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Lord Dudley Mountcatten snuck out the not quite closed back door yesterday. It was his first taste of freedom since we adopted him back in January…. and he was positively drunk with joy.
.
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Instead of grabbing him and flinging his furry little butt inside, I let him enjoy the nice weather. At first he was calm, and jumped up on the table to lie in the sun. I petted and praised him and began to rethink my outdoor ban.
.
.
Before I knew it he’d jumped off the deck and started wandering in and out of shrubs. I kept a close eye on where he was going, thinking he’d be satisfied to slowly explore his surroundings. But then?
.
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Bam! He took off running… across the lawn, past the garage and out towards the road. I called his name, he ignored me. I tried to catch him, he ran faster. When I finally herded him back to the deck, the little devil crawled under it… way out of reach. No amount of coaxing (or cursing) would bring him out. I spent half an hour waiting for his highness to tire of the stand off but no, he wasn’t moving. So I got a broom.
That managed to get him out from under… only to have him sprint directly to the woodshed.
.
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Where he climbed, jumped and writhed like a madman, knocking over bricks, plant pots and basically everything he touched. There’s only one entrance, so after 10 minutes of wild scrambling trying to get away from me?
.
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He gave up and perched on some wood…. which is when I grabbed his Royal highness, threw him over my shoulder and marched him into the house. The house he will probably never be allowed to leave again. Sorry Dudley, but you blew it.
Naturally his Lordship was quite put out with me. I got the stink eye, the cold shoulder and then the non stop howling and pestering for a repeated chance at the great outdoors.
.
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River's world..... 
I would never let Sprint out either. Scared to death of losing him. He would sneak out every chance he got. The *(^(@#& was FAST.
One day I got pissed and said FINE! GO! YOU GET RUN OVER BY A CAR DON’T COME TO ME FOR HELP!!!
And now? He goes out. Head to the back of the house, NOT the highway. Does his thing and knocks on the door to come back in.
No more worrying.
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All of our cats have been allowed outside, but I just don’t trust His Lordship…
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………..yet.
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🤣😂🤣 oh lord!
I thought at first you were going to tell us he used your flower garden as a litter box… or caught the squirrel…
But, the great escape had me laughing; I can totally relate to your experience with this escape cat tale!
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🤣😂🤣 oh lord!
I thought at first you were going to tell us he used your flower garden as a litter box… or caught the squirrel…
But, the great escape had me laughing; I can totally relate to your experience with this escape cat tale!
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If he’d caught that resident red bitch I wouldn’t have minded the escape at all.
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🤣😂🤣
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A friend of mine keeps schmaltz (chicken fat) mixed with finely chopped liver in her fridge. The cat is addicted to it, and my friend clicks on a metal cricket clicker each time she gives the a little pinch of the concoction.
The cat can always be summoned with a click on the cricket, even when prowling around outdoors …
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Brilliant. Liver and schmaltz…. a little kippered herring and you’ve really got something there.
😉
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Poor Dudley, and River of course having to try and catch him. Those fluffy, fat felines are fast aren’t they? Charlie is an outdoor/indoor cat even though his Kat Fight Klub incident that cost us $280 in vet bills, and remained an indoor cat for about two months. Only recently was he allowed back out side. But, he’ll be strictly an indoor cat when we move, you know new neighborhood and all. Will he like it? Probably not, but meh, I’m the one who buys his food and pays his vet bills…..stupid little fuzzy assed mofo.
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The crazy amount of ticks we’re having this year is yet another reason to keep his furry butt inside.
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I always imagined his voice much lower.
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Dudley is not a talker, and rarely meows. Maybe he needs more practice…
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He sounds a little like my Smokey.
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We love him dearly, but he’s a pill.
🥴
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That must have been annoying for both of you. Wonder if you can train him like Rusty suggested?
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He’s the finickiest cat we’ve ever had…. I don’t know what treat would even work.
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I hate it when we can’t find Birdie (our cat.) She’s an indoor/outdoor cat. She, so far (fingers crossed), always comes home and finds us so she can get fed, rubbed and scratched under the neck. Sometimes she takes her sweet time about doing it though. Don’t think I don’t know that she knows just how much she worries me. Brat! Mona
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I was willing to give Dudley a chance, but he totally ignored me and ran. That will not be tolerated.
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“Cats know how to obtain food without labor, shelter without confinement, and love without penalties.” –W.L. George, novelist
That pretty much says it all when it comes to cats.
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And we think we’re the more evolved species? Pfft…
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I get the feeling there’s a lot of “drunk” at the Barn Mahal independent of the whole “with joy” thing! 🙂
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I beg to differ. I am a most joyous drunk….
🍸
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That’s too bad. I was hoping that he’d be a deck kitty . . . just chilling with you.
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Yeah, not happening.
🥴
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I heard he has a meeting with Mrs. Squirrel–you better be on the watchout!!
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I’m always vigilant.
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I have a Catio for my cats. That’s the only way they go out. Maybe you should consider it, or an invisible fence.
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I’m afraid we have too many destructive nightly visitors for that to be viable.
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Is there supposed to be vid? The icon looks like doc but plays audio.
For most of my cats, shaking a treat container or clanging food cans together brings them (and a million strays) running. But Toonces? Oh, nooo… he’s too good for that! Today I was discussing having to accept the risks of owning cats that insist on going outdoors. So when Toonces was MIA, not even hanging with his fabve girlfriend kitty, I worried that I’d jinxed him. Fortunately, he returned… after 11pm!
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The video plays on my end, so I don’t know. As for rattling treats he’s so finicky I’m not sure that would work.
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I hope he doesn’t make your life hell for the next 4 months! So cute and funny, though.
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Now that’s he had a taste of freedom he’s impossible!
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Our cats have always been allowed outside – which brings it’s own challenges (fleas and ticks, and fighting with other cats). Who knew that the whole turf war thing was very, very real.
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Oh my goodness. He’s SO lovely and apparently SO very fast too.
Hey, your yard is GORGEOUS, don’t make me show up with a bottle of wine and two glasses!
I have seen on the internet (a friend has one in San Diego too) the fencing/perches for cats that are outside so they get fresh air but can’t really escape into danger. Catio.
https://catiospaces.com
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I’ve seen those but it would never work here. The woodchucks would tunnel under it, the raccoons would chew through the screen then the skunks and possibly a bear would move in.
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Oh snap! That’s a lot of wildlife to contend with. I get it.
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What a beauty he is!
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Thanks. We love him..
❣️
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