Emperor Kato - Conqueror of Hearts, Occupier of Beds and Hunter of Mice (Cats in General)

Member Name: Redhead23

Product:	Cats in General
Date:	10/04/01 (159 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cuddly, intelligent, playful, wonderful character

Disadvantages: Eats a LOT of food, scratched sofas, takes up half of our bed

>>> Quick Update -

Kato (aka "The Brat") has now dropped all his good manners whenever Daddy ahdkaw is at home and suddenly insists on dragging his prey into the house again! At least he only delivers stunned (shocked) birds, who after being released recover quickly from their shock and resulting paralysis and escape healthy as a fiddle!

Update Over <<<<


~~~ How we met ~~~

When I first met Kato (See Above - yes the bird is real) he was a tall but skinny shorthaired black-and-white (that hasn't changed though) moggie lurking around our parking lot, trying to catch my attention whenever I came back with heavy bags of shopping. He even went as far as to *eliminate* other cats from potentially getting a stroke off me by chasing them away with his furious paw swipes!
I don't know why exactly he had a 'thing' for me in the first place, maybe he was hoping to get some goodies out of my shopping bag or maybe, just maybe he actually liked me (I know, hard to understand!).

After a period of occasional stroking and cuddling in the parking lot, I soon found out that he belonged to a girl who had just moved out of our house and kept feeding her (four) cats there until she had finished moving, as her new place was close to a busy road and she wasn't sure how many of her pawed friends she could actually take with her. Apparently, the other cats were enjoying their new-found freedom, whereas Kato was very much a *people* cat and craved attention now that his *Mummy* had just left him to his own devices. As it was a particularly cold and rainy day, I spontaneously grabbed him and took him to our flat where five minutes later he was contently spread out in front of the gas fire, just as if he'd always belonged there! Of course we let his owner know through a friend that he was staying with us for a while, didn't want to be accused of *cat-napping* after all!

Our new *flat
mate* very much appreciated the stroking, cuddles and in particular the cans of tuna we still had (but which we'd never touched) and soon I ventured off to buy some *proper* cat food. The prospect of being responsible for a cat was a little daunting - after all I hadn't had a cat since I was about two years old, but he turned out to be relatively easy to handle and the roof in front of our first-floor flat window made it easy for him to get down to *do his business* without us having to go downstairs to open the door for him. (Although sometimes he would still insist on using the door, if just to annoy us!)

My boyfriend had always told me that he never wanted a cat (I did try to convince him quite a few times though!), but he soon warmed up to the little charmer. Even though he insisted on referring to the cat as a *girly*, the dangly *bits* (and later the intensive spraying of our already stained carpet) made it obvious that our new-found friend was indeed a tomcat of the un-snipped variety, and after his previous owner finally gave us his name and told us that she was going to give him away anyway, I took him for his snip at a nearby vet's surgery. I thought he was going to be upset but I have a feeling that to this day he hasn't even noticed that something's missing!

After some funny episodes in the flat where we used to live (one of which involved Kato, a tree, the roof, a lot of magpies and our punk neighbour who finally scared the cat into jumping down), my boyfriend bought his own house a little further out of town, which Kato found a little scary at first - all those THINGS to explore!

But he soon got used to being the only cat in the house, and even though we never had a cat flap he is always outside during the day and uses the window to climb back inside - although at first he didn't know that he had to CHECK whether the window is open before jumping, which resulted in a thumping noise and a very upset and
ashamed cat hiding away in the bushes for a few minutes.

~~~ Kato Now ~~~

Kato will be two years old in May, and he has grown a hell of a lot since we moved house. I really didn't notice it that much, but we recently visited friends in our old house and when I saw our neighbour's cat (who used to be only slightly smaller than him) I realised how much bigger Kato is now - that would somewhat explain his increased appetite! He now eats around 3 pouches (GoCat or Whiskas) a day plus some dry food (which he doesn't really like), although he sometimes has to do with canned food because those pouches are bloody expensive! He quite likes the occasional strip of ham or a bit of tuna but in general he is very much into cat food, although he can be a little picky at times and prefers the small chunks from puches rather than mashed-up or large-cut canned food. He isn't very fond of cat treats either and will only eat them if you mix them with wet food - he seems to be in love with our Italian Herbs though as I found out when I accidentally spilled some and he immediately started rolling himself in them, purring like there's no tomorrow ;-)

After being de-wormed and de-flead he is now a healthy and strong tomcat of approximately 4,5 Kilo who has also grown to be a fierce hunter and has honoured us with at least one specimen of a dead bird or mouse per week since February - a real surprise because he is generally a bit of a *wuss*, at least when it comes to other cats. A while back he was bit in the tail (which then proceeded to swell up, needing an antibiotics jab) by his playpal, and even our vet said the cat must be a bit of a *chicken* because such bite wounds only occur when a cat is running AWAY from another cat. Oh well, blame it on his early childhood - 's got nowt to do with me ;-)

I don't know HOW exactly I did it, but somewhere along the way Kato must have realised that although we are very proud of his
catches, we don't exactly appreciate it when he drops them on our carpet, so now he just neatly presents them on the back garden patio - of course he makes sure that we see the *evidence* of his success. Of course he did start out dragging them inside at first, but for the past couple of 'hunting days' (roughly every Monday) he's proven his intelligence and ability to learn :-)

His all-time favourite spot has to be in front of the gas fire but when that's not switched on the radiator in the hallway (next to his cat loo - how lovely!) has to do - he usually lies on his back in a slightly un-catty way, having his hind legs widely spread so every man and his dog can admire the good work our vet has done when we took him for his 'snip'!

