Pet Peeves

I haven't done an installment of Pet Peeves lately....  for the most part I adore those furry children I share my life with but sometimes they do make me a bit nutty.

• Must the puppies poop on the patio?  They have 3/4 of an acre of grass....more poop to clean up - fun times.
• Why does Emma have to unmake the bed every.single.day all the way down to the mattress?  The mattress pad, sheets, blanket, comforter and pillows all have to be wadded up in the middle of the bed.  I don't like making the bed once a week, let alone every day!
• Oliver - must your love bites pierce the skin?  What happened to soft nibbles?  Crazy cat....
• Speaking of cats - must they wail at the top of their lungs at every meal as if they haven't ever been fed, ever in their lifetimes?
• Oh little ferrets....must we check to see if there truly 150 Kleenex's in the box by taking out each and every one??
• Winston has decided one chewie before bed is not enough so he throws a temper tantrum at his bedroom door.  He has been sent to his bed in trouble for the last three nights - little pink turd...

Oh critters - I do love you!!

Pet Peeves

It's been awhile since I posted an edition of Pet Peeves.  For the most part my sweet furry children bring me much joy and happiness - but - there are things that make me nutty the little darlings do....

For instance - yowling at the critter land door.  OMG - Oliver!!  He is a very vocal cat...he talks and talks and talks and talks some more.  Regardless of whether you are with him or not - he talks.  He could hear voices of visitors in the living room and proceeded to yowl at the door.  He never tires of meowing it seems so he can yowl for hours....joy....  He has gotten in trouble twice today for yowling - not going to deal with it every day.  He is doing this because he got attention when we had people staying with us.  So obnoxious.  Phoebe (kitty) tries meowing occasionally but if you holler at her she stops immediately because she can't stand to be in trouble.

To add to yowling - Emma (dog) is a yipper.  In her old age she is quite chatty....so - when she goes outside for 6 seconds to do her business she will yip at the door until you let her in.  If you don't let her in for an hour - she will yip for an hour.  She yips if you are in one room and she is in another.  She yips if she hears you talking to someone (human or critter) that is not her.  She won't stop when she is told and she never tires....she and Oliver need a sound proof room so they can yip and yowl together....

Piglet (Winston) - well - he is still head swiping on occasion.  It happens when I stand next to him with my legs even to his ears.  I think that because he has such limited peripheral vision that he finds that spot threatening in some way because he can't see what I am doing.  He swipes and then he gets in large amounts of trouble and then he pouts.  Swiping is much better since we trimmed the tusks - at least he isn't accidentally drawing blood....crazy pig.  Oh - and the fact that he is a giant pink turd to guests.  I have my fingers crossed he will outgrow that eventually.



The girl kitties and the ferrets are not currently on my list.  They are all pretty go with the flow so they aren't doing anything to make me crazy - but give it time.  All of them have been and will be on this list again....

I love my yowling, yipping, swiping little dears.....



 

The Kitchen Chairs

The kitchen chairs will be the death of me.  Piglet continues to win this battle.  He knows that if he tips them over they will make an excessively loud noise and I will come downstairs.  We have tried ribbon around the outside, bungee cords across the cross bars - nothing seems to work.  So - I called in the big guns - the hubs and his solution was simple yet elegant - zip ties.  I went to the hardware store and purchased them this morning and am getting ready to do the "install".  I am hopeful that this will work.

Once we win the chair battle - maybe the hubs can come up with a solution for winning the splashy water dish war....

Pet Peeves....

Here we have it - another episode of pet peeves - the things that make you a tiny bit crazy and annoyed when you are "raising" 12 critters.

Exhibit A - Why oh why must the piglet head butt he water bowl before he drinks?  Water splashes all over the kitchen floor making for a soggy mess....perhaps its his bad eyesight - and he wants to get an idea of how deep the water in the bowl is?  Not sure but its really annoying....  The ferrets do something similar when they drink - they scratch at the water in the bowl to make it more visible to them so they don't dunk their noses - but its a bit less offensive as their splashes are a lot smaller than Winston's!

Exhibit B - Hardwood floor neurosis.  I do completely adore the dog but her neuroses do tend to work my nerves.  She is a mess when it comes to walking down the upstairs hallway floor - laminate hardwood....it's like a major drama every morning and then when she finally does decide to head downstairs its flailing and freaking out and complete ridiculousness until she makes it to the stairs.  Sigh.....

Exhibit C - Licky kitties.  Now don't get me wrong - I love to get kisses from the critters - Madison is notorious for ferret smooches, occasionally Emma gives doggie kisses.  Sometimes even the pig gives kisses - its all good.  But - three of my kitties are chronic kissers - which means you can't have any sort of engagement with them at all without it being a giant lick fest.  Oliver is by far the worst - especially at night - any flesh not covered by pjs or blankets is fair game.  Phoebe is not a whole lot better and Zoey is not only licky but she does it with great gusto so it feels like an exfoliation....  I love the kisses but every time?? Geez...

