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If you are like most Internet users, you’ve probably passed time looking at many of those videos of cats and boxes. Cat people spend countless hours with smart phone in hand and a box on the floor, waiting for their cat to junp into the box. Maru, the popular Japanese cat who demonstrates the fine art of jumping into and out of boxes, has been viewed over 200 million times since he first appeared in 2007. There are countless Tumblr and Twitter accounts dedicated to the cats being cats.
The Oak Court Cats aren’t any different when it comes to boxes. I will occasionaly toss an empty box onto the floor and wait for one of the gang to fall into the trap. On the Court, empty boxes are reffered to as “cat traps”. Throw one onto the floor and wait to see what kind of cat you’ve caught.
The Big Guy prefers a large trap, here he makes himself comfortable in a large bos (34 pound kitty litter box). At his size (a full grown 28 pound Maine Coon), he prefers a large box, even through he manages to overflow out onto the floor.
Fatticus was snared in this particularly large cat trap. I had baited the trap with an old towel, a lure that he couldn’t pass up. He prefers large traps as he isn’t as graceful as most cats and finds that jumping into and out of boxes he frequently ends up in embarrasing situations (ok, he just isn’t gracefull).
The tortie isn’t choosey about the size of the box; as long as she can see over the edge (she’s usually on the lookout for small wildlife(she chases them) or large preditors (they chase her) or small children ( just the site of them will send her running for the hills). She is a little paranoid and sleeps with one eye open.
Oh, the exception? The old lady doesn’t do boxes. She prefers pillows, cushons and the occasional window sill.
Why do they like boxes? Who knows. I’m sure that a government grant and five years of research could lead to an answer but I would think that knowing why they are attracted to boxes would ruin the moment. The Oak Court Cats won’t share the explanation with me; they don’t wish to shatter the magic.
Oh, this last picture of the Big Guy was taken when he settled on the clothes hamper when he couldn’t find a suitable box. I’ll write about his hamper habit at another time; fortunatly one that the other cats haven’t picked up on yet.
It’s late; the cats have settled down for the night and so must I.
John
I live in an old house on Oak Court. My wife, our son and his daughter and I live in a nice house built back in the early 1930s. The block is quiet; very little traffic, other than the squirrels, birds and cats. The cats….
As anyone who has provided a home to felines knows, you don’t own cats, you provide them with a place to sleep and a steady supply of food. You never really ‘own’ them, in the way you ‘own’ dogs, turtles and parrots. If they are pleased, they will allow you to continue showering them with affection, food and the occasional touch of catnip.
Four cats reside in this house on the court. I’ll introduce them in future posts; for now you can assume they are pleased with the quality of the food and the quantity of kitty litter and have not expressed the desire to move elsewhere.
It’s mid-afternoon as I write this; they’re scattered around the house and yard. The queen is sleeping on the sofa while the young female is napping on top of the boxes of Christmas decorations above the garage. The older male is sleeping on top shelf of the cat tower, in the living room. And the young male, a Maine Coon, is happily stretched out in the flower box behind the garage. The house is at peace.
While they’re quiet I can go about cleaning the bowls, shoveling the litter and putting away the various cat toys that are scattered about the house. It’s quiet and that may not be a good thing – I don’t know what they are up to.
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