If he's inside but not asleep (i.e. he is hungry) he also enjoys 'camping' in front of the fridge in the hope that some nice person will come and feed him. He is VERY fond of the fridge, although his favourite household appliance (which we don't have, unforunately - for us not for the cat) has to be the tumble drier, in which he spent most of his childhood according to his previous owner - it was his mum's fault though, as she used to hide her kittens in there.

Although he sometimes falls asleep downstairs, he usually ends up in our bed at some point in the night, preferrably on my feet or (during the coldest time of the year) in my face. Originally my boyfriend used to shut the door so Kato couldn't get into the bedroom but when I visited my parents in Switzerland last September he got so 'lonely' that he allowed the cat to sleep on the bed so now there is no way to convince Kato to sleep anywhere else! The other morning I woke up finding myself squashed in between my boyfriend and a spread-out cat but usually he just sleeps at the foot-end of the bed so he can jump to the window sill when the sun comes out in the morning. At first we had a problem wi
th him waking up and hassling us to feed him or let him go outside at stupid-o'clock in the morning but in the meantime he has largely adapted to our own sleeping patterns and sometimes even *sleeps in* after we got up.

His best buddy is our neighbour's dog Piper, with whom he spends many a sunny afternoon playing and *flirting* - they're both blokes but what the heck if they're happy... ;-)
Kato also waits for Piper in his dog house when he's not outside, and Piper keeps *calling* Kato when he's not in sight!
What a pretty little couple! ;-p

~~~ Cat Moods - Moody Cats ~~~

Like most cats, Kato has a variety of moods and even though he obviously can't talk, he has become extremely good at expressing his needs and wishes. He lets us know when he wants to go outside by gently stroking the window, although he seems to believe that this method actually WORKS and opens windows and doors - he's probably watched too much Star Trek where you can just touch the side of the doorframe and it slides open! ;-)

He is quite intelligent and knows exactly what he is allowed to do and what not, although sometimes he insists on doing things (climbing the curtains for example) just to annoy us - he particularly enjoys pretending to scratch the sofa when my boyfriend is stood right next to him! When he's in the mood (or when it's particularly cold for that matter, i.e. the fire is off) he can be extremely cuddly and sit on your lap for ages, but then suddenly he's had enough and either jumps down or he feels like plaing and starts attacking you out of the blue - he can be pretty nasty when he's in 'attack mode' but he usually gives up pretty quickly if you start playing with his toys.

Quite often he also simply ignores us, then he's either tired or just wants to be left alone - and you better leave it at that or you'll suffer the wrath of his paws and/or teeth! Overall tho
ugh he is a very 'people-friendly' cat, which surprised me a bit because I heard that cats who don't get much attention from humans as a kitten often end up shy and avoid contact with people. Then again his sister was taken up by a friend of ours when she was very young and has been hugged and cuddled all her life, now she shies away from humans and avoids being stroked or even just touched - with the exception of feeding time of course, when most cats will become the loveliest, slimiest and friendliest little creatures that ever walked the face of earth!

When Kato is in 'attack mode' though it is often best to back off, and on occasions I simply have to kick him out the window (ground floor of course! ;-) ) because ever since his first hunting successes he has become a little too cocky for his own good and sometimes runs after you and tries to *kill* your feet, especially if he believes that you ought to feed him or that you have been staring at him for too long - he's rubbish at staring contests but hates losing! ;-)

Any tips on how to stop that kind of behaviour would be greatly appreciated!

~~~ Is a Cat the right Pet for me? ~~~

I adore my kitty and I can't imagine living without him, but whether or not a cat is the right pet for you depends on a variety of circumstances. My boyfriend for example is more of a 'dog lover' and has never really had a cat before, but the mere fact that he goes to work every day has always put him off having a dog of his own. Cats on the other hand are usually very independent, they come and go as they wish and if they get used to it from an early age they can quite happily be kept inside as long as they have enough space, a well-kept cat loo and some toys (plus preferrably a scratch post, unless you really don't like your present furniture). Once they had a taste of the outside world it is not advised to keep them inside but many a cat has been converted to
an indoor life so it isn't impossible. You can easily go to work and leave a cat to her own devices, although they tend to become pretty upset if you go on holidays, even if the person who looks after her is someone the cat is familiar with - watch out for vomit-stains after your return, as this seems to be a cat's preferred method of showing their disapproval of your absence.

They are also very good at telling you what they need, so even the most forgetful of people won't fail to feed their cats when it's time.
Although they (like any pet) shouldn't be left on their own with small children they are ideal family pets, and even a young child can learn to look after a cat because they are easier to handle than dogs, who often prove difficult for a child especially when it comes to going for a walk.

If you have a wooded area nearby (like we do) then your cat will be very happy, although they are usually content with a few small garden patches (much to your neighbours' regret!). Be careful if you live next to a busy road though, because even though most cats are wise enough to cross a road only when there are no cars in sight, many of them lack any kind of road sense. Injures from car accidents are often fatal and don't always show straight away because cats have a thick skin, so in spite of internal injuries you don't always notice it straight away if a cat's been hit by a car.

Cats are also suitable with other pets but make sure you keep them away from smaller pets (like guinea pigs) as this will challenge their hunting instinct.
You can easily keep several cats, but if you buy a further cat, make sure you give them time to get used to each other and don't neglect your 'primary' cat, no matter how cute the new kitten (for example) is!

So overall, cats are great pets and they don't require too much time or money to be looked after - a bit of TLC and some nice food will suffi
ce to keep you a companion that truely shows you his/her appreciation for your efforts, even if it's just in the shape of a dead mouse on your doorstep!

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