Kitty love cat astrophe
Kittens aren't just for Christmas. Whoever coined that saying was bang on. And we are living with the aftermath.
During the festive season we expanded our feline family, taking on two young kittens. Giving them the care and attention that they need is not the problem - it's stopping
them from being loved to death.
With two very enthusiastic preschoolers, the most used phrase in our house has become: "Put that kitten down." In varying tones and timbres - from a gentle reminder to a full-blown scream, depending on the tone and timbre of the kittens' squeals.
Thankfully, with regards to picking them up, Miss Two managed to differentiate between a kitten's middle and its neck within a matter of hours, but learning the difference between a gentle cuddle and a tight squeeze is proving more challenging.
Whereas Miss Four has her technique down pat but can't comprehend their need to escape her clutches from time to time.
So we laid down some ground rules: Don't pick up the kittens when they are:
1) Sleeping.
2) Eating.
3) Toileting.
And an extra rule for Miss Two: Don't play in the kitty litter - it is not a sandpit. Miss Two's response has been to lie in wait.
"Watching poos," she informs me, sitting millimetres away from the litter tray as one of the kittens does its business. And then picks it up as soon as it is finished.
Miss Four employs more devious tactics, paying regular visits to the linen cupboard that the kittens have claimed as their "safe zone" and poking and prodding them until they get up.
"I didn't pick them up when they were asleep," she says, emerging with one in her arms.
Which is, technically speaking, true.
It doesn't help that one kitten is more timid than the other and has the good sense to hide when it hears the thundering of little feet.
Which leaves one kitten for the girls to squabble over.
"My kitten, my kitten," Miss Four taunts her little sister, clutching the tabby one tightly to her chest, while the black one, which was originally the kitten of her choice, sleeps soundly outside under the deck.
It is not until the evening when the house has fallen quiet that they venture inside for a squeeze-free cuddle.
"Kids are not just for Christmas," I explain to them.
