Conference misery::feline_v1

2476.0. "WATER WATER EVERYWHERE....." by JULIET::APODACA_KI (Love rescue me.) Tue May 16 1989 21:49

    Okay, it's a Saturday afternoon, and nothing to do.  The solution?
    Helping Jo Ann Cordes wash 11 cats in repayment for a big favor--it's
    not a just a job, it's an adventure.  We thought fellow FELINERS
    might enjoy the trials and tribulations of Kitty Baths Plus, so
    submitted for your enjoyment and reading pleasure.....
                                           
    12noon--1pm   Another bright day on the hottop of 101, wondering
    how so many drivers can possible pack two lanes of a freeway in
    the middle of a Saturday afternoon.   I'm already an hour late to
    Jo's house and starting to wonder if maybe I made a mistake in assuming
    that I could drive 35 miles down a freeway in less than 1.5 hours.
    
    1pm-2:30ish  I arrive in the plesant burb of Morgan Hill and get
    promptly lost.  Finally I park in the driveway of Jo's nice house
    and see her and her niece toting what appears to be an endless string
    of cat carriers into the garage prepatory to flea bombing the house.
    Peering into the garage, I see said carriers stacked four high in
    three nice rows--several sets of luminous blue and not blue eyes
    stare back at me.  I make a body count and come up with 9 adult
    cats, 4 kittens and 2 half grown kittens.  Jo makes introductions,
    and I nod dumbly, pretending to follow along, wondering how in the
    world she tells them all apart, much less remembers all their names.
    
    We pull weeds while the house is filled with the pungent fragrance
    of Flea Eradicator.  While doing our gardenly work in the back yard,
    we are seranaded lustily by Kalliste the Stud Man, who is in a tokyo
    cage by his lonesome self, and not at all happy about it.  In a
    variety of meows, yowls, gurgles and chirps he goes about wondering
    why we aren't paying attention to him, and most of all yelling about
    the lack of female company ("WHERE'S THE CHICKS???").  Explanations
    that he shouldn't have any more fun than we are at the moment go
    unheeded, and Kalliste continues to inform the neighborhood of his
    sorrowful dilemma.
    
    2:30-8:30pmish---The house is now deflead, and time for the cats
    to do the same.  Starting with what we thought might be the difficult
    ones, we bathe Tilly, Winston and Monroe, the three household pets
    (Read: the only ones I could tell apart because they look different).
    Conveniently having a spray nozzle attached to her sink and a very
    healthy supply of flea shampoo, dip, and towels on hand, Jo and
    I make a rudimentary assembly line.  Cats are nail-clipped, bathed,
    dipped and dried off.  Kalliste, still wondering where all the chicks
    are, goes from a very big and poofy coated cat into a sodden "pinhead"
    as Jo calls him--not much body under all the fur.  Kalliste doesn't
    like being called a pinhead, but stoically puts up with all this
    human abuse and comes out in the end a clean, handsome specimen
    of his breed.  He is retired to his very own room, to stare out
    the window and wonder WHERE'S THE GIRLS???
    
    Other Birmans follow in sucession--Joui, Kyrielle, Kaitlin the Pregnant
    One--all with no problem.  Westie, a 5-month old male kitten, proves
    squirmy but otherwise all right during the blow dry.  Thus far,
    my hands are still attached to my body and I am thinking this is
    quite a nice job--calm, quiet, and the cats are all well behaved.
    
    Hah.  Spoke to soon.  Limogee and Laci are being washed and dried.
     I am drying Limogee who abruptly turns into a Feline version of
    the kid from the Exorcist.  Yelling, hissing and moving in ways
    no cat should, she uses my shoulder as a launching ramp and vanishes
    in a puff of sodden fur.  Jo, who has been trying to calm her, leaves
    Laci (who up to this point is an exemplary bathee) in the sink and
    takes off after Limogee as onlooking cats scatter.  Laci takes this
    opportunity to shoot out of the sink and down the hall, yours truly
    in pursuit.  
    
    The next few minutes are something between scenes from the French
    Connection car chase and the Three Stooges.  Jo heads into the
    living room admist a very vocally protesting Limogee.  I run down
    the hall after a half soaked Laci, trying to be serious about chasing
    a cat that runs, stops, shakes one leg, runs, stops and shakes the
    other.  I recapture Laci, and head back in to the kitchen.  Meanwhile,
    Joui and Kyrielle, taking advantage of this moment, decide to fight.
    Limogee is screaming her head off.  Westie is running around underfoot,
    trying to be everywhere at once, and being quite successful about
    it.  A yell from me scatters cats.  Westie disappears.  Jo returns
    with a squalling Limogee and works on trying to get her into a carrier
    to calm down.  I plunk Laci into the sink and work on soaking both
    of us with the sprayer (unintentionally).  Slowly, after considerable
    work, Jo calms Limogee down enough so that we can get her dry and
    let her go lick herself and sulk.  Once again, calm returns.
    
