Are you waiting for something Scooby?

The morning after the night before...

What can I say? It’s 3 in the afternoon and I have just got up from my 6-hour nap. I am still sleepy but food beckons my empty stomach. I got inside in the early hours of the morning (I think I was sternly muttered to that it was 1am when I summoned my humans to let me out of the kitchen and upstairs into my bedroom) after being out on the prowl all night. I had so much fun but now I’m receiving the consequences of my night-time expedition. I feel like I’ve been drugged up to my eyeballs with catnip and after my temporary ‘high’ have reached a new low of fatigue and hunger. Oh well, I can quickly cure the hunger pains…
Would I do it again tonight?
It’s a date.

Scooby's Egg-celent Feast

I had a golden Easter egg that I saw sitting there,
And to leave it on its own I just couldn't bear,
It had the most scrumptious smell that I just couldn’t resist,
So I knocked it off the table and thought ‘I’ll get my claws in this’
It was hard to tear the foil off but it was a job well done
For now the whole things sitting in the bottom of my tum!!

Happy Birthday to me - Morgan is 3!!

Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me, happy birthday dear Morgan, happy birthday to me… it’s my birthday!! I’m 3 today (20 in my years)! I’ve got lots of nice presents and lots of yucky kisses (its so embarrassing when I'm kissed I'm not a kitten anymore)! 3 years ago today a very special boy was born… me! I was made a nice cake and we had a little party but I missed most of it because I was outside celebrating in my own way. I got a mouse this morning for me to celebrate with. I also got this big aerobic gym though I haven’t been on it yet I have been too busy munching all the nice fish down. It’s my favourite (the fish I mean!). Also I got lots of catnip – yum, yum and Scooby is having none of it! I had a birthday nap and a birthday clean, not to mention a birthday lick… wait a moment, whats that… it sounds like a - mouse… Scooby’s got a mouse! Scooby has a mouse! Got to go. This birthday is just getting interesting! Have to get there before Katty spoils it…

Does Morgan know something we don't?

Spring has sprung

At long last the sun has come into our garden. Morgan was the first to jump out of his bed and run outside and I followed reluctantly – although I like the sun very much the rain always seems to fall the moment I get outside. I love spring – lots of flowers to sniff, more birds appear and such a mixture of smells but all lovely. There is more movement from Billy, Mikey and Elly and lots of visitors have come to our pond looking so attractive to play with (frogs they are called). I could sit watching them for hours. At the moment, Morgan is running up the tree and disappears for hours somewhere (even I don't know where he goes). I make regular trips to my friend’s house for fuss and food. Only a while to go now until summer is in full swing with the heat and long catnaps in the sun. The days seem to last longer so I have adjusted my naps time and awake time accordingly – now I have longer sleeping and longer playing but in that case I should have more food as logic goes but I’m not so I don’t like that. Morgan gets the same problem but he supplements it with having more mice – AND he won’t share. How cattish is that?

A Mothering Sunday message to our mum

To Mum,
Hello mummy, we haven’t spoken in a while. Look at us! Are you proud of us? We are! We were nothing like this when you last saw us – just as gorgeous perhaps but not as big or as grown-up. You’ve made us like this mum – we’re just like you – especially me! We still remember you though we couldn’t forget. Morgan and me have agreed (on the rare occasions we do) that some of our best moments were curled up with you in our basket nuzzling you. Morgan giggles as he remembers still trying to nuzzle you when you were pregnant with me and my brothers and sisters you weren’t half angry he says but agrees he was pushing his luck a bit. So what you doing mum? Still hunting in the great cat land in the sky, or are you tenderly looking after your lost babies just like you wanted to when they were born? You were a great mum – well you must have been to have spawn offspring like us. You should see the things Morgan catches – he’s doing it for you too… and for me. I sleep like you instead mum, Morgan’s more the hunter. And you should see how much we eat. It would be too much for even you. But we’re big boys now – was our dad big because we know we didn’t get it from you. You were tiny and delicate and when I was little I kept jumping on you and you told me off is it because one day you knew I would be too big to jump on you and I’d hurt you?
We’re still sad you had to go mum and we still miss you though we treasure it when you occasionally visit us from the other side – can’t you stay a bit longer though? Me and Morgan would do anything for a last cuddle – we have to make do with the humans and you know how useless they are.
This Mothering Sunday mum, we bought you a bowl. Do you like it? I know you were a great lover of food – you liked things like mice and birds and perhaps the odd squirrel but we were told no, we couldn't catch one in your memory so.a bowl it was to be. Now every time we eat out of it we’ll think of you and remember the life you bought to our old house. You gave us life too mum and without you we wouldn’t be here at all.
We love you mummy; Happy Mothering Sunday.
Lots of love and catnip,
Morgan and Scooby purr, purr, purr

