Giuseppe in the center, Bean trying to edge in from the bottom and Mr. Sunshine pondering the mechanics of the situation from the top, three great minds literally pull apart The Marvelous Toy.
I came home from conferences last year with lots of goodies for the kitties, including two food puzzle toys—containers they could easily roll around and play with that could hold a treat or two to give them incentive to play. It’s a way to give them a little activity and environmental enrichment during their long and boring days.
One was a “Fish Bowl”, a clear plastic sphere with the top cut open and a flat wide rim about 1/3 up from the bottom so that it could rock back and forth but not flip over. Kitty can see and smell the treat inside the bowl and work hard to get it out of there. All Four came to work on it while Mama Mimi watched from inside a low flat box, but Giuseppe took it over. It took him nearly a minute to get the first treat, and each successive treat took less and less time until by the fourth treat he had learned to flip it over and reach in if the treat hadn’t fallen out, and by treat five he could reach in and get it out while barely moving the fish bowl. No one else had a chance.
Then I got the Kong treat toy, which is the one here. It’s another sphere that screws apart so you can put treats inside, and its uneven surface makes it roll in unexpected directions and eventually a treat will come out of it. I placed it in the tub to keep it contained and Giuseppe again kept everyone else away while he managed to get two treats out. I put about ten more into it and went to get some work done, and in ten minutes it was empty, sitting near Giuseppe. I decided I was going to get something out of this so I put two more treats in it and sketched them.
A few minutes later Bean came walking out of the bathroom holding the toy with a tooth in the hole for the treats to exit, set it on the landing and they all went after it until it rolled down the steps, fell open, and I’m not sure who got that treat. I hope it was Bean.
The whole operation took about 20 minutes. I think I need more complicated treat toys for these guys. Giuseppe does not get tired of things like this, and when it comes to food they are very competitive so they’ll keep at it if they smell a treat.
Mewsette sits on the shelf in front of the window, curtains pushed aside so she can see the neighborhood. She’s a little extra puffy, and likely she spies another cat out there, somewhere.
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Daily Photo: I Could “Daily Sketch” You, 2013
Mimi looks at my pencils, then at me.
Mimi looks at my pastel pencils, then at me.
“I wonder how you’d look if I sketched you in blue, or purple or pink,” Mimi says. “I just might give it a try.”
Guess I pushed the non-representational colors too far for someone. she didn’t follow through with her threat, and I’m kind of glad. I mean, it would be totally cool to have a kitty who could draw, but I’m not sure I’d like how I look. Perhaps that was her point, too.
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