Exhibit D - While we are on the topic of kitties....Oliver has to be on me at all times.  If I am seated or laying down it takes him about seven seconds to try to hop on board.  I adore his affection and we have repeated sessions of cuddle time each day but its just not practical to try to work, use your laptop, go to the bathroom, etc with a cat on you.  Additionally - he doesn't just want to be on you where he gets in your lap and stays still - oh no - is biscuit making, turning around, head butting and licking (see above).  As I type this he is laying on my right arm....

Exhibit E - Last bug certainly not least - leaping ferrets.  Theo and Kai have decided that the console table and the dresser are now fair game and they get there by leaping from the bed.  This means nothing on either of those pieces of furniture is ferret safe now which is is giant pain in the rump.  I came upstairs yesterday and most of the photos on the console table had been knocked down.  Not only is it messy but there is no where to put things you want to keep them out of....




There you have it - my current top 5 list.  Let's be perfectly clear - I love this crazy bunch and the joy they bring me far outweighs any annoyances....

Pet Peeves - 2015 Editions

I have decided to resurrect the Pet Peeves posts for this year because lets face it - there are some pretty annoying things that happen when you live with twelve critters...

1.  Posting about pet peeves at 6:30 am on my last day of vacation courtesy of Oliver.  He is not a fan of being shut out of bedroom at night so he breaks in by sliding the room divider and hopping over the gate.  This annoys me for a couple of reasons - first I worry that we will have a ferret escape with the room divider out of place and second - Oliver is just obnoxious when he gets in our room getting onto and into things he shouldn't.  So - as a result I am up incredibly early.

2.  New and improved ways to get into trouble by Mr. Piglet.  He is so smart that he discovers new and annoying ways to get into trouble.  Lately he has decided that it is a necessity to splash water ALL OVER the kitchen by shoving his water dish.  This makes the kitchen rugs quite soggy...  Additionally he is now obsessed with the gate that keeps him downstairs - he is quite strong so we are having issues with keeping it closed.  So frustrating....

Of course - as I type this both Oliver and Winston are curled up sleeping angelically now that I am awake... sigh!

Pet Peeves - Volume 11

Hmmm - what will my pet peeve be for this month?  So - its not really a pet peeve per say - but it does make a mess and it is a pain in the butt to clean up.  Miss Madison LOVES to pull garbage bags out of the box.  It doesn't matter if its the folded bags or the ones on a roll but its not unusual for me to go downstairs in the mornings to find bags everywhere - literally - hundreds of them.  Her latest round - 70 kitchen bags and 150 large black bags.

Even though its a pain to pick them up I leave the boxes where she can get them because I have seen her during her bag playing and she makes her happy little squeaky noise and she has so much fun.  Its my own fault.

Not much of a peeve for this go around.....

Pet Peeves - Volume 10

My pet peeve for this month - they naughtiness of Miss Emma.  Wow.  Is she pushing her mommy's buttons....
She has decided that she is going to do what she wants when she wants with total disregard for what she has been told....UGH

A couple of solid weeks of this has frazzled my nerves.  I am happy to report that today was a very good pup day - no working of the nerves at all.  I have my fingers crossed that the naughtiness phase is over.

In Emma's defense - she is amazing with the other animals.  She is patient and tolerant and gentle.  Madison uses her as a speed bump crawling all over her and Emma never complains.  In fact  - today when I came downstairs Madison had her whole head in Emma's mouth - guess that dog food smells good....

Pet Peeves - Volume 11

3 am wake up calls....be it the dog, the ferret, the kitties.....its never Nigel as he is in his cage.  The ferret and the kitties are usually playing and trying to entertain themselves and they end up waking me up by making noise.  Its hard to be mad at them for that - but at 3 am - I do get frustrated.

Emma has decided lately that 3 am is the best time to go outside to go potty....really?  We take her right before bed - doesn't seem to matter.  Grrrr - I would love to sleep in occasionally....but not happening much around here these days.

"Pet Peeves" - Volume 9

This month my featured pet peeve is Emma's need to eat cat food.  Now that we started the new diet she does better about staying out of the dry cat food - this is great!  Now she has honed in on the wet stuff and frequently steals the kitties food.  So annoying.

Then - I think to myself - I will be smart and put the bowls up on the table and have the kitties eat up there.  Sigh - Emma just took the bowls off the table - she got in HUGE trouble for this.  So.....now we give the kitties their food and Emma has to go upstairs and get locked in the bedroom til they are done.

Geez....

"Pet Peeves" 8th Edition

Cat fights - cripes!  Oliver likes to pick on all of his sisters - especially Aggie.  Aggie likes to pick on Phoebe.  Phoebe likes to whack Zoey and Clooney.  Geez - if I had a nickel for hollering "no fighting" I could retire.  Fighting consists of several variations:

• Fight starter corners victim and puts on the intimidation - victims hisses, growls and screeches
• Victim tries to escape fight in first place - fight starter chases and tackles victim - victim hisses, growls and screeches
• Sneak attack - sleeping victim attacked by fight starter

This also tends to occur at late hours when one is sleeping.....they love each other and are very sad when they are separated - just like 2 legged siblings I guess....

