great post, i've been wondering this myself! i have two wonderful companions, both rescue animals: widget has been with me for nearly eight years now. she's a mystery mixture with the head of a chihuahua, body (and snorting) of a large pug and fur of a schnauzer. she looks EXACTLY like this, except in gray and white. she even stares like that. ha! my beloved arf the cat died (quite contentedly, i might add) in february and Widget and i soon adopted Hotsy the kitten. he's a gorgeous tiger tabby who has quite the mischevious personality. he also sits in my big front window and nods at me when i come home. hey! iggy slut! we all need to post pics!
• I have a cat who is still alive. I have had many Sea Monkeys in my life. I miss them dearly.
• I have a long haired black cat named Max. The fur around his neck has gone light gray, so sometimes I call him Uncle Remus. He fetches and comes when called and meows on command. He's the anti-cat. My S.O. has a calico who is gorgeous but quite schizo. You can pet her, but not too much. Her upper lip catches on one of her teeth, so I have nicknamed her Elvis.
• Dikkepoes and Kleinepoes, two cats, formerly known as males. I wonder if it's a good business to offer dogs for rent at the beach. I'd be interested to rent one, just for an hour long walk.
• jernie, i've often pondered a similar pet rental business. except this would be called "ROOM O'PUPPIES." you'd pay, say, $5 and enter a small room. the door closes. another door opens and IN RUN 100 PUPPIES. you get to roll around in happy puppies!!! wheeeee!!!!!
• Oh, my. Room O'Puppies sounds... wow. I've got 2 cats. One grey & white (Gizmo), one marmalade tabby (Polly). We got Gizmo when he was just 4 weeks old; he's 1 now. He's a terror - he bites if he's playing, and if he's being lovey. But when he gets insecure (all the time), he wanders around the apartment crying, looking for an ear to suck on (literally. he used to suck on our lips, but, thank God for small favors, moved to ears). We adopted Polly just a couple of weeks ago. She makes the cutest little grunting noises when she's surprised, or when she wants lovin. She's smaller than Gizmo (but at 12 pounds, he's bigger than lots of cats), but holds her own very well against his playfulness.
• SideDish, it sounds like fun, but a litter of 8 labrador puppies, around 6 weeks of age, will have the same effect you are looking for. And you might want to bring an extra change of clothes after the rolling around bit is over.
• I personally don't have pets now, but grew up with two cats (one ran off and another we had to give away), which were replaced years later by two dogs (both Springer Spaniels). One of the dogs, a goofy but loveable runt named Norm, had to be put to sleep when he got rage disorder and tried to chew my dad's face off. The other, Malley, is elderly, full-figured, and grappling with the discomforts of old age.
• I have a cat, black longhair, female. She's 14 years old, called Conrad. Yes, that's not a female name, but I am perverse, and she doesn't care. Mostly she answers to Puss or Kitty, or what have you. I also have a chicken. It doesn't really have a name except Chookie. It is highly intelligent for a chicken. I used to think that chickens were very dumb, therefore the harvesting of their flesh in cruel manner was not as heinous as the treatment of larger mammals whose flesh I do not eat, in protest against inhumane animal harvesting. It turns out, however, I was deceiving myself, for even a lowly chicken can respond, understand, and to a certain extent interact and presumably enjoy the company of humans. This one does, anyway. Therefore I am currently revising my attitude on the demarcation line between 'higher' lifeforms and 'lower' lifeforms. My rule: If you can be friends with it, you shouldn't eat it. Shallow, stupid, limited and multi-holed philosophy. But animal cruelty, even animal pain, makes me experience deep emotional distress.
• "ROOM O'PUPPIES.".....sounds delightful.
• There's puppy cage (actually a large run) at our local Humane Society that is very much like the Room O'Puppies, since they all come running over to see you when you enter. Sadly, at home it's just Lars my betta fish and I, since no fur is permitted. Hrumph.
• not any more *sniff*
• nostril: really? does the chicken sleep with you? i'll bet you could make big bucks with pix of that.
• Bratcat...i have a black shorthaired male called Zero too - how coincidental is that? (Zero coz his IQ in my estimation is approximately 0!) And i have a female ginger tabby called....Ginja (mix of ginger and jata - which means lion in an african language)
• Three cats! Jiminy - Male, 11 years old, 15 lbs, black and white like a holstein and is the patriarch of our little cat clan taking care of the other two with regular cleanings and firm guidance when they step out of line. Tabitha - Female, 2 years old, 7 lbs, tabby colored, and is of a more aloof personality. Love is strictly on her terms but when it is delivered it is delivered in full. Samson - 1 year old, 18 lbs, grey main coon who chats constantly with anyone who will listen and possesses a desperate need to snuggle into your neck.