Morgan's going up in the world

Do you like my new patch? I do I love it. I like being high up you see I feel powerful I don’t have to be on alert all the time. I came in one night and my kennel had moved – for the better. Of course I had that idea a long time before but nobody listened to me and now at last it’s moved Katty wants appreciation for it. Well she knows my viewpoint on appreciation (any cat that shows gratitude is not a cat). But about the kennel… my biggest complaint about it is that it takes so much effort getting up there you need a rest after, also the floor of it is a bit bumpy. Scooby doesn’t know what to make of it (but that’s not unusual). I do like it though. It’s so far up; I can’t even reach it standing on my hind legs. I love it and to make it sweeter, treats are in it every night waiting for me. After my recent disappointment (some senseless person concreted over my new toilet outside)… it’s the kind of thing to cheer you up. It gives you a big lift looking down on all those lowly mortals.

Waterloo

Some kind people are digging me a toilet outside. I watch them everyday from my window checking on its progress. I tried to use it yesterday but it’s not ready yet. Some unthoughtful human being has put a cold tunnel down the middle of it (I tried to see inside but I was unable to find the entrance and it seems to small for me after I ate all those pancakes) and I'm not going in the wet that has accumulated at the bottom (I've smelt it to make sure someone hasn't got there before me but it is rain water). Lucky for me they have put signs round it for people to not step in it and a sort of barrier, so only cats can enter.. That is good because I hate being disturbed when I’m relieving myself and all too often, when you’re doing it on grass or a garden people start shouting and waving at you (I know that I’m in demand but even handsome boys like me need a few moments on their own). I have to protect it though and guard it so Scooby doesn’t find it first and christen it before me. He shouldn’t do though because there is further ones up the street (just in case you can’t wait).
It appears that, at long last, the fight for animal rights is beginning to be successful and provisions for cats, especially me, is being made in our area.

I'm dreaming of a white carpet

You won’t believe this. A white carpet has appeared all down the street and on the road. It’s really cold to stand on and to be honest it’s not that fun to look at it… it’s too er, white. Yesterday I slept most of the day because the surprise overwhelmed me. Morgan says it’s called snow. I have a vague recollection of it but I must have repressed the memory because I didn’t like it much (or perhaps I slept through the whole thing). It sort of falls from the sky – just like Morgan did when he fell out the window – but it smells like rain really just colder. Anyway I have not had much fun the last few days because of this snow so it’s quite depressing. Morgan doesn’t like it either. I’ve seen him come through the cat flap all despondent and he’s sleeping more than usual (but not as much as me yet). The snow hasn’t stopped me completely though, I have to brave it when I go to my friend’s house, snow isn’t robbing me of my right to chicken.

Missing... and found!

Scooby gave us all a bit of a scare on Friday after he went missing. To understand why it was such an ordeal it's best if I tell you abit about Scooby's character. When I am at home he stays in most of the time sleeping. If he goes out he usually spends at the most of an hour out before coming back. he's in and out usually all day. Scooby never misses a meal. That is why at midday on Fridat without seeing Scooby since he went out in the morning I was a bit worried. Brushing aside my anxieties as over-protectiveness the hours passed and I did nothing. When my parents returned they were surprised of his absence but told me he had probably just found somewhere to sleep that was warm, perhaps his friends, Beryl and Alan's house. An hour later my mind couldn't rest so I went round to see if he was there. They hadn't seen him all day, which to them was surprising because he usually visited half a dozen times! I panicked. It wasn't like Scooby at all. Morgan too seemed worried in his own way. He wouldn't settle down and kept popping out.