"Pet Peeves" Volume 7

Each month I feature the thing that's annoying me the most with the critters.  I have to say that going on vacation did me a world of good.  I missed them so much while we were gone that I have no irritation with any of them to report at the moment.  It's early in the month so I may choose to revisit this but for now I am loving spending time with them, watching them play on the cat tree, taking care of Emma, working with Nigel and playing with Clooney.  I am a happy critter mom!

"Pet Peeves" 6th edition

Entering and exiting our house can be quite challenging at times.  Between Emma - the just a little neurotic dog who is unable to exit normally and yanking your arm off with the leash as you take her outside; Oliver - the former outdoor kitty who thinks he wants to escape but once he gets outside he freaks at the slightest noise; Zoey - the make way I am coming through so I can lay on the porch and sun myself; and Clooney - the I really want to see what is on the other side of the door but once I get out there I want in because its too hot critters - its sometimes like herding cats (literally) to get out the door.

We installed the screen door thinking it might help corral the masses - I haven't decided if its a help or a hindrance yet.  Entering is not nearly as bad as exiting....

"Pet Peeves" Volume 5

Clooney is a cup monster.  If there is a cup or bottle or can anywhere that he can get to - he has some sort of beverage homing device that makes him take a beeline straight for your drink.  He tips the container to see what's inside.  If there is ice he loves to lick the cubes and depending on what is in the cup sometimes he drinks whats in there.  

The latest casualty - a large glass of sweet tea the hubs put on the headboard.  This was particularly messy as the liquid went down the crack of the headboard into the storage compartment and got a bunch of bedding wet - nothing like an extra load of laundry or two.  

Clooney is a drama mama - he pouts when he is in trouble - so he got hollered at for spilling and immediately flopped down in pout position....then I went downstairs and he was eating and playing with Phoebe - until he saw me - flop - pout position.....geez.  We made up after a bit and all was fine again....

"Pet Peeves" Volume Four

We have tried to train our guys to be pretty independent - to be able to entertain themselves and to play with each other and their toys.  I have to say - I am pretty lucky in this department - they are not all that demanding.  The pet peeve I have is that they entertain themselves in the middle of the night and they are noisy!!

The herculean ferret thinks its important to drag the laundry basket around the bedroom at 4:15 am.  If it doesn't budge then we must scratch at it.  If that doesn't work - we must turn our attention to knocking bottles off the bathtub.  If you are the ornery boy kitty you must wrestle with said ferret - meowing loudly your displeasure at him biting your chin.  Meanwhile, Phoebe must play with the noisy cow toy - not to be confused with Clooney's sacred cow - flipping it around the hallway - moo, moo, moo - telling the toy how much you love it - meow, meow, meow.  Then if you are Aggie - you must come upstairs and check out the commotion - only to catch the eye of ornery boy cat who leaves the ferret to chase Aggie who screeches in disgust as they tear through the house like a herd of elephants.  Now Zoey has woken up and decided that sleeping has made her excessively dirty - lick lick lick - oh and she is so happy - purr purr purr.  Which of course leaves Emma - who has relocated from under the bed to beside the bed - scratch scratch scratch at the carpet - oh yeah - that's mom's favorite.....

CRIPES!

They are all being independent - sigh.....

"Pet Peeves" third edition

Scratching - in a wide variety of forms is making me nutty.  We have Nigel - who scratches at is dry skin.  We have Clooney who scratches at any closed door - he scratches both the door and the floor in front - grrr.  We have kitties who scratch themselves as a part of the bathing ritual and who scratch me from time to time.  And then we have Emma - who scratches herself - which isn't that bad - BUT - she scratches at the carpet.  This makes me totally insane.  After doing some research it seems she may be doing this in an effort to create a comfortable bed for herself.  I have tried beds, blankets, pillows, etc.  Nothing seems to make her stop - well - hollering works.....

Sigh -

"Pet Peeves" part deux

Okay - so the dog is smart!  She understands a ridiculous number of commands - she is not lacking in the brains department and yet......she will stand there and lick her empty water bowl.  Lick, Lick, Lick - there is nothing in there - it makes me totally insane.  We have 4 water stations in the house - when you have 7 critters you have to have lots of options - geez - she can't go across the hall to get more water?  Nope - Lick, Lick, Lick - UUUGGGHHH!

"Pet Peeves"

My critters are adorable angels and I do love them with all my heart but there are those rare occasions when they make me a little nutty!!

One major issue in our household is food:

Emma wants to eat cat food
Cats want to eat dog food
Ferret has food that the cats and the dog are nuts for - too bad the ferret hates the ferret food

So - here's what they do eat:
Nigel - eats a combo of ferret food (he likes it) and cat food - supplemented with his worms, fruits, veges and yogurt
Clooney - eats cat food mostly and some dog food - this is fine as ferret food is somewhat new to the market and high grade cat food was the way to go before it was available
Kitties - eat cat food - occasionally snack on dog food
Emma - eats dog food and steals the cat food whenever she thinks she can get away with it

Here's the thing that makes me nuts - for Nigel - I will grab a handful of cat food when we are downstairs and put it in his pen. The cats go nuts - they HAVE to have it from the pen.  Somehow it doesn't matter there is a gigantic feeder full of the exact same food 10 feet away.  Grrr - critters....its a good thing they are cute!