Who wants to get their picture taken today? NOT ME!

sigh:

Fetching Phoebe

Who knew that the Phoebe cat would be the most adept of all the critters at the game of fetch.  She loves it!  She has always been the most engaged with toys - she plays with her toys every day.  She will show up and drop whatever it is she wants you to toss for you at your feet or on your lap.  If you give it a toss she will give chase and bring it right back.  It's very cute.

He favorite thing to fetch is a pink stringy ball with ribbons in it - it used to be pretty - now not so much.  She also likes these spikey super ball - like toys.  She will chase anything though - candy wrappers, bottle caps, you name it.  All you have to do is get her attention and then say "ready?" and she is right there raring to go.

If for some reason she can't engage you in a game of fetch she is great at tossing her own toys in the air and attacking them.  She is quite entertaining.  I have tried a couple of times to capture this on video - to no avail - I will keep after it.

Leave the baby alone....

Geez - another phrase I say about 42 times a day - "Leave the baby alone".  Clooney is the main receiver of this command as he is always trying to engage Nigel who some days is more receptive than others.  Oliver is next - he wants to play and proceeds to steal the covers off the top of the critter - Nigel does not care for this on any day.  Then the rest of the kitties - they want to lay on his blankets and have little regard for the hedgehog - flopping down, sometimes right on top of the baby.  Sigh....  Emma rarely has to be told - she is very careful around the little guy.

Once he is up and going - Nigel actually has little regard for the other critters - he will run right over the top of whomever is in the way - the reactions to that are pretty entertaining - ranging from disgust to excitement....

Klingons

Maybe I should teach my guys to say tlhIngan maH! which is Klingon for We are Klingons.  Actually I don't mean that kind of Klingon - I mean the clingy kind of cling-on.  Wow have my guys been clingy lately.

Emma is always right there - how many times a day I tell her to move I have no idea.  Oliver comes to visit multiple times a day and he is persistent.  Phoebe - she is still in naughty mode and if you don't pay attention she does something bad to make sure you notice her.  Aggie has started a new thing - she heads your way and loudly hollers until petting happens.  And then there is Zoey.  In the last year or so she has decided she is no longer a grumpy cat but a lap cat instead.  This is so nice - except for the last few weeks she has been relentless.  If you are stationary for more than about 6 seconds she is on you.  UGH.

As for my littlest boys.  I find the older Clooney gets the more and more lovey he becomes.  He enjoys being petted more now than he ever has and he likes being picked up and loved on while he snoozes.  He is not particularly demanding of attention though.  Nigel - he is not demanding at all as hedgehogs are very solitary creatures.  He tolerates the loves I give - in some cases I think he even likes them - it depends on the day.

There could certainly be worse problems to have than overly affectionate kids so I am not complaining.  I am off to put the littlest one to bed.....

Cage Ritual

Once a month or so I "deep clean" the little one's cage so that its more hedge like and less hog like!

Every week his blanket gets washed and his box gets changed.  Every couple of days his water gets dumped and refilled and his food gets refreshed. Every day his wheel gets wiped down.  And every month we pull everything out, launder, disinfect, etc.  Little man knows nothing of this because it usually happens while he is napping in the man cave - hmmmm - this seems familiar somehow - but when you put him in his cage that night he checks out all the new smells.

I have found that he likes his cage arranged the same each time - if you move things around it takes him a bit to get the swing of it and he goes a couple of days without running on his wheel, etc.  So - we make it the same every time and he seems to like it.  I thought I was done with the cage duties once Clooney became a free range ferret but I would clean it every day if I had to for the little guy - he is so worth it.

Here is the picture of his hedgehog mansion:

We have it configured with just the middle and lower section - he has purple fluff in the bottom - but he doesn't venture down there very often.  He's kinda little old man-ish in that he likes his days, environment, etc to be the same every day.  I will say - he does love his cage and he almost jumps out of your arms to get in there at night - its a good thing....

A Day of Ornery

Oh my boy kitty - I do adore your ornery little self.  I took the opportunity to jot down the ornery-ness that occurs over the course of the day:

6:25 am - Meow (border on howling) loudly to inform humans the time to awaken is upon us....
6:35 am - Pick up the ferret by the scruff of the neck and drag him through the master bedroom - get hollered at for this
6:48 am - Chase Agatha from master bedroom to some location downstairs - make her screech loudly - get hollered at for this
8:12 am - Try to steal a taste of Clooney's Ferretone - get hollered at for this
8:37 am - Attempt to escape when Emma goes outside to go potty
9:17 am - Visit mom in the bonus room and stand on her lap even though she is trying to type
9:20 am - Bite Phoebe on the ear while she is sleeping
10:17 am - Get on bar in bonus room and get into whatever is up there - making noise and knocking stuff down - get hollered at for this
11:15 am - Attempt to escape when mom goes to check the mail
11:27 am - Whine - for general dramatics
11:33 am - Get under foot while mom carries load of laundry to the washer
Thankfully from about 11:45 to about 3:30 it was nap time
3:47 pm - Steal covers off hedgehog
3:55 pm - Stand on mom's lap when she is trying to type
4:07 pm - Investigate bonus room trash - get hollered at for this
4:15 pm - Chase Agatha out of the bonus room to some location downstairs - make her screech - get hollered at for this
5:22 pm - Attempt to escape when mom takes Emma outside
6:15 pm - Beg for food while mom is cooking
7:45 pm - Try to get attention from mom or dad
8:13 pm - Knock things over in an exuberant game of 3 way tag with Phoebe and Clooney
9:20 pm - Pester humans as they get ready for bed
9:25 pm - Humans aren't paying enough attention - get on headboard and cause trouble - get hollered at for this

Whew - I am tired just typing this - how does he have enough energy for all this naughtiness?  The reality of it is - we wouldn't change a thing - he keeps us on our toes but we love his ornery ways......

A Day in the Life of the Orange Kitty

So - what does a day in the life of the orange kitty look like?  Pretty cushy if you ask me....

Wake up around 8 am - at the end of the bed on the fluffy covers.  Hang out while the humans get ready for their day.  Then downstairs for breakfast and a treat.  Today consisted of playtime on the porch - orange kitty loves this.  Then inside to wait while mom finishes a bowl of cereal - share the milk with the other kitties.  Whew - this was a tough morning - must rest.....sleep in a patch of sun for several hours.

Up to the bonus room to check in on what mom is doing.  Nap on the brown fuzzy...  check to see if mom's lap is available - nope she is still working - crash on the couch.

Dinner, playtime, hanging out with mom and dad in the bonus room.  Then off to bed - rinse and repeat..... like I said - cushy.....