    At least for five minutes.  Laci decides that what worked for Limogee
    can work for her, too, and we have the Great Cat Panic of 1989 Pt.
    II.  Joui, not to be deprived of a moment, leaps onto the counter,
    growling and ready to take Laci on (Laci is more worried about other
    things right now).  Westie returns to take in the scene.  Water
    flies.  I shoo Joui off.  Westie disappears.  Kyrielle, having decided
    that being yelled at once is enough, refuses to make an entrance.
    Limogee is sulking.  The three household pets are safe in their
    room.  Kaitlin is safe in her cage inside Kalliste's room.  And
    Kalliste, for all I know, is still wondering WHERE'S ALL THE GIRLS?
    
    Finally, we get Laci calm (or Jo does, rather--we believe that maybe
    we have a bottle of bad dip and resolve to dilute it--one cat to
    go).  Whatever possessed Laci wears off and once relatively dry,
    we deposit her on the floor, expecting her to tear off into seclusion.
     She sits down and licks her foot like nothing happened.  Joui has
    been put into the tokyo cage by herself and sulks.  Westie reappears
    and knocks down the empty carriers.  Half expecting Armageddon,
    we wash the last cat, Lysentia, and are relieved that she behaves
    nicely, other than trying to jump off the counter every time her
    kittens meow.  Finally, everyone is bathed, dip or flea rubbed.
    The kitchen looks like a tidal wave hit it.  The word LOOSE CAT
    HAIR is given a new meaning.  I believe there is potential for Birman
    hair sweaters.
    
    8:30-9pm   The end of a long day.  I make my rounds of the cats,
    hoping they will forgive me.  Tilly is standoffish as usual.  Monroe
    falls on my foot, and stays there, obviously having forgotten I
    was the one who washed him.  We find Limogee who looks at us with
    the sweetest little face, her devil horns replaced with a halo.
    Despite everything, I think Jo has forgiven HER.  ;)
    Westie, everywhere as always, makes sure that Limogee doesn't get
    TOO much attention.  Kalliste is probably still wondering WHERE
    ARE THE GIRLS, but according to Jo, he's gonna have his chance to
    put his best foot forward soon enough (so to speak) ;>
    
    Peace having returned to the Cordes Household, I take my leave,
    making a mental note to think more carefully before I volunteer
    to wash 11 cats again.  ;)   
    
    So consider this fair warning of what you could get into if you
    owe a breeder a favor!  Never let it be said you weren't warned.
    (heh heh)
    
    kim
    
    P.S.  Actually, in spite of Limogee and Laci, I had fun.  Jo's cats
    are great and yes, now I know Birman's are very handsome creatures
    (even when they are in "pinhead" mode).

    Well, you had me laughing, but then I was *there*.  It is much funnier
    today then it was then...
    
    While this was all going on with Limoges and Laci, it finally dawned
    on me that both of them were dipped with the brand new bottle of
    dip, so Laci was unceremoniously plopped back in the sink and hosed
    off!  Too bad I hadn't figured that out with Limoges!  Once rinsed,
    Laci returned to her normal, well behaved self.  
    
    The dip has since been returned to the store, same brand I have 
    always used, but never had this reaction before.  Laci and Limoges 
    are the two I am showing right now, and both are used to many baths.
    Honest Kim, they usually don't act like that.  :^).  (I had a hard
    time convincing Kim that I had saved the easiest ones for last
    after both Laci and Limoges blew)                     
    
    You forgot to mention that neither of us can move now, two days
    later!  I have never been so sore in my entire life.  I just hope
    that I NEVER have to do that again.  I couldn't have done it without
    Kim's help, and I thank her for putting up with me and my troupe.
    
    Jo                       
    

    Don't let Kim fool the rest of you though, she is much more observant
    than she let on.  By the time she left, not only did she know which
    Birman was which, she could also commment (very accurately) on their
    personalities too.
    
    She remembered each and every one of my 11 cats (7 of which are
    sealpoints!) and their names!!!! Not even my own family members
    can do that....not even my cat sitter can do that....sometimes I
    can't even do that!!!!!!
    
