I love my cats, really I do, but they all have little quirks that sometimes make me want to ship them off to kitty camp for a month. This time it’s Rugen.
Ru is a sweet boy, frantically skittish when he sees feet coming, bold if a toy mouse is involved. He has a quiet little “mau” and he rolls around like a curly worm, asking to have his belly rubbed when he’s in a happy mood. He thinks all quilts and piles of folded fabric belong to him, and loves nothing more than to jump on Mom’s back when she leans over.
He also pees on unfolded clothing and blankets.
I don’t usually leave my bedroom door open at night because the cats can be rambunctious. I left it open last night when Buttercup did her ” ‘dorable me” squawk and ran under my bed. She likes to sleep between my knees, which means I wake up on my stomach, trapped to the bed. This isn’t fun when it’s 2 a.m. and I have to go to the bathroom and I can’t easily wiggle free, because she also sleeps like the dead. Last night she was joined by Ru, and they were cuddled together, too cute to throw out, when I returned from the nature call. Fool. The next morning I found my borgana blanket (borgana is a fake fur fabric – my great grandmother made blankets and pillows from it) on the floor. I scooped it up and got an armful of wet. Blech.
I’ve tried various sprays, multiple litter boxes (we have five boxes for three cats), frequent scooping, and fanatical attention to keeping all loose fabric items covered or neatly folded and put away. (That’s the most challenging for me – I’m a piler.) He’s fine for a while – sometimes months – and then one day he leaves a surprise. It isn’t a physical issue (I’ve already checked with the vet). He just thinks that anything he can scratch into a pile should be peed on. He was neutered at 6 months, so it isn’t really marking, either. He’s just a damn cat.
Piecemeal Quilts 
Have you tried a Feliway diffuser? My coworker has had issues with her cat using the bathmat, and this thing has solved the problem completely. Not cheap, but neither is doing laundry every day…
Thanks, Kate! When finances are in better shape I’ll look into it. I just added it to my Amazon wishlist so I won’t forget about it.
One of our cats (Pickles Elaine is her name), if jealous of me for petting the other cat (Candy Sue is her name), used to go to my bathroom and tear my toilet paper all to pieces. At first, I confess, I found it kind of funny.
Later, when it started getting quite expensive and messy, I decided to do something. One morning, when I found the roll on the floor in a big mess, I went looking for Pickles. I picked her up without saying a word, and I took her to the bathroom. I put her little nose right on what was left of the roll and gave her one (ONE only) good smack on the butt! Nothing so aggressive or violent but just enough to show to her that I was mad.
… you know what? It worked!
I must say that I love our cats very very very much and do they do not lack for caring and loving.
Your cat, by the way, looks gorgeous!
I’d send you mine, but I think I’m going to need it soon! Been to the shelter twice this week already, narrowed it down to three contenders. It’s been too empty here, gotta fill up that hole…and finding a new buddy will definitely help. Thanks for your comments about Gershwin, BTW. He’ll be a tough act to follow.
Hola que gusto que felicidad me dio cuando vi tu mesa acolcha dora me compre una igualita y con ganas de acolchar mucho si das consejos te los recibo con un gusto inmenso