We really started to panic when it got dark though. It was most unlike Scooby. We walked round the streets calling his name and again, at the sound of his name Scooby usually appears galloping across the grass anticipating a cuddle - or food. We decided that an explanation was he was accidentally shut in a garage so we, including Morgan, went to the neighbours asking if they had seen him (Morgan offered to look round their house - or was he just being nosy?) and politely asked for them to look in their sheds.

It was still early days, he had only been missing for 12 hours, but the bad thoughts sneak into your minds uninvited. Thankfully, when at the RSPCA, Scooby (as is Morgan) was microchipped. These microchips are tiny, like a grain of rice, and are painlessly placed under the animals skin with a unique number. When a cat or or other animal is admitted to an animal centre they are always scanned for a microchip whereby the details of the animals "owners" are placed on a database so if found can be contacted and reunited. It gave us some reassurance that if he had become disorientated or injured we could be identified as his family. This was one of the fears we had for him.

At 9 we went for a last trawl round the streets willing him to come out from wherever he was. We would never ever have given up on Scooby however we placated ourseleves with the fact there was little more we could do tonight to find him and faced a night without him.At 9.30 who should walk through the door but Scooby. I can say that I’ve never been so glad to see him before in my life. We are not sure what happened to him but presume he got shut somewhere, which does happen and we are not bitter towards the person who did it as we know well of the curiosity of cats and (unlike people) their delicate, if not sly, way of doing things. Ourselves have gone out to see Morgan's paw coming under the locked door of the garage. It was quite traumatic for everyone but I think it was for Scooby. He wouldn’t go out hardly yesterday and today - even less than usual. We don’t know what happened to him (and he's refusing to talk about it) but we are presuming that he got shut up somewhere.

Thanks to God that he is back, that's all we can say.

Part 2: Our holiday

...continued from last week
I am going to describe the room we stayed in. It was long and thin. We slept in a nicely made bed. I have never slept in a bed before, well not since I was small. We have beds, don’t think we don’t, but there is usually somewhere better to sleep especially when the humans warm up seats for us. Katty had bought my triangle for me (she gave the scratching post to Scooby), one home comfort that made all the difference. The lady who looked after us was calm and nice she had a sweet smell of cats on her and there was a calm atmosphere in the place. We had room service twice a day. I was a bit worried that we would miss out on our nightly treat of catnip but to my relief it came to us each night. I’m not a cat to hide my feelings and so I made it plain that I expected high quality service (Katty had left us here so it is ok to expect nothing less than the best, I am a Prince after all). Through the week I went through a washing machine of emotions... at first I was disorientated, then I was angry, then curious, bewildered, sad, hungry, full, relaxed, sleepy, angry, hungry again, anxious, sleepy, sleepy still, tired, peckish… Finally when I first saw Katty again I was a bit annoyed because she decided to come in when I was asleep but apart from that I was relieved to see her. I wanted to ask her lots of questions: why could I smell cat on her? Had she been cheating on me? But I didn’t have time because no sooner had I seen the door open she was smothering me with love and it was too close for my liking but for once I didn’t meow a sound and just put up with it (her sporadic exhibitions of love for me are quite embarrassing – you have to accept Katty, I’m not your baby anymore, I’m nearly 3 years old!). Out came The Cage and I thought ‘oh no where are you taking me this time?’ I tried to resist (that bought back memories) but I didn’t have a choice as I was pushed in there by not one, not two but three people. I was taken into the car and we drove back. Where were we going I thought? I was a bit worried but Katty was back and though I wouldn’t trust anyone or being with my life I know in my heart Katty would never intentionally scare me or hurt me. Call it cat’s intuition but when we parked I knew we were home. That familiar smell soon went up my nose and I knew I was home once more. As a cat I don’t look back in anger, in fact I don’t look back at all however I felt I learned a valuable lesson from my adventure: cats don’t like holidays and if you hear the word ‘cattery’ it’s best to run out the cat flap.