• We have one cat, a four-year old female named Lady Ada Lovelace Biggs. Usually I just call her kitten, and she only responds to food or blowing kisses (well, she looks at you when you blow kisses, but she doesn't come - still, pretty well-trained for a cat!) We adopted her from the shelter a year and a half ago. She is one of the sweetest cats I've ever met. She adores snuggling, loves attention (although only from us, she's quite snobby to others), loves to play and run around the house, and is at the door to greet you when you come home. She also has extra toes, is only occasionally bad, and was badly mistreated in her previous home (at 2 1/2 she wasn't spayed, and had infected claws) but is now safe and happy with us. The other family clearly didn't know what a good thing they had in this cat. And since I can never resist showing her off: here she is.
• Ramix, yes a coincidence:) My Zero was named that because I figured he'd never catch a mouse. He fooled me, he keeps the mice population under control. Good Kitty Zero.
• Livii, Lady Ada is adorable.
• livii you didn't tell us ada has GLOWING DEVIL CAT EYES!!!! as seen in middle pic bottom row
• Sacco & Vanzetti: four-year-old tabby siblings.
• One dog: terrier/retreiver/spaniel mix. Female. Old but sweet. Terrific frisbee dog. One cockatiel: Grey and yellow. Female. Chases the dog around and likes to sleep on my pillow next to my head. Very bossy. Hates everyone but me, which I claim to hate but secretly love.
• SideDish - hee, that's surprisingly the only photo of her looking that scary. So we had to share. :)
• mad, what does your cockatiel say?
• Room full O' puppies is seriously the best idea ever. I would so pay money to do that. Also, DrMoxie I'm glad my maine coon isn't the only loud chattery one. I read once somewhere that they were supposed to be quiet cats, but I don't think that can possibly be true. I could do without all the drool though.
• ::sigh:: I so miss my kitties.
• Room O'Monkeys: we lock SideDish in a room and then all monkeys with facial hair jump in! Weeee!
• I am a cat person: I have no pets, no matter whose house I am living in.
• hey, jernie, that tickles!
• Wasn't me, I'm all bald.
• I love the room o' puppies idea. That simply has to be done at some time. Can we get NIH funding for that?
• Don't know about the room o' puppies, but my visit to a cat breeders' room o' kittens was magical. My shoelaces will never be the same again. If you can be friends with it, you shouldn't eat it. Means I can eat babies. Cool.
• I had an insane cat named Carmine (I name my pets after colours) but had to adopt her out to a loving family when we moved to California. Trying to find a good time to introduce a new cat to the family at the moment, and when that happens we'll likely go to the animal shelter and find one that's already housetrained and doesn't mind a kid who goes up to cats, yells, "PAT! NICE!!" and slaps the crap out of them.
• Her name is nippurr. She is a Tonkinese (cat) kind of half Burmese and half Siamese. Was runt of litter and brought her home at seven weeks. She's now sixteen years and knock wood, in great health. I'm sure you "get" nippurr. But she loves to _purr_ for me and _nip_ my wife. She is truly family. The love of our lives.
• Hmmmm...ponders room o' puppies....mind turns to room o' overly excited lack o' bladder control room o' puppies. Quickly moves along.
• Grew up with cats. Had a cat when single and living with roommates. Now have a 16 month old son and no time for pets. I did however meet a man in Northampton who had a pet tortiose. This gentleman was 77 and the tortoise was 70, said he bought it at a fair for sixpence and had it ever since. Coolest pet I ever met.
• Three cats. Pandora - grey with khaki dapples, lovely green eyes, skinny and snooty, big ears and long tail. Super-smart and incredible high jumper. Mistress of the hiss-and-bitchslap. 7 years old. Moxy - black with white footies and underside, small and pudgy, hides a lot. Pisses on my stuff when she's upset. Classic middle child. 6 years old. Cricket - calico, fuzzy, purr-y. Used to make chirping noises, hence the name. We call her Squick or Squicket now ("squeaky Cricket"). Amazing farting abilities in kittenhood - could clear a room. Best personality ever: assertive, laidback, friendly. 3 1/2 years old. And a leopard gecko, Spock. 7 years old. Used to cuddle. No longer living with me.
• SideDish: When taking into account your panda dream, the whole ROOM O' PUPPIES thing takes on a much more sinister perspective.
• I used to have a goldfish until it peed in my shoes.
