crazy_orange_turtle's Profile

1) My pets are members of my family, if you don't like them, I don't like you. You wouldn't have people in your house that sneer at your children, and I won't have people in my house that sneer at my pets (or children).

2) I understand allergies, they're not your fault. If you cannot take allergy medication, or it doesn't work then we can go out for dinner. There is a hotel down the street.

3) If you don't like the cats on the couch remember that its called FURniture for a reason. I do vacuum before you come over, its not my fault that the long haired beasts decided to play rumble with each other (tossing fur everywhere) 5 minutes before you showed up.

4) I will never ever discourage my pets from being friendly. If they come sit on your lap then you should take it as a compliment -- they like you, which means you must be a kind person. If you don't want them on your lap then don't come to my house.That being said, large jumping dogs are still unacceptable as older people and young ones can get hurt -- but there is a large difference between cuddles and jumping!!!

I do put the fatties in the basement before dinner because they do cry if nobody feeds them, which is annoying. But only the fatties, the rest are well behaved. They are also not allowed in the guest room after I've cleaned and tidied it for a guest's arrival and guests are cautioned to make sure they close the door behind them unless they want a cat hiding under the bed and jumping out in the middle of the night. And by jumping out I mean waking up at 1am, realizing there is a slave (er... human) in bed and demanding cuddles.

Be very careful how you apply the cayenne pepper. You must dilute the pepper in a soapy water and spray it on leaves or grass very lightly. If you put powder on plant leaves and an animal rubs their face against the leaf, the full strength powdered form can and will cause extreme pain! If you've ever gotten hot sauce in your eyes, or rubbed your eye after cutting a jalapeño or chili pepper then you will sympathize. If it is your pet, you will be hurting your loved one and will probably end up with expensive vet bills. So please, be very careful if you're putting cayenne in the garden, dilute it in water and spray lightly to deter but not injure animals.

I am owned by six cats -- yes, I'm crazy, but its not my fault people kept giving me their cats!

Anyway, I can honestly tell you that the best cat furniture (the ones they'll use the most) is the piece of furniture closest to the window with the best view of birds/squirrels/chipmunks/toads/moths.

We bought a new couch set at the end of May, and the matching chair to the set has already been completely catted. They all scramble and fight to sit in the sweet spot atop the comfy cushion for hours of bird viewing.

Luckily I was smart enough to cover the top of the chair in a lovely red throw, which makes cleaning up the fur a lot less painful:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/sassinate/2809300737/

We use litter called 'yesterdays news' and/or any litter made from reclaimed pine. Yesterday's news is made out of recycled newspapers and pine litter is made from pine dust reclaimed from lumber mills. Both crumble when they are wet, but absorb odour wonderfully. Especially the pine litter, it neutralizes the ammonia in the urine so you don't smell a thing. Neither is as easy to clean as clumping litter, but the dust from clumping litter is bad for the kitty's lungs and is not environmentally friendly.