Part 1: Our Holiday by Morgan

Sorry we haven't posted recently. We were just getting over Christmas when the suitcases came out. Scooby was bemused but me being the cleverer one (obviously) knew what was going on straight away. They call it a holiday. I have a long memory of these holidays; Katty leaves us at home when she goes. It makes me sad and Katty always looks sad too. Apart from the suitcases there are ways to tell when a holiday is coming. Firstly we get spoilt. Katty gets guilty and I hear shouting. She tells us she loves us a lot... Scooby has just said she always tells us she loves us and though that’s true instead of telling us 5 times a day, she tells us 10. It’s a bad sign when she says that she would never ever let anything bad happen to us, that usually means that something is going to happen. She whispers it in my ear at the vet. The last sign is when the cat flap won't let you out. Usually in the morning its locked but it's not the morning it's the early evening. That’s when I panic. It happened last time when I went to the vet to get my scar and the time before to get prodded and poked at the vets so I think we are going to the vets but then Scooby isn’t allowed out either. We have never gone to the vets together before. Is this better or worse? I don’t know. I look at Scooby to see what he thinks but he’s never been a cat bowl of information it’s me who usually sniffs something being wrong first. I here the word cattery said again and again and I wonder if that has something to do with it.After a while The Cage comes out. This is bad news. The Cage emerges just before we go in the car usually. The Cage is my cue to hide. As I stand looking it disappears. In its place a body starts coming nearer to me. I don’t care whose it is. I leg it. Across the front room, behind the sofa, stop… take a breath, peep out from behind. No-one that way. I turn round and see a dark shadow. Out from behind the sofa, under some chairs. The chairs move and I run into the path of another person. That person, I don’t even look who it is, tries shoving me in the The Cage. Paws and legs outstretched they can’t get me in. I use my body to push up and wriggle as much as I can. They give up and put Scooby in there. Scooby’s not as much as a pro as me. He wriggles as well but it’s in vain. For obvious reasons, we only have one of The Cage. Scooby’s in that so I think I don’t have to worry but they try to get me in a cardboard box. I feel defeated – momentarily. The close the lid so I can’t jump up. There are little holes in the side big enough for me to put my paws through and see out and that gives me an idea… If I can’t get out the top I’ll have to get out the side. I’ll push my way out. Katty was absolutely gob smacked she told me later. Using the force of my body I ripped a nice Morgan sized hole in the side of it (I’m proud) and go and sit victoriously on the top of the stairs. No-one chases me, no-one calls my name. I lie purring. I hear the front door open and bangs shut as usual. The voices go and the car starts up. It’s a victory for Morgan… …I thought so anyway. Mum came back 10 minutes later for me. She threw me in the cage quicker than you could say “catnip.” Katty wasn’t with her. Has she taken her to the same place she’s taking me? We draw up at a house. No mention of vets just holidays. I was carried through in the open air but I could sniff the resident cats there. I was finally rested in a warm room. I could smell the previous cats who had been there but it wasn’t a smell of fear like at the vets, it was more of… food. Yes, it smelt of food and it was cosy and nice but it wasn’t home. Katty tried to tempt me with some food – ham, but I was too busy exploring. I could see Scooby next to me but a glass wall separated us. I was very inquisitive. It looked nice enough but what was it all about? I couldn’t understand. I looked at Katty for reason. She just looked sad. She whispered words to me but I didn’t want to hear she gave up and went next door to Scooby who had already (surprise, surprise) settled down in his bed. After a while mum spoke. Katty looked even sadder. It made me sad. Where was I? Why was I here? I had questions rushing through my head. I looked at the person who could perhaps answer them – Katty – but with little more than a goodbye she was already gone.

