Conference misery::feline_v1

    I am constantly running over, kicking, bumping into and generally
    tripping over Amelia.  She follows me all over the house and has
    a tendency to be right under foot when I decide to move.  
    
    I always feel so terrible when this happens and try to make up to her 
    but she lets me know just how she feels about it by starting her
    mom-evasion techniques.  After scrambling to get to her for a minute 
    or two I am allowed to pick her up and try to make up to her.  Making
    up doesn't usually take too long, I can usually get a purr pretty
    quick.  What a terrible feeling to know that I'm brutalizing my poor 
    kitty.  Either I'm the worst cat dodger in the world or she's the
    biggest kitty klutz.
                                         
    I don't have this problem with Bailey.  When she sees me coming
    she usually runs and hides under the bed.  Do you think she's been
    watching me and Amelia too long?
    
    Jan

    Underfoot, my foot!  Shelby is a tailgater.  That cat is ALWAYS
    at my heels.  I can't keep track of all the times I've stepped on
    his tail, locked him in the pantry closet (by accident of course),
    and even came close to vacuuming him up a few times!!  My fiance
    thinks it's great that Shelby lacks the independent streak a cat
    usually has.  I, on the other hand, sometimes wish he had one!
    
    Of course I love him more than anything....
    
    
    /Roberta
    

    After stepping on poor Isis in the dark a few times - she's all
    black, the other two have alot of white - we went out and bought
    nightlights so when I get up in the middle of the night I'll be
    able to see Isis.
      Now Dundee's favorite place to stand is between my feet, sigh.
    And he tailgates me around the kitchen, I've turned around and
    kicked him unintentionally a few times.  Now I tend to turn with
    tiny steps until I can see where he is so if there's contact, its
    of minimal force.
      So you're not alone!
       NancyDC
    

    What a coincidence!  I just this morning nailed Boogie's tail because
    I didn't see her sitting behind me (waiting for a piece of lunch
    meat to fall, no doubt).  They all like to follow me around the
    kitchen, and many's the time I've locked someone in the coat closet,
    stepped on a tail or a paw or accidently kicked someone in the ribs.
    I feel terrible.  Of course, many's the time I've had my stomach
    used as a trampoline, my body's been used as a heating device, my
    shoulder used as a "safe zone" (ha-ha I'm on Mom, you can't get
    me now), and we won't talk about the scratches, nips, etc.  and
    I've yet to hear an apology  ;-)  ;-)
    
    I guess I should start looking injured too!!!!
    
    Mary-Michael

    2 out of 3 of my cats love to get between my feet. Their favorite
    place to do this is on the stairs. More than once I have taken a
    dive on the stairs trying to avoid stepping/falling on one of them.
    
    Craig

    
    
    Since we got our puppy, our two kitties spend much of the time
    following me around via the *high-ground* route (over furniture,
    tables and chairs).  I have upon occasion locked someone in the
    laundry room, the bathroom, a closet or on the back porch without
    knowing it.  I feel really bad about it when I get home from work
    and don't get greeted by the usual *thundering* crowd.  Then I have
    to go on a search and destroy mission looking for the missing furface.
    
    I do however have a problem with our *puppy* (almost 60 lbs.
    worth of P-U-P-P-Y!).  He's either racing through the house and
    bowls me over twice (once coming and going) or steps of the back
    of my slipper causing my downfall or lays down right behind me while
    I'm cooking or doing dishes.  Many is the time I've turned quickly
    to get a spice or another dish and kicked the dog/tripped over the
    dog, fallen or at least dropped what I had in my hand.  What's really
    funny is that if I happen to drop food on the floor, he usually
    won't eat it but looks at me as if to say *geez Mom ... you okay?
    ... where'd you learn how to walk? ... hey, I was just minding my
    own business*
    
    Escho does get me once in a while when she wants attention.  She
    runs ahead of me andstops RIGHT in front of me.  That's always good
    for either drop kicking her into the next room or giving me a close
    up of the dust bunnies on the floor.
    
    But what can I say ... I just luv them little furfaces!
    
    Roslyn (mother of Escho, Brandy and Stark, my *Odie* dawg)

    Cats really can fake it!  It's their way of gaining our sympathy
    of course!  About 8 years ago I bought my sister a siamese cat for
    Christmas.  Well this cat was something else.  If you looked at
    her and said "poooor kitty" in a very sympathetic tone, she would
    lift up one of her paws as though it was hurt!!  What a fake!  What
    a character! 
    
    Jeanne
    
    
    
    

    Thunder is definitely my PEOPLE CAT.  Especially a MOMMY PEOPLE
    CAT.  She is FOREVER around me, under me, on me, behind me, in front
    of me, etc.  
    
    Of course, Deja is no slouch either.  She just loves running up
    the hallway in front of me,  racing me to the kitchen, helping me
    get the potatoes out of the cabinet (she climbs in and pushes them
    out to me.  Last Friday, I didn't see her climb in and closed the
    cabinet door.  When I got home (11 hours later) she didn't run to
    greet me with the others.  Instantly, I knew something was wrong.
    When we finally found her, she was stiff (and hungry) from being
    confined so long.  Of course, she got EXTRA hugs and kisses for
    that little trauma.
    
