A few months ago, we got a new cat Mohinder. Our other cat Madeline is pretty well trained to stay off of tables and counters. It could be that she’s old and too bitter to jump, but I prefer to think of it as her getting a proper upbringing in a loving home. Anyhow, Mohinder is a much younger, testosterone-fueled cat (though he must have an alternate source as his normal testosterone makers are no longer in his possession). He’s starting to get that stubble on his chin typical of a male going through puberty.
So, we’ve made training Mo a family affair. We keep a water bottle around to squirt him when we catch him doing something teenager-like. Speaking of that, have any of you with teens tried a water bottle for training? Isaac is only 4 years from it and I am already preparing my passport so I can exit the country.
Well, we have been progressing along pretty well and Mo is pretty bright as cats go. Isaac was so proud awhile back and had to tell me of his efforts in training Mo. Apparently Mo was on the dining room table. Isaac caught him but did not have the spray bottle handy. Being a resourceful bugger, Isaac came up with the only water he had available. He told me, “Dad, I had to spit on him. It was the only water I had.” Now let me tell you, I look at our dining room table with a more cautious eye and thank my lucky stars that Mo was not doing something wrong in the bathroom!
Oh my gosh. I’ be watching the dining room table too. Our cat loves to climb – and then we have to go and rescue him!
Where you able to keep a straight face when he told you the story? lol I wouldn’t have been able to.
Thanks for the laugh. 🙂
This is hiliarious! LOL!
That’s funny. Our cats still do bad things when we are away, we’ll come up the driveway, look in the back door and see a cat or two sleeping on the table. By the time we get inside their not there any more.
Ahem, It sounds like the apple didn’t fall far from the tree, I’m thinking maybe it slid down the trunk, better check him for splinters and bark burn!!!
I’m sure we all have personal spit stories! Your son probably has others that he hasn’t told you. As a third grade teacher, I tend to wipe all surfaces down.
I absolutely laughed when Isaac told me the story. He told me with a straight face and was so intense about it. There is no telling what Mohinder does when we are away. Shoot, he does plenty when we are there to catch him. Our other cat is too old to care so I doubt she’s in to much. I am certain Isaac is more like his mother than me though. She was the rowdy one as a kid!
Hilarious! I’ll be laughing about this all day-and I can’t wait to tell my girls and husband-it’s just too cute to not share.
Hahaha!! Cannot wait for him to start bloggin’!! lol
I used a water bottle to get my teenaged son up and out of bed for school (quite a number of years ago). His alarm would go off. No action. 4 or 5 minutes later, Mama took airm from the doorway with the spray bottle. Worked well for me.
CM – thanks for the advice! I seem to remember my mom doing something similar to my brother but it’s pretty fuzzy. I was always a morning person so no worries for me getting up!