Where are they and what is a holiday? Find out next Thursday in Part 2 of my tail

Christmouse 2006

This Christmouse has been very exhausting but we’ve been very lucky too. We got plenty of presents too, lots of catnip treats from our friends Frodo and Freyr (and Maeve), and they also bought us a feathery play thing and MORE catnip. We got treats from Mum and Dad, our friend Abigail over the road bought us a mouse (we presume this is the Christmouse) and we also got a blue pyramid to attack. We had our stockings and got lots of presents in there too. It just gets better. We were so excited on Christmouse Eve looking up the chimney for Santa especially me because I’ve had more Christmouse’s here than Scooby and I’m 3 months older so as you can imagine I’m 3 times more cleverer. We thought on Christmouse day we might get a mouse for dinner but we didn’t so it was a bit disappointing. Last Christmouse I got a bird for Katty. I left it in the kitchen so when she came back at noon from going somewhere she would have it as a surprise. As it turned out it really upset her – how ungrateful can you get? Then she insisted on conducting one of her funerals so that ruined the day so I didn’t bother this year. I thought what is the point in getting something that is not appreciated. I’m not going to waste my time. I bet you can’t believe unappreciative she is. The amount of times I’ve bought mice and birds in for her and she is not happy. It’s the thought that counts I think… well as long as the thought has some catnip on top of it. I hope you had a purry Christmouse and have a very happy new year.

Getting ready for Christmouse

It has been very tiring this week watching Katty sorting out Christmouse presents and writing cards so that is why we haven’t posted recently. There has been some heavenly catnip smell coming from certain areas in the house but she says we have to be patient. I have never heard the word patient before and I don’t know what it means. Apparently we have to wait if we want to be patient. Wait? I don’t like the sound of that. Morgan feels the same (finally something we agree on!). I have torn up a lot of paper this week that Katty has been playing with. She has also cut up lots of photos of me and Morgan and put them in cards. She says she has sent one to my sisters, Mitsy and Jasmine. She asked me if I would like to meet my sisters – I said no. Competing with Morgan for food is bad enough let alone another two of me. I still miss my mum though and so does Katty, that’s what she says anyway.I have put my Christmouse photo (and Morgan’s) on the blog for everyone too see. I think I look dazzling and the tinsel just complements my elegance and superiority. Any comments on this would be greatly appreciated. We will post again before Christmouse and sorry for the lateness of our post.

Ode To The Tree (Recovered)

Ode to the tree

This week is National Tree Week (22nd November to 3rd December) in commemorating this and taking into account that I’ve had the funnest time of my life up trees I have created the following Ode to the Tree
Oh tree, oh tree
How I love climbing thee
And nearly reaching the sky
I run up your chest
In feline zest
And pretend that I can fly.

Oh tree oh tree
I’m nearly three
And still it makes me gladder
When I make a meow
Whilst on your bow
So my human has to go get the ladder

Oh tree oh tree
It’s so funny
When they climb up your trunk so brown
They pant and they puff
On their face they look
A picture when I run down.

Advent treats for Morgan

I can’t believe my luck. Now Katty is giving us treats in the morning as well as at night. She says something about advent? Whatever that is I don’t know but if it means we’re getting more food it has to be good. I kind of remember the same thing happening last year but then it stopped – after a day of pigging out. This advent thing has a bad side though. It's so windy. I hate the wind. My fur and whiskas start blowing and I lose myself. Humans don't like it either. I hear them cursing as they walk down the street and I think if you don't like the weather stay in all day like me. Though humans are a bit like blind newly-born kittens when it comes to common sense so I feel sorry for them really more than anything.
All week I’ve not been up to much except posing for our Christmas photos. Every Christmas you see Katty takes a photo of me and Scooby and sends it to all our friends. She also takes us one on our birthday with our cake. It’s quite exhausting you know all this being handsome. After my trauma my face is more or less back to normal and the humans have stopped fussing over it – but they do keep telling me I am as gorgeous as ever. I knew that even when I was a kitten however I still love people saying so. And to put my mind at rest can anyone explain to me what a cattery is? I’ve heard that word so many times over the last few days spoken by mum and dad after saying Scooby and my name but I don’t know what it is or whether it is good or bad. Shall I purr or growl? I just don’t know.

