wild kingdom

There are lots of things I've been thinking about but here's the strangest one right now. Last night I got home and was getting into bed to read. (Can I just interject here that I'm halfway through the Harry Potter books for those of you who haven't been keeping up.) Since my bedroom faces the backyard, I noticed that my brother left the sprinklers on. Despite not wanting to go outside at 1:00 am, I thought it would be the responsible, home-owner-type thing to do. I turn on the outside light and there's an opossum! Just hanging out and not leaving when I say "hey!" and tap on the glass. In the city. And on the heels of an armadillo hanging out in the garage the night before. This is nuts! I thought about waking my brother up to deal with it but figured water is cheap. The grass just won't need to be watered for a few days. This also answers the question as to why the neighbors' dogs bark in the middle of the night. Who knows what else is roaming around out there?!

Also, I realized sometime last week that when I move I want to get an outdoor cat. I've had one (sort of) for the last five years. Ok, how do you "sort of" have a cat? Currently, there is one who hangs out here during the day. It does not live here. In my old apartment there was a community cat who came with the place. We shared her. Anyway, I like how they look out there lounging. It makes me happy. And I like having a cat to pet but one who can be even more self-sufficient than the average cat. I like a workin' cat. We had a few outdoor kitties when I was growing up. Some came to us a bit older but some were young. It seems like they just stayed around. Like we were home-base. Does anyone know anything about raising outdoor kitties? My luck, I'd end up with one who hangs out in the neighbor's yard all day while mice ring the doorbell...

Comments

Jillie Bean (AKA Bubba's Sis) said…
We had a possum get in our attic once - via the covered walkway to/from the garage. One night when he was sitting in the rafters of the garage, Brave Husband poked him down with a broom and whacked him with it (scared the bejeezus out of me and the kids) and somehow managed to trap it in a garbage can. That was one unhappy possum - it was baring its teeth and growling at us - yikes! Brave Husband relocated it to the other side of the creek. It was quite the to-do at our house that night!

Katie Lady knows all about outside cats - her Mama and Papa have lots of them! She's the one to give an expert opinion on that....
8/16/2006 11:55 AM
Editor in Chief said…
Yep, I have lots of outside cat advice, but they are all country cats. I grew up in the boonies and we had possums and raccoons and skunks (ask Bubba's Mom about that one!) and various other varmits around all the time. They came for the food.

Anyway, outdoor cats. All we do was feed them twice a day with dry cat food. However, not sure how it'd work for you in suburbia. Would you need better food to ensure your cat comes back for more? But would that attract cats you don't necessarily want?

My grandmother has a cat this an indoor/outdoor, and she roams the neighborhood, but gets fed in the garage, so there aren't other cats to steal the food. When she's outside, she's independent, and when she wants to come in, she comes to the back door. Easy.

I am partial to cats that are partially outdoors, they don't shed in the house OR need a litter box! Great idea!
8/16/2006 12:22 PM
Editor in Chief said…
BTW, I'm reading back through the HPs again, too! I'm on GoF. Good stuff!

Bubba makes fun of me because he says they're kids' books and can't I find any grown-up books to read so I don't have to read the same kids' books twice?
8/16/2006 3:13 PM
Jillie Bean (AKA Bubba's Sis) said…
They're not just kids' books - I've read them all, too! Good stuff!
8/16/2006 11:26 PM
angelq said…
Really this is turning into a series of comments about the wrong thing, but I'll try to cover both.

We have an outdoor kitty we kinda share with the neighbors. He just ran up to me one day when I was leaving for work (I'm infamous for stray kitties finding their way into my heart and home). I think they feed him in the garage and have a spare litter box in the garage (maybe to keep him from using the flower beds?) and I think he can go in when he wants.

Basically, you will probably need to keep him inside or in the garage for a couple of weeks so he doesn't run off. Then just start pushing him out but feeding him in. He'll figure it out. I highly recommend getting him fixed. Especially if it's a "him". He won't wander as much.

Next: I just finished the 6th HP book. So, I'm jonesin' for the next one. Not supposed to come out until next year. I really wish they had timed it so the books and movies would come out on alternate years.

Maybe Bubba will get into them once he has to read them to Baby B. He just doesn't know what he's missing.

cjh, I'm curious what you think about them? You're tearing through them, I see.
8/17/2006 12:53 PM
Bubba's Mom said…
That skunk thing was something!! Never having lived in the country, even seeing a skunk was a remarkable event, but to see one in the daytime is not good. If you see a nocturnal animal in the daytime, it is either rabid or sick. Well, Katielady's papa proceeded to deal with this skunk in a most heroic and manly fashion - with a rifle! I think I just might have a slight crush on papa because of this little episode. I am not fond of critters (other than dogs).
8/17/2006 7:44 PM
Jillie Bean (AKA Bubba's Sis) said…
Dogs are not critters. Skunks, possums, raccoons, snakes, rats, mice, lizards, and frogs are critters. Armadillos too. Critters are animals you would not want in your house. Or even your yard. Just thinking about critters gives me the willies.
8/17/2006 11:15 PM
cjm said…
Oh, Bubba's Mom, the stories I could tell about country critters. And their, um, removal....

Yes, tearing thru the Harry Potties (as I've taken to calling them--in a high-pitched voice...no, I don't know why). I'll have to post on them outside of this comments section.
8/17/2006 11:56 PM
Jillie Bean (AKA Bubba's Sis) said…
You have to say "Harry Pottie" in a high-pitched British voice...
8/18/2006 10:47 AM
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