    I have also learned to look before walking and have also learned
    to keep night-lights burning so I don't step on Thunder (all black)
    in the night-time.
    
    Sandi (Lightning, DejaVu & Thunder's mom)
    
    

    I think I have the ultimate hidden cat story here.
    One busy night I got home and was greeted by three little furfaces
    - not unusual for Ms. Kitty Bumps to saunter down later at her
    leisure.  Well, two errands and supper later I remembered that I
    still hadn't seen Bumpy and we started a phase 1 search.
      Phase 1 is when you look in all the places you know the cat likes
    to hang out and/or hide.  No Bumpy.
      On to Phase 2 - this is where you look in all the places you figure
    the cat would fit and might, for some reason known only to cats,
    decide to lounge.  No Bumpy - we now expanded the search to the
    yard - and it was getting dark - on the off chance that she snuck
    out when I went in or out.  It was warmer weather and they always
    wanted to be out on the leash.  I even made myself go to the front
    and look in the street for a flat cat (none thank God).
      By now we're getting frantic so its time for a PHASE 3 search.
    This is where you throw out all notions of where a cat might fit
    and search EVERYWHERE.  I started going through drawers under the
    waterbed, then on to my bureau drawers.  Jack was down stairs prac-
    tically crawling through the kitchen cabinets (and he's 6' 5"!).
    We're talking panic city here.
      Finally I started going through Jack's dresser drawers and when
    I got to the third drawer from the bottom, up pops Bumpytail.  
    "Yawn - oh hi there mom, time to wake up?  Hey, take it easy mom,
    you'll have a stroke.  What's all the fuss?"
      She had apparently gone in there to play with the socks (a favorite
    past-time, almost as much fun as flinging underwear around) and
    Jack had closed the drawer on her.  (Well, you'd be half asleep
    if you got up at 5 am too!)  She'd spent the day in her cozy nest.
      now you'd think she'd make a beeline for the cat box or the 
    water dish, but not Bumpytail.  She sauntered downstairs, while
    Jack and I fussed over her, to check out the food dish.  Which,
    I might add, she turned her nose up at!
    
      sigh....cats!
    
    
    
       Nancy DC
    

    Re: .9  What a wonderful story!!
    
    I don't know how many times I've turned my tiny apartment completely
    UPSIDE-DOWN looking for my little furfaces!  They can be so sneaky
    sometimes!
    
    As a footnote to this, my wonderful calico IS named UNDERFOOT. 
    I named her when she was just a little tyke, only 8 weeks old, because
    she was constantly under, between, on top of, behind, in front of,
    around my feet.  She's now 5 years old, and the name has stuck.
    
    Kelley - mom to "Underfoot" and "Jellybean"

    Some Day......
    
    I have a metal spiral staircase that goes from the cattery up
    to the main floor - it's narrow (as some folks may remember) 
    and it only works one way - two people can't go up or down at
    the same time - neither can two cats.  Every day when I am 
    either going up or down, Mr. Pashenka Shelton Trachman 
    decides to do "cute" on the stairs, rubbing against the toe
    of my shoe as I take one step - usually he pulls this cute
    act when I am on the way down in the morning with the puppy
    pan and bowl full of water.  Some day I will either step
    on him as he waits on the next step or trip over him!
    
    Some day (very soon I hope) I will have a regular set of stairs
    installed in place of "the one way street."  
    
    E.T.

    
    re:12
    
    Yup, I put 2 14-oz cans of Old Mom Hubbard in to a 14-inch
    stainless steel puppy pan - the kids free feed from this
    all day - then when I get home after work, I put 2 more
    14-oz cans in for the next 12 hours, this process repeats
    every 12 hours (this is a recording) - then, I have 2
    12-inch puppy pans - one has Blue Seal Kat Kare and the
    other has Hills Light Formula Dry - 
    
    7 cat can feed at the 14-inch puppy pan at once - the 9
    wait until someone finishes, then the next guy step up
    to pig out, and so on , and so on, until all the piglet
    are satisfied - sometimes there is some left in the pan
    when I come home at night - not always.  The ones that
    don't get the first feeding just stand by because they
    know there will be plenty left for them.  They don't
    mind waiting - the youngest eat first, the older ones
    are better at waiting!  The younger ones need to learn
    better manners!  It's cute to walk halfway up the stairs
    and look down and see the backs of 7 cats with their
    head burried in the pan - all different colors - and
    the little row of kids waiting!
    
    E.T.

    RE: 13
    
    Is the Blue seal kat care a dry food or wet food?  

    Blue Seal Kate Kare is a dry low ash low magnesium cat food.
    
    My guys love it.
    
    E.T.

    Next time I go to countryside Farm & Garden, I'll have to see it
    they have a small size and see if Nippa likes it.  I like to offer
    a variety, because she gets so finicky with the same ol' thing.
     