Ode to Trees

Today is part of National Tree Week (22nd November - 3rd December) as I overheard Katty saying. As many of my friends know, me and trees go back a long way. In my first 6 months, I got stuck up no less than 6 trees and had to be rescued in a very dramatic ways (thank you Jacqui, Rosalind's dad, Sue, Steve, Amanda x2 and everyone else who watched/co-ordinated the rescue missions).Therefore I thought it would be appropriate to write a lovely tribute to them (the trees). Ode to Trees Oh tree, oh tree How I love climbing thee And nearly reaching the sky I run up your chest In feline zest And pretend that I can fly. Oh tree oh tree I’m nearly three And still it makes me gladder When I make a meow Whilst on your bow So my human has to go get the ladder Oh tree oh tree It’s so funny When they climb up your trunk so brown They pant and they puff On their face they look A picture when I run down.

Survive Your Diet the Scooby Way

I am going through every feline’s worst nightmare. I’m on a diet. I have lost .3 in 2 weeks and I can feel the difference already. I am much colder. I have learnt many tricks though to keep the food intake up. I have written here my top 10 for any other poor cat who is put on a diet: 1. Identify the soft-touch. This human will give you food no matter what, no matter when and all you have to do is put on your ‘deprived’ look 2. Sit forlornly next to your food bowl. Even daft humans will understand this demand 3. Jump on the cupboards. They will bribe you with anything just to get you off. 4. Every cat knows that coming through the cat flap immediately entitles you to some food. Go out and come in every 5 minutes 5. Place yourself at your human’s feet when they are eating. Food rains down on you 6. Seductively fall down and roll over in a doorway and wait for someone to come and stroke you then as they touch you get up and go to your bowl 7. When you see someone walk into the kitchen run after them and catch them up. When they try to walk out stand in front of the door 8. Wrap yourself round somebody’s feet and follow them around. This doesn’t work for lazy humans. 9. If you’re unlucky enough to have a brother like me, turn it into a positive and eat his dinner too 10. If all else fails, go to your other homes and repeat steps 1-9 there. Good luck

Scooby's CATastrophe (part 2)

I go dizzy at the mere suggestion… or perhaps it has something to do with the pinprick in my back. Either way I go into shock. I look at Katty plaintively and she gives me a kiss. Well that’s a good sign anyway. I go and sit next to her. Hoping that’s the end but no. One more thing, my mouth is opened and I get a tablet in my mouth. Thrown in like the way Morgan throws the mice around. The cage is lifted onto the table and I can’t get in quick enough. A refuge. A haven. I hear the word diet several times. Katty tells me afterwards that I put on 0.5kg (1.1lbs). My weight is now 5.7kg (12.5lbs). Well done I think but apparently the vet isn’t pleased. I go on the move again hopefully homeward bound. I smell another cat behind me but Katty turns the cage around so I can’t see. I think really it’s because she doesn’t want to make the other cat jealous by showing how handsome I am. I get put down and then picked up. I go out in the fresh air. I breathe it in. There’s so many smells its confusing but I don’t have time to filter them as I get put in the car. It’s always best to be inside the car I think rather than the outside. On the inside you don’t get hurt. We drive through bumps and holes and finally reach home. Home. The words have never sounded so sweet. I am lifted out and carried into the house. I smell Morgan. He’s probably come to take the micky out of me. But no, he looks at me sympathetically – well for a moment anyway and then he bites my tail. I’m in no mood to play. I’ve had the shock of my life. I need to digest what’s just happened – literally I decide. I sit in front of my bowl hoping someone will take pity on me. Nothing. I feel too hopeless to persist and go and look outside the window. I am a broken cat. As I am sitting there I reminisce about my relationship with food. For every memory I’ve got, I recall the food that went with it. When I was in hospital for example I had dry food. It was boring. So tasteless and sad. Just how I felt. I remember my mum’s warm milk. So warm and luscious. I miss my mum. She’d laugh at me that I’m on a diet. She ate like me but she was still so thin. Lucky mum. I was getting very upset and I needed to comfort myself. I went in the only place that understands me. The food cupboard. How is Scooby going to cope? Find out next Saturday.