The Cat Tower
I moved in with these two stupid cats (and my partner) in March. In the intervening seven months I’ve slowly become obsessed with them to the point where I authorised the purchase of this monstrous cat tower.
I included some Amazon affiliate links in this post to some bits I have genuinely bought and thought were great, just as a recommendation! If you did click through and purchase I would get some pennies for it.
I grew up with both cats and dogs on a working farm. We usually had 2-3 cats but they were very independent and spent a lot of the day outside. Since I left home I’ve not lived with pets of my own, and coming from a farming family the idea of buying toys and treats for a cat was strange at first!
[Cut to me today in Pets at Home considering buying a rocket ship tunnel and Christmas garland toy despite them having a million toys already they barely touch…]
After moving in in March and becoming a full time “Cat Mum” the cats and I have reached a new deeper level in our relationship, and they’ve really bent me to their feline wills. We now have our own little routines, which honestly is just really fucking cute and makes me feel special.
Let me tell you a little bit about them…
Kitler1 loves to come up to bed with me while I read. She generally loves any bed time, whether at night or in the morning when you’re trapped under the covers and must give her undivided attention. Around 9pm she’ll run upstairs with me and wait until I’m in bed. Then we’ll have a cuddle in-between her headbutting my kindle and walking across my chest repeatedly and getting her bum in my face. She has absolutely no respect or regard for the personal space of others.
With Kitler, love and attention are on her terms entirely. You get a lot more cuddles in the winter when it’s cold and she’ll want to sit on you all evening for the warmth. She does show her affection through lots of kneading, which has resulted in many ruined jumpers and duvet covers.
Valentine is a more affectionate cat, you can’t pet her without her trying to lick your hands in return, which makes fuss feel more appreciated and reciprocal even if its kind of gross and her tongue is like sandpaper on your skin. She also likes to try to groom our heads. This works well with my partner’s short hair but not so great with my long hairs! She is a heavier cat which is quite uncomfortable when she tramps across your stomach and she doesn’t control her claws so I have ended up training her to always sit on a cushion in my lap!
In the spring, in an effort to reduce the insane amount of cat hair all over this house, I got a de-shedding brush2 and she decided daily brushing was required on the cushion. This extra attention seems to have really bonded her to me, and with her new shinier coat (she looks like a different cat now, so shiny and soft!) she’s generally more vocal and confident than she was before! Now if I have my dinner on a cushion in my lap on the sofa she’ll wait, but the second the plate is moved will be on that cushion!
There is nothing like getting special attention from a cat! I am in love with them now, they are my babies. I find myself wanting to hug and kiss their little heads like a crazy cat lady (they do not like this). I even started to do the air kiss I do to my partner as a sign of affection to the cats!
I’ve lost it.
They just deserve the best 💕
So when the old cat tower’s seagrass ropes kept going mouldy and it needed replacing, I felt they deserved a optimal fun new tower. Especially as they are indoor cats I want to make sure they have interesting things to play with.
Doesn’t matter that it’s a bit too big for our house.
I was expecting them to sit on it for 10 minutes then never again but it’s been a few days and they have been up on it regularly for the past two weeks! We have it right by the door so when we come home they’re often both sitting there on it when I get back from a day out. I’ve been jump scared a few times this week by one of them up on the high platform that’s just out my line of sight!
If you’re interested it was this Feandrea Cat Tree from Amazon. So much cheaper that the ones we had looked at in Pets At Home and its been good value for money.
When they’re cute like this I can forgive the cat fur in and on absolutely everything in the house;3 all perfectly good cat food they waste; that I can’t have any cool house plants any more or bouquets of flowers without them getting destroyed; being woken up by meowing at 4am; cleaning up cat vomit; the furniture and clothing ruined by claws; not being able to leave an open window unattended; the walking across my desk and relentless meowing when I’m trying to work…4
It’s worth it when I see their stupid little faces looking up at me.
If you want to see more of these cats you I generally post a photo most Saturdays for #Caturday on Mastodon.
Now please tell me about your cat.
- See photos for explanation of this name, you will be able to pick out which one Kitler is. Also she came named already so we are not responsible for it! ↩︎
- It’s been worth every penny, its crazy how much fur comes off and the cat loves it! It is this one from Amazon. ↩︎
- To deal with the cat fur I also bought this pet hair remover from Amazon and its been amazing! So good I bought another one so we have one upstairs and one downstairs. ↩︎
- The entire time I’ve been editing this post Kitler has been meowing at me or sitting on my lap, except for when Valentine time came in to meow at me and take her place on my lap… ↩︎
3 Comments
A.S. Akkalon
I love how much you love your cats. I think most people who think they don’t like cats actually just don’t know any cats, or only know one cat and it happens to be a huge jerk (there’s always one).
I have three cats. Online they go by the names Little Squeak, Runs from Jeans, and Princess. Irl they have more normal cat names.
Little Squeak and Runs from Jeans love to snuggle with us in bed, especially when it’s cold. I usually wake up with Little Squeak curled up in front of my stomach. Princess never steps foot on the bed unless there’s catnip involved, and even then she gets straight off.
Little Squeak and Runs from Jeans are both very talkative. I think they just like to narrate their lives: “I’m walking through the living room. There are people – hello, people! There’s a door. Now I’m in the hallway.”
Run from Jeans eats just about everything, but especially loves popcorn and toast. When we eat toast in the morning he hangs out and begs until he gets his share.
Little Squeak is the most mellow cat ever. You can pick him up upside down and he just sort of smiles at you, or finds a foot to lick.
Princess had a lot of trauma in her early life and came to us a bit older. It was three days before she came out from under her blanket. She much more relaxed now, but still doesn’t like to be held. She’s very quiet except when she’s brought a lizard inside, when she meows excitedly, and she’s the only one who asks to be let through doors by patting her paws against them.
I love them all to distraction!
Alice
I don’t know how people sleep with their cats on the bed! Occasionally I let Kitler stay if my partner is feeling unwell sleeping in the spare bed (where she usually sleeps so she tends to meow all night!) but she goes in out the room so much and has to sleep right by my legs it wakes me up!
I’ve never heard of a cat eating popcorn and toast!
I wish I knew what they were saying when they’re seemingly meowing for no reason. I read somewhere it’s good to talk to your cats so I try to engage them in conversation 😂
A.S. Akkalon
I’ve always slept with cats in my bed. After a while you just feel them in your sleep and lie around them. They do take advantage, though–sometimes they nearly push me out of bed.