• What IS this, Takeover by the Cat People? Must have something to do with computers and laps and mice, etc. I've mentioned my "cat" elsewhere. She's so old, she's not really a cat more like a lumpy, stinky Rug. Never liked people, extremely DIRTY cat, hates to be clean, no personality, ugliest thing you ever saw, but worth her weight in piles o'mice. Not much fun now, as all she does is sleep, eat, sleep, sh*t, sleep, (repeat) but she's content, and has earned her spot in the garage. Her choice of venue--we put a box with a light bulb in, and she's on slow bake until she goes to the Great Litter Box in the Sky. I reeeely want to get an orange kitty, but husband says a new cat will probably disturb The Rug, and we ought to wait till she passes. Maybe she's dead right now! *goes and looks, pokes Rug Nope, just smells like it. PHEW! My other fur kids are Lucy and Cash. Both are pound-hounds. (rescues) Lucy is a 2 yo chocolate Australian Kelpie with golden eyes and a *GREAT* smile She's MY girl. Kelpies are tough, hard working dogs that are noted for running across the backs of sheep. Lucy, or Woosie-woo, Lucifer, Luseless, follows behind my horses at their heels for miles and miles. Kelpies need a job to keep them out of trouble, so we're going to start agility training this fall. I have high hopes! Cash is a black and tan mixed--looks like a Kelpie x Doberman, but is a real wussy--pansy with soulful eyes. He's only 6, but has a joint problem. Fortunately, he's content to be the dog that guards the TV, and the husband's beer and pizza. Oddly enough, they're both EXCELLENT with kids--very tolerant and accepting, even though Kelpies aren't noted for being so.
• I used to have a boa, but it made the Misses uncomfortable so I had to ... well, you see, it's hard to find people to adopt snakes. Anyway, I still have a mutt cat named Orange, and an unnamed guneia pig. Someday I hope to live with a Maine Coon, a Somali, and a Russian Blue.
• I could do without all the drool though. Kimberly, I forgot all about the drool! The constant chattering and drooling! Right now he is sitting in the middle of the living room hollering at no one in particular, the other cats sauntered off long ago tiring easily of his verbosity. Soon he is going to hop up onto the couch and proceed to purr loudly and drool all over my wife. Ah, good times!
• mad, what does your cockatiel say? She doesn't talk, she whistles. She has several distinct recognizable whistles: a few she learned from me and a few she trained ME to learn. There's one whistle that means "take me out of this damn cage", which she uses pretty much anytime she's in the cage because I almost never put her in there. I used to make a catcall type whistle when I would walk in the door and she picked that one up almost immediately. Now anytime anyone walks in the door she gives them a "foxy lady" whistle. She has a contented little chitter that she makes when she's happy. If I'm in the room and I won't let her on my shoulder (or if I'm in the shower and I don't take her in with me), she "cries" - long, frustrated whistles. And she makes short sharp tweets when she wants a treat.
• Ah yes, cockatiels and the treat call: Gimme a tweet.TWEET TWEET TWEET TWEETWEETTWEETTWEETWEETWEETWEETWEET HERE'S THE DAMN CHEERIO!!
• BlueHorse: I see you're experinced in the ways of the cockatiel. I swear, she's a bigger beggar than the damn dog.
• I've talked about my old cat before as well. Molly was arthritic, diabetic, flatulent and had incredible tortoiseshell markings. She died in February at the age of 20. As a kitten she looked like a small shrivelly bat. She blossomed into a huge 18-lb krazykat with a loud purr and a louder snore. Favorite activities were attacking people's feet, playing fetch and eating anything not nailed down. She mellowed into a sweet, talkative, regal presence, and kept her bold personality right to the end. A grand old gal. Now I have a Rent-A-Cat. We look after my husband's brother's cat when he goes to Dallas for work. Radar is a sweet little stripey thing: khaki-grey and black with a white chin, belly, mittens and socks. She's almost silent except for the occasional chirp and a quiet but constant purr. She follows us around, herds us upstairs for naps, and is in your lap as soon as you sit down. She's a charmer. I'm a basketcase every time she goes home. Mister shinything hinted that a surprise is coming up, and I suspect (hope) it might be a kitten. Will post pix if it happens.
• 2 cats: I've mentioned my Maine coon Whiskers a couple of times - talkative and sure that he's a little person. Only drools when he's been petted into a pool of melted cat. About 8 years old, 17 pounds, asthmatic. Morris is a marmelade tabby Manx. Not sure how old he is since he just walked into the house one day and announced that he was going to live here. He has great cat fantasies when he goes cross-eyed, runs around hectically, glancing over his head at his imagined playmate or pursuer, and attacks random pieces of paper. He loves feet to play with or to snuggle.
• petted into a pool of melted cat Path: I absolutely LOVE this! What an evocative description.
• Hey look, SideDish!! Somebody has implemented your idea. (sort of.)