Saturday, February 02, 2008

Stink Bomb


Sammy Jo is now 18 and he has turned into an ornery old coot. Lately, he has developed one foul mouth. He has learned a new short, loud cranky meow which can only be described as the cat version of a four letter word. When he uses it there is no doubt in my mind that he is swearing at me.


His persnickity way with food has also increased to an alarming degree. Food issues are driving me crazy. There is no rhyme or reason to his picky ways. One day he will scarf down the shredded turkey Friskies food like it's the best thing ever and the next day he takes one look and then flounces off to sulk. If I'm lucky he flounces off. Otherwise he waps on the edge of the plate until it flips over spilling cat food on the floor before he flounces.


He's losing weight so I turned to the ever helpful internet for help. By the number of hits that turned up when I googled, "picky cat eater" this is far from an uncommon problem. Did you know cats are prone to anorexia? Neither did I. How ridiculous. I don't believe it. I scrolled through some of the discussions and found lots of recommendations for sprinkling their food with Asian fish flakes. At 11:30 at night I'm not about to try and find a 24 hour Asian food market so when I read some cats like their food served warm I thought I had hit on something brilliant.


I scooped some of the offending cat food on a plate and placed it in the microwave. Decided not to cover it with the splatter cover, because I actually "reasoned" that I did not want to use something I use on my own food for cat food. Oh no, far better to simply put the plate of cat food uncovered in the microwave. Let's just say last night I discovered cat food explodes within 20 seconds!! Not only does it explode leaving disgusting brown guk crap plastered all over the inside of the microwave but there is also an explosion of one nasty foul smell. It was horrendous. The cleanup was long and messy and believe me the cat was not the only one swearing at this point.
The smell was making me ill. I came very close to waking up my sister to tell her to make up the spare bed for I was coming over. But the idea of having to explain my brilliance stopped me.

I hope everyone is having themselves a fantastic weekend. I am off to find some Asian fish flakes.

12 comments:

Barbara Bruederlin said...

I feel your pain, as I too have microwaved cat food, uncovered. It's a nasty nasty business, but the smell does go away.

It can be tough dealing with a geriatric cat. Our old cat, Pook, took to vocalized at 5 in the morning, with a horrid yowling sound that he had never before made. His vet wanted to give him psychological counseling for dementia. Some of those vets sure know how to make money.

It sounds as though Sammy Jo is, as you say, turning into a crotchety old man. He still sounds relatively healthy though, despite the weight loss. Just pretend you are watching the Muppets (and best of luck).

Toccata said...

Barbara, I can't stop laughing over the very idea of sending a cat to psychological counseling for dementia! Sammy Jo is going to have to suck it up. No therapy bills for him I'm afraid. I on the other hand may need it.

Phil said...

Nowt worse than a microwave disaster!
I've had many an explosion, but only with human food :0]

Toccata said...

Dogga, trust me on this. Stick to the human food!

Anonymous said...

My cat, 12 or so, has yet to become a picky eater, but our dog, Rebel at 10/11 years is starting to drive me bats.

Cat food in the mic - never! :)

Toccata said...

Leazwell, I can hardly believe it myself that I actually thought it a good idea. Yikes!

Anonymous said...

i'm wondering if sammy jo has dental problems cuasing the bad breath and pain when he eats?

Small Town Teacher said...

Ok, here's another bad thing about nuking cat food. Next time you put something in the microwave, it WILL smell like cat food.

Toccata said...

Kelly, unfortunately Sammy Jo arrived on my doorstep with bad teeth. His front teeth were chipped probably from when he was trying to survive on his own.

Small town teacher aren't you just a little ray of sunshine!! LOL Now you have me paranoid about me turning on the microwave!

Allison said...

I exploded veggie chili in the microwave last night. Probably smelled a little better, but still a mess to clean up. Should have read this first. ;)

Gifted Typist said...

My little darling, pictured here, has an obesity problem and is on a low-cal cat food diet. When I pour it in her dish she looks down and it and looks back up with a face like thunder.

Toccata said...

Allison, you might not have had the smell but oi, chili would make one heck of a mess all right! Happy cleaning.

Gifted Typist, your comment made me laugh because I can just so see the look. Cats certainly let you know what they are thinking!