Aslan on the stairs

On Saturday Aslan came halfway down the stairs. Mom was putting her shoes on and Dad was by the door and he said, "Slowly look behind you." Dad walked to the kitchen to grab some treats but I was coming from the kitchen toward the stairs and Aslan heard Dad say, "Loki, you want a treat?" Dad was trying to distract me, but Aslan heard him and turned tail and went back to the bed. A few times last week Aslan came out and even got on the bed when Mom had snacks. He's always been food motivated. I think I'll probably spend some time in the bathroom and Mom may try to entice him with some cheese. He needs to get his groove back. But the stairs was a huge step! 

21 Days

Aslan moved under the bed on April 4. It's now been 21 days that he's made under Mom and Dad's bed his apartment. Mom and Dad have a litter box under the bed for him because they were having to lock me in the bathroom so he could come out and use the litter box at the foot of the bed. They still give me a time out every now and then so he has some space. A couple times he has come out when Mom and Dad have food, but then he goes back under. Mom and Dad will force him to come out and put him in their bathroom where there's a cat bed, food, and litter box. He'll lay in the cat bed and let them love on him and he purrs so loudly! 

There are Feliway diffusers all over the house now and they've been sitting a calming spray under the bed and in the bedroom. He has food and water and gets lots of treats. Every now and then we'll hiss and fuss at each other, but other times we're cool together under the bed. He's got a pretty sweet setup, if you ask me. But Mom and Dad are ready for him to come out and hang out with them again. 

Aslan Underbed

Loki here with a little update. I haven't been blogging much, but I need to get back into it. I wanted to take a quick second and update what's going on with the McKitten-Cats. It's been about 11 days since Aslan decided he wanted to be Aslan Underbed. We won't tell Mom and Dad exactly what happened, but we had a little falling out and now Aslan won't come out from under their bed. Dad thinks I was play fighting with him too hard, but it might be a stray girl cat hanging out on our back deck, or the raccoon that Dad saw one night on the deck. But for whatever reason Aslan has taken up residence under the bed. Mom and Dad set a litter box up at the foot of the bed after a tinkle accident (their biggest concern with him not wanting to come out — although he did try to get it on a paper towel that had somehow ended up under the bed), and he has food and water under there. They also have a camera to check on him. Wherever I go under he'll growl at me, which sometimes turns into hissing and tussling. And if he comes out I chase him back under (Mom says that's "bully" and "brat" behavior). This morning Dad was able to scruff him and put him in the big bathroom with food and a litter box and after Dad left for work Mom sat in there with him and he purred for her and loved on her and used the litter box. But as soon as she opened the door he ducked back under the bed. They have Feliway diffusers set up and will keep working with him. But it's really stressing Mom and Dad out a lot. 

Aslan’s closeup

"Oh hey Dad! Were you trying to take my picture?"

New cat bed

Mom and Dad are trying to entice us into this new cat bed/doughnut tunnel/scratcher by putting catnip on it. We're warming up to it, but haven't had it our thing quite yet. 

Synchronized Cat Snacking

Are the Cat Olympics still a thing, because I think we could medal in Synchronized Cat Snacking. Dad has to space the food bowls out just right so we don't get our tails in the other bowl. I guess he doesn't realize that's how we save a little snack for later. 

Double-decker cats

I've been away from the blog for longer than I intended to. It's easy to get distracted when you're a cat and you have a busy schedule of begging for treats, napping on the clean guest bed (gotta get the right amount of cat hair on the duvet), and patrolling for the outdoor cats who have been visiting our deck. 

Here's a rare shot of Aslan and I making on the couch together — double decker style. We don't do this often, and when we do we usually hop down before Dad gets a picture. But we were patient today. 

Aslan snoopervising

You see that tiny little dark spot at the very top of the stairs? That's Aslan snoopervising today. He can see the entry and out the front windows by the door, plus all of upstairs. It's a great cat spot. Dad said Jasper really liked that spot too. Snoopervising is a very important part of our day. 

Loki the therapy cat

 I am a very intuitive cat. I understand when Mom or Dad aren't feeling well and I spring to duty. I will smother them with love and purrs until they feel better. Last Tuesday Dad got food poisoning, which took him out of commission all day Wednesday. He ended up sleeping in the guest bed in case it was something else and he didn't want to get Mom sick too. I stayed with him all night (I mean, it is the bed Aslan and I like to sleep on anyway), and once Dad started to rouse in the morning I snuggled beside him on my back with my head tucked into his chest and armpit and purred the yuck away. It is an important job that I have. Dad has been feeling much better, and I have no doubt it's largely in part of my care. and attention. 

Feeling better

Please don't judge the explosion of blankets. Mom and Dad have so many blankets for just two humans and two cats and they were recording and organizing on the guest bed, then they got distracted, then I got gimpy, and now I'm feeling better but, as you can see, Aslan and I both think this is a great place to sleep. So the blankets will be getting washed and de-furred again soon and Mom and Dad will start over. 

