New cat toy

On Friday, I had dinner with my friend A, her mom M and her nephew J. I should clarify that I was actually showing up to partake of M's fantabulous (it's a word) chicken Parmesan. No disappointment there, it was just as fantabulous as expected. In fact, earlier today I stopped by A's house to "feed the cats" but really it was just a great excuse to pick up the leftovers.

Anyway, when I got there I was given a gift for my herd of fur. Since they don't have thumbs, I got to open it up. A and M had given the herd the zhu zhu pet, Yama. For those not in the know, Yama is a member of the Kung Zhu clan. This clan is notorious for being very athletic, extremely agile, vocally superior and possessing ninja-like reflexes. Or, you know, they motivate crazily on the tile making noises. And the fur herd? Loved it.

From the first noise, their interest was piqued. With the exception of our oldest dog Nora, they were all very interested in it. Nora gave it a sniff, realized she couldn't eat it and wandered off. Izzy gave it a sniff, figured she probably could eat it and tried to walk off with it. She had to be repeatedly told to leave it alone so the cats could investigate it.

But the cats were awesome. The kitten (who fears absolutely nothing) was the first to check it out. He walked up like he owned it and started following it around. Then he knocked it onto it's side and when it started squealing in distress he dragged it closer and gave it a (rather aggressive) hug. It wasn't a hug filled with love or comfort. We alternated with me putting Yama back on it's wheels and starting it up and Tiberius following him around until he got tired and then knocking it over and holding it tightly.

The Antagonizer (who also has no fear and possesses an evil streak) sniffed it, followed it and looked perturbed when Tiberius held it too tightly. She really disliked the distress signal Yama made every time the kitten knocked it down. She finally sat back and watched from the sidelines, occasionally running over to sniff it.

The Hooligan (who is afraid of everything, as well as being mentally unstable and having questionable intelligence) was horrified and yet intrigued. He also seemed to have an excessively difficult time tracking which way Yama was going, even when it was simply spinning in place. He's never been the brightest in the bunch.

It was difficult to get decent photos of the chaos, mostly due to Izzy's brindled butt perpetually being between my camera and my subject. She has an innate ability to lift her head or fling up an ear at exactly the right moment to ruin a picture. It's a gift. In spite of her I managed to get a few pics.

This first picture is a perfect example of the personalities involved. In case you can't tell the difference between the two lardy silver tabbies, Tiberius is next to the dishwasher.

1. Tiberius is watching the toy that has gotten stuck in a maze of shoes. He's curious, but he's willing to wait and see what's going to happen.

2. The Antagonizer is trying to "help" Yama out of it's tight spot. A few pokes and it escaped.

3. The Hooligan appears to have no idea where Yama even is, even though it is at this point making a bunch of different barnyard like noises and struggling to escape.




And another situation...

1. Tiberius is again waiting patiently for what's next. While he's waiting he is strewing lego pieces around the floor from their former pile.

2. Izzy is licking her chops and hoping to be able to snag Yama at the first opportunity.

3. The Hooligan is carefully looking under the tray table for Yama. Unfortunately, Yama is almost two feet away, in another direction.



Tiberius holding Yama in place. This is what happens before it gets knocked around and "hugged".



So, long story short, I am unable to leave Yama on the floor unsupervised. He gets put up on the counter when I can't babysit. And when I can, all I have to do is push the button and within thirty seconds I have the fur herd running into the room.