    :^D
    
    JO

    Re:  .2  (Bunches of Birman Names and Faces)
    
    Honestly Jo Ann, I try to remember but you keeping swapping them
    out on me.  I just get one batch of kittens and mommas straight
    and there's a whole new bunch.  Give Kim a memory test next time
    she's over there and see if she can still keep them straight. ;^)
    
    Kim -- I should have warned you about what you were in for.  I learned
    cat bathing from Jo Ann when she only had a few household pets
    (pre-Birman breeder days) and I can remember the time that Winston 
    decided to become a "kitty rocket" and launched himself over our 
    heads (or was that Jesse?).
                                
    Jan

    Ah, yes, BATH time......  brings back memories of getting 9 of the
    little hounds ready for the Chalet show April 1st  - as I would
    always say to my friend Lauren many times during a show weekend,
    "Auntie, are we having an Adventure yet?"
    
    Thanks for entering that - it sounded like you all had quite
    the "time" - I'm smirking and shouldn't - I'm getting ready
    to do almost the same at the Inn - boy, I can hardly wait!
    After I do KoKo, who has never left the house, I probably
    will be on medical disability for life!
    
    E.T._who_has_wallowed_in_2_weekends_with_NO_CAT_SHOWS !!!!!!

    Hey, I can STILL remember them all, if not correctly spell their
    names....
    
    (jo's seen this before)
    
    Kalliste  (Mr. Macho)
    Joui (Ms. Instigator)
    Kyrielle (Co-instigator)
    Kaitlin (the FAT one--only cause she's pregnant and she's the only
    blue point)
    Lysentia (The Mouth with 4 mini-mouths)
    Laci (I love everyone except that person with the blow dryer)
    Limogee (Hell on 4 feet when I wanna Be)
    Westie (Hey!  What's everyone doing?!)
    Winston (Hey, I'm Easy)
    Tilly (Don't TOUCH Me!)
    Monroe (Oh Is That Your Foot I'm Squishing?)
    
    See?  11 cats, 11 names.  I *think* I can still tell em apart! 
    ;D
    
    kim

    Kim got to know them *intimately* in that marathon bathing session!
    
    Jo

    I'll say--when a cat is comfy enough to pee while I'm washing them,
    I'd say that's pretty intimate.  ::chuckle::
    
    It was fun, honest, gang.  Really.  :D
    
    kim

    Hey, Kim, How much did Jo pay you to say that!!!  The part about
    it all being fun, that is!!!
    
    cin...who knows what it's like to bathe 10 in one day!
    

    No, no it was fun except when Limoges (HAH! I finally got it right!)
    went up my shoulder, half way down my back, and otherwise was
    Exorcist-kitty.  Watching Laci run down the hall shaking her feet
    and looking very much like, well, like a half wet cat was hysterical
    enough to make it all worthwhile.  And of course...there's Monroe...
    ::sigh::
    
    kim   ;)

    A Tokyo Cage is like a small pen on wheels.  It's 4 ft high, and
    about 2' x 3 ' in size.  They usually have 2 carpeted shelves for
    jumping.  
    
    These cages are made in Tokyo, hence the name -- Tokyo Cage.  I
    refer to mine as the "Kitty Condo".
    
    cin
    

    wooooowwwwwwwwwww....and to think i'm hesitant to bathe ONE grouchy
    male!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
    
    karen 
    
    p.s. are baths necessary only for flea problems or done on a regular
    basis.  (sort of new mom who hates the idea of baths)
    

    Well, to answer your question, we bathe the show cats once a week
    when we are showing them.  Other than that, they are only bathed
    about once a month, and that is just to keep them looking their
    best.  
    
    If you don't have fleas or other problems, you really don't have
    to bathe your cat if you don't want to.  I always recommend that
    my kitten buyers continue to bathe their kittens once a month at
    the least to keep the kitten used to it.  That way, if they ever
    *have* to bathe their cats, it won't be a big ordeal for both owner
    and cat.
    
    Jo

    Kim,
    
    The descriptions were terrific!!  I laughed outloud in my cube and then
    prayed no one would come to take me away.  Thanks for the report.
    
    By the way, did you get Freeway?
    
    Jill
    

    Re. 13
    
    Aw, c'mon Jo Ann, bath time DID = Fun time--at least *I* was having
    fun, even if you and the cats weren't.  ;)
    
    Re .14
    
    Yes, I did but that's another note...  :D  heh heh
    
    (which I am about to write)
    
    kim