But in the plus side, my side is feeling better and I'm moving and jumping like myself again. 

Sore flank

My left flank is sore and I'm walking gingerly. Mom and Dad think it's too much THoE or tussling with my brother. They set up a heated blanket for me and gave me a shot of Meloxicam. Hopefully I'm back to myself tomorrow so they don't have to worry. 

Three visitors

 We had a trio of interlopers on our back deck a few weekends ago. These super tiny kittens were out exploring and looking for some comfy chairs to hang out on. They were super fast because Dad put some food out for them and they took off like bullets. They eventually came back and enjoyed some wet food, and the next day some kitten food. We've only seen them once since though. Friends of Mom and Dad said silly things like, "you should keep them," or "can I have the gray one?" They said this without asking the kittens what they wanted because these little ones had other plans. We keep looking for them and hoping they will visit again soon.

Gray Kitten showed up first.

Black Kitten joined Gray Kitten.

A different Black Kitten found the comfy chairs.

Stressful week

We had a stressful week. Mom and Dad's godchildren (11-year-old boy-girl twins) and their parents were visiting for eight days. Aslan spent the better part of the week under Mom and Dad's bed. I would sometimes venture downstairs to investigate the table for snacks that were left unattended and get the occasional "good boy" treat. 

Company left on Sunday morning. Everything seemed cool. Then suddenly we were getting scooped up and put in a crate and taken to the car (gasp — outside! — we never go outside, and on the hottest day of the year at that). We were taken to a mobile pet clinic for our annual shots. Not cool at all. But we were good boys. I meowed a lot. Aslan was in a state of defeat after being chased around the house until finally giving up. 

When we came home Aslan went back under the bed. I went under the couch. Mom and Dad left to get food and give us space. We'll forgive them as seen as they bring out food again. That's how things work in our house. 

I've heard talk of kittens. I don't know where that will go. We'll see…

One of my favorite spots

I love lounging on the back of the couch, especially when Mom and Dad are watching TV. 

Happy 4th Birthday to US!

Sunday was our fourth birthday, but we didn't get a chance to properly celebrate until last night. Dad made us a Stinky Goodness cake in the shape of a 4 and Mom put a party hat on me and gave me a hug and took a picture with me. Aslan wasn't willing to wear the hat this year. I get it with the hat. It took some convincing for me. 

This is our Stinky Goodness cake. We usually eat Natural Balance wet food, but Dad needed a pate to shape it so he got us a different wet food. This one was chicken and sweet potatoes. We ate all of it!

Mom with me. Look what a good boy I was posing for a picture with my party hat on!

Aslan and I were good to share our cake, although after a lick or two Dad did split it onto separate plates for us so we weren't too crammed together trying to eat our cake.

Mom and Dad were saying how they can't believe it's been almost four years since we joined the family to give Maggie some company (and someone to hiss at). They tell us all the time that we are good boys, even when Aslan knocks everything off the bedside table or I claw at the couch. 

The perfect sit and tail wrap

 

Aslan demonstrates the perfect way to sit and wrap your tail around your feet. This is a good lesson for young kittens still trying to figure this out. 

(Mom and Dad set up a camera in the hallway before a trip recently and it has given them hours of entertainment. We've figured out where it is and like to pose for them.) 

 

(Fixed the missing video issue...)

Hint, hint

Mom and Dad came home from a Thanksgiving trip to Cincinnati to visit Dad's family and found a gingerbread man toy in our empty food bowl — a not so subtle hint that we want some treats. 

One year ...

It's been one year since our big sister Maggie crossed the Rainbow Bridge. She was the best big sister, teaching us so much about being a McKitten-Cat. We're still figuring some things out, being just two young boy cats, but we're managing. We love on Mom and Dad as much as we can, as often as we can. Maggie was around for a good 16 years, longer than Mom and Dad ever imagined she would be considering her struggles as a tiny baby cat. But you always want more time. Hug you people tonight, purr for them real loud, and maybe (just maybe) let them sleep in a little tomorrow morning.

Watching the stove

Don't mind us, we're just watching the stove. You know, just in case something happens and Mom needs our help. Aslan has a tendency to want to jump on the stove (99 percent of the time when it is off) so he can come up and snoopervise so either Mom or Dad has to keep an eye on him when the burner is on to make sure he doesn't make a poor choice. So far, so good. We have gotten few treats for "helping."

Black Cat Appreciation

Happy Black Cat Appreciation Day! For those who never met him, this is Huggy Bear. He was Mom and Dad's lovable house panther, always by your side, the cat with the Insta-purr the second he saw you, night hunter of all the toys, and a big fan of whatever you were eating. He crossed the bridge in 2019 and left big mittens for us to fill. Mom and Dad miss this guy a lot, but they are so thankful for the 14-1/2 years of love he gave them.