Needed a nap today. Badly. It's been a while since I've taken the luxury of a nap. So Pete and I snuggled up together in bed and prepared to sleep...
After about 20 minutes of warm cozy bliss I was awakened by a loud cracking noise, like a gunshot. I got up to investigate and discovered the gate had fallen.
As I've mentioned, we recently got a cat from the shelter. And we have 2 dogs: Pharaoh is an oversized minpin, and Bing is an elderly but spry - if a little demented - yorkie/pom. And they both love, er, "tootsie rolls" from the cat box. So to keep them out, I had devised a little maze. The cat box sits on the floor of the utility room cupboard. In front of it I put a small window screen for the cat to jump over, and in front of that is a baby gate at an angle across the opening. So the lithe little cat can maneuver around the dryer to the opening, then proceed into the cupboard, then jump over the screen, then walk into his box.
I underestimated the determination of the dogs who have been managing SOMEHOW to get their faces into the box ever since the first few days. And today it was Pharaoh who clumsily knocked the baby gate SMACK! onto the floor and woke me up. He was standing at the opening to the cupboard when I reached the utility room, and I yelled at him. He dropped his "tootsie roll" out of his mouth and ran into our bed where Pete was still laying (albeit now awake), and Pete chased him out of the bed, then rolled over...yeah...part of Pharaoh's snack was now smeared onto our sheets and Pete's shoulder. So Pete went to wash up and get clean sheets, saw the rest of the "snack" on the floor, reached for some TP to pick it up, but wasn't fast enough - it was gone and Bing was licking her lips.
This is nauseating to me. Severely nauseating. Dog breath is bad enough but cat crap breath is so much worse. I don't even allow the dogs on my lap anymore and don't want them anywhere near me...
So Pete put the dogs up in the front of the house and closed the door that separates the living area from the bedrooms/bathroom/utility room. We changed the bed, and tried again. But Bing had other plans. If she couldn't be with us she was going to yap and yap and yap and scratch at the door until we either let her in with us or killed her. You know which one I would have chosen...
When we had Bruce, Pharaoh proved to us that a cat box cover isn't enough to stop him, so that's not the answer...but I don't know what is.
We HAVE to find a solution to this. We HAVE to make the cat box accessible to the big fat 14# cat but not to a 10# yorkie/pom. How we're going to do THAT, I can't imagine. But we have to. Because this IS NOT working out. And I am literally getting sick to my stomach (and remember, I can't throw up anymore) when it happens. Every day. Several times. And I've had ENOUGH.
Any and all suggestions welcome.
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Put the litter box up on a it's own table with enough room for the cat to hop up to it but not flimsy enough for a dog to knock over?
ReplyDeletehahaha One of my basset hounds have this problem as well. We installed a cat door through the wall into the laundry room so that the door could be closed at all times. It is perfect for the little 5 pound cat and shear torture for the 80 pound dog that can't fit through the small hole. hahaha
ReplyDeleteMike said to make the hole for the cat door higher in the wall so that the cat can jump through but the dog can't. Make a little ledge for the cat to balance on and the cat will be happy happy.
ReplyDeleteOh Sherry....I am wiping my eyes, you tell this story so well !!! Plus, you KNOW I can relate !! I know it's gross, but I can't help howling over this. We have our cat box wedged into a basement corner, with the opening facing the corner. Wedged between the wall and the old refrigerator. The cats have to jump on top of the cover, then down to the floor on the other side and enter. The dog can't get into the corner to do that. Works for us. Thanks so much for such a well-written example of the joys of pet ownership.
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