    Countryside's prices on bulk pet food (IAMS, Kat Kare...blue seal 
    feeds, bird seeds) are real reasonable.  I know they offer discounts
    when you buy large quantitys of grain (between my friend and I,
    we usuallu buy about 1500/lbs of grain a month), so they might do
    the same for dog/cat food.  If anyone's interested, I'll check it
    out next time we go.

    Boy Elaine, do you and I know about cats being underfoot!
                
    Right now we have a housefull of 18, no, make that 17.  One of the
    kittens went to her new mommy last weekend (sniff).  9 cats and
    8 kittens make for fun times in the kitchen!  I can't even make
    coffee without dodging all of them at once.  You really have to
    learn to do the kitten shuffle (bears close resemblence to the shuffle
    that Artie Johnson used to do when playing the old man on Laugh
    In) to avoid stepping on any of them.
    
    I may have to get a puppy pan!  Right now I use microwave TV dinner
    plates.  I use 22oz. cans, and split one up between 3 plates, 3
    times a day.  Plus dry food, of course.  My guys don't have any
    manners at all, they all have to eat at the same time.  So, they
    squeeze themselves all together and polish off the plate in a matter
    of seconds.
    
    Jo

    Who makes 22 oz. cans?????  Where do you find them?
    
    Deb

Wow, 18  -  that's a serious houseful - 8 kittens

    Hi Jo - just thought I finish what I started in .19 !  One of my
    writers came in for a meeting and I had to "work" - 
    
    The puppy pans work very well - I keep 2 sets - one for water
    and one for food - just take a set down clean and bring the
    dirty set up to wash for the next feeding.   This morning
    the hounds must have been exceptionally hungry - I stepped
    on two tails, tripped on 3 sets of black paws & bodies,
    knocked Lara off of the kitchen counter with my elbow,
    almost closed Terror's wiskers in the bathroom door -
    he was made because I went in without him (I let the 
    bathroom be "my" place with NO cats - they have a problem
    understanding that I need an occasional 2 or 3 minutes without
    them!) - Yurii decided to chew on my elbow while I was filling
    the thermos with hot coffee - he got more elbow than he planned
    for - they were all a little wackkky this morning.
    
    One of these days......

    re: .20....sounds like the spring crazies to me....
    Every year, about this time, cats start bouncing off the walls
    around here.  I guess you don't have to be an in-tact cat to
    hear the call of Spring..
      Some days I feel like bouncing off the walls myself.
        Nancy DC
    

    Kal Kan (Whiskas) makes 22oz cans (Thank God!).  I buy them for
    $1.09 a piece at the highest price, and $.87 at the lowest price.
    I order them through my local drug store ("Hello store manager?
    I forgot to ask you to order 15 cases of the 22oz Whiskas.... no
    fish flavors please, but assorted otherwise....what was that?  Do
    I own a truck? No...I'll just toss them on top of the cat litter
    in my Honda.") and if I buy by the case, they give me a case discount.
    
    Problem is, suddenly you realize that you are out of Whiskas and
    it will take 2 days to get the order in....you look down and see
    17 very angry cat faces staring at you!
    
    Jo

    Interesting; I also feed KalKan (Whiskas) but the largest that I ever
    see is the 12 or 13 oz cans. I once asked if they made larger cans and
    you should have seen the look that I got. Did they just start makeing
    these large cans? How long have they been available? Do you ALWAYS have
    to special order them, or do they sometimes have a few out?
    
    Deb

    We have been using the large cans since about October.  That is
    when they appeared on the shelves at our drug store.  They do stock
    them regularly but only buy in quantities large enough to fill their
    shelves (they order for themselves once a week, of course, a week
    supply for me is more than a week supply for their whole store!)
    so I call in my order to the store so they can plan on their needs.
    
    I don't think that the 22oz size is new.  I seem to remember seeing
    it in the Market Wholesale Catalog when I was a buyer for this same
    drug store chain.  But, back then, I didn't need 22oz. cans!  It
    may just be that the store just suddenly decided to stock it.  I
    have found that I can buy it at Alpha Beta (grocery store) sometimes
    too, but for much more money.
    
    Also, forgot to mention... Kal Kan has a pedigree program where
    the give breeders monthly coupons to use when buying their cat food.
    The also gave me a nifty breeding planner notebook, and a quarterly
    (I think) newsletter with health related articles.  
    
    Jo

    interesting. Do you have an address/phone # for Kal Kan? I'd like to
    call them to see if there is someplace around here that I can get these
    large cans. 
    
    Deb

    I may have an address for them somewhere at home.  I will have to
    check it out.
    
    jo

    Over the 35 years we have been married we have had over 16 cats,
    but never that many at the same time (Sympathies, Jo!) but always
    someone was getting stepped on, having their tails shut in the fridge,
    cupboard, etc.  I think Peaches, our 13 lb orange/white shorthair
    seems to be unluckier than any in the past.  No serious injuries,
    Thank Goodness, but we have taken to calling him our "football"
    cat.  Usually after a "bang" he runs off and acts hurt and sulks
    but in a very few minutes he's back getting stepped on or kicked
    or something.   He's a big fake.
    
    Chuck