Last night, we decided that it would be a good night to let the boyz have free run of the house. We have great hopes of someday just letting the cats out so they can do their things and still being able to get a good night's sleep. Let's just say that didn't happen. I got maybe 4 hours of sleep. Hubs got about the same. Needless to say, we're dragging ass today.
The problem... now and every other time we've tried this... is Sawyer. He's a moose. He's also kinda spastic. And he doesn't quite know what to do with himself most of the time. Finn, loose at night, generally just picks a different place to sleep. Sawyer wants to know why we aren't paying attention to him. He meows loudly, scratches the walls (sounds like nails on a chalkboard, folks), and generally creates mayhem until one of us gets out of bed. This is also why I can't take naps these days, by the way.
If you don't remember or haven't seen where I've said this before, Sawyer's name at the shelter was Chili Pepper. That was a big hint there. We understood the hint at the time, but we were thinking jalapeno and this boy is more ghost pepper. And, like I said, he's a moose. I haven't weighed him in months, but he was 16 pounds then and he's probably 20 now. Not fat. Just solid. And if big kitty doesn't want to do something, good luck trying to get him to do it. He's a toddler with knives.
He's gotten a lot better, but he's still... WOW. Especially juxtaposed against Finn who is laid back and calm. (Not quiet. Finn's my talker. But he's also not in an 'in your face' kinda cat.)
I read somewhere that larger breed cats take longer to mature. Finn, who seems to be part Siamese, was an adult cat at a year. Sawyer? We think he's part Maine Coon. And, let's just say we're still waiting on him reaching maturity. I hope he outgrows this.
It's not like I don't know how to train a cat. I have tried everything. Water bottle squirts? That worked for like a day and then he decided water squirts were fun. Orange peels to keep him off things? He was all like 'yay, new toys' and batted them around. I put essential oils around. He made a face and then attempted to lick it off, so I had to wipe it all off before he ingested it. I've even swatted him on the butt. He thinks that's just playing rough and he's all WOOHOO! MOM WANTS TO PLAY!
Don't get me wrong. He's a boo and I love him. This too shall pass. I hope. Until then, it's either lock the cats up at night (No worries. Our office is huge, it has all their toys, it has the litter box, and we put food and water in here before we close the door.) so I can sleep or get used to dragging every day. Sawyer has no problem with spending his nights in the office. He sleeps, he eats, he sleeps some more. Finn, on the other hand, hates being closed in here. He sleeps, too, but you can tell it's under protest. Unfortunately, Finn also hates being left out of the office, so where one goes, so goes the other.
Right now, both of them are sleeping. In my bedroom with Hubs. Sawyer on the bed and Finn on the dresser. If they could do that at night, life would be awesome. Since they can't... :yawn:
I hadn't heard that about big cats. I know it's definitely true for huskies. Our Siberian was brain dead for five years and then one day not long into his fifth year, he woke up human. Seriously! Ride in the car before? He'd throw up and we had to give him sedatives. After? He demanded to ride in the front passenger seat and that I buckle his seatbelt. Seriously! Before, he howled at the telephone, the noon siren, any siren going by on the street (which then became howling at any marked police car, fire truck, or ambulance). After, he spoke Siberian Husky English. We would carry on deeply philosophical conversations as he lounged underneath my desk.
ReplyDeleteGood luck getting Sawyer to settle down. And good luck catching up on your sleep. I feel you, sistah, but not because the cats or Jake kept me up. That's all on my bladder! 🙄🤪