Things have been really interesting around here!  My mom and I are still getting to know each other, and I love how she wants to make sure I’m happy.  I want her to be happy, too!   But sometimes, I think the things I do to try and make her happy actually aren’t such bright ideas.  I don’t really understand why she doesn’t think it’s totally cool when I stalk her when she walks down the hall and attack her ankles.  I also don’t understand why she doesn’t think it’s fun when I nip at her hands to let her know that I’ve had enough petting.  Doing those things is soooo fun!  But I’m starting to get a clue that maybe it’s not okay to do these things, because when I do, Mom stops talking to me, won’t even look at me, and just walks away from me.  I don’t like that at all!

The other day, I did something so amazingly cool, I couldn’t wait for Mom to see!  I chewed off the edge of the big dresser in the bedroom!  It was so much fun to nibble on it, and it felt really good on my teeth!  Wee!  I worked at it really really hard, and managed to make it look like a work of art, if I do say so myself.  But when Mom saw it, she wasn’t impressed at all.  In fact, she got pretty mad.  I could tell when she said “Oh no, Allegra!” in a voice that didn’t sound loving to me at all – and believe me, I can tell the difference, because Mom sounds loving almost all the time, so when her voice changes like that, I kind of know I’m in trouble.   She told me I shouldn’t be doing that, and then she sprayed some stuff on it that she says is called Bitter Yuck.  She said I might not want to chew on that spot again, or I’d be sorry.  Okay fine, whatever!  Well, I waited a little while before going back to chew on the dresser some more – I’m not stupid, I’m not going to do it right in front of her!  It tasted a bit odd – but the chewing was so much fun, it was worth the weird taste in my mouth.  Mom got really exasperated with me and taped some stuff called Sticky Paws around the corner I’d worked so hard to chew off.  Again, she told me I might not want to chew on it again, as the stuff would stick to my mouth and feel really awful.  Hmmm.  Okay.  Whatever!  Of course I tried again.  Did you really think I wouldn’t?  It was really interesting, I managed to pull the sticky stuff off, spit it out, and then proceded to chew on the wood some more.  I was pretty pleased with the result – but Mom wasn’t ready to give up on making me stop.  You have to give her this – she is persistent.  I watched her rub a lemon on the area I’d chewed so nicely.  Some of the juice dribbled on the floor, so I investigated.  YUCK!!!  Major yuck!!!  I’m sad to say my work of art will not be completed – that stuff just tastes too nasty even for me to persevere.

Then, the other night, Mom was on the phone for a long time.  I heard my name mentioned a lot during that time.  After she got off the phone, she told me that we’d be making some changes to cure me of some of my “undesirable behavior.”  I have no idea what that means. It sounded very grown up and something humans would say when they’re trying to sound important.  I wasn’t too worried about it.  That night, Mom spent a longer than usual time playing with me, and then, she fed me an extra meal just before she went to bed.  How cool was that!  If that’s the kind of change she was talking about, I’m on board with that!  The next day, I got new toys!  Wee!!!  Now mind you, when I first got here, I thought for sure that I had landed in kitty paradise.  There were so many toys!  But now, there are even more!  How lucky can one kitten get!  I got a new play house, and a Kong Kickeroo.  I also saw her stash a bag of stuff in the closet, so I’m thinking there may be more new toys!  And I was right.  Last night, she brought out a really fun toy that has me somewhat puzzled – I just can’t get the little mouse out of it, but I’m going to keep trying!  I know there’s more in that closet, I just know it.  One of these days, I’ll figure out how to open those big closet doors….  but you’ll have to excuse me, I have to go play in my new playhouse now!  Wee!!!

A note from Allegra’s Mom:  I was becoming increasingly frustrated with watching Allegra be a sweet little kitten 80% of the time and then turn into devil kitten the remaining 20%.  She’s a little play aggressive, and she tends to bite when she gets overstimulated.  I knew the basics of how to respond to this type of behavior, but I wasn’t making much headway, so I decided to consult The Cat Coach.  Marilyn Krieger is a nationally recognized and Certified Cat Behavior Consultant and has been successfully solving cat behavior problems since 1990. Offering both on-site and phone consultation sessions, Marilyn’s expert advice solves diverse cat behavior problems.  Marilyn is the resident cat behaviorist for Cat Fancy Magazine and their web site, catchannel.com.  I’m sure Allegra will keep you posted on future developments as a result of Marilyn’s recommendations!

13 Comments on Allegra’s World: Chewing

  1. Thankfully, Allegra has shown no interest in cords, and I hope it stays that way! I hadn’t thought of using tin foil to deter her from some of her other favorite chewing spots, though – will have to give that a try.

  2. I should not be laughing but I am. Magellan loves cords-one week I went through 5 cords for the fax machine-our house looks rather sci fi-with them wrapped in tin foil.

  3. Andrea, I won’t use the squirt bottle, either – mostly because Allegra loves water, so I doubt it’d deter her!

    Marilyn (The Cat Coach) was a huge help, and I’m already seeing changes after only one week, following some of her suggestions.

  4. good to hear the lemon –i think(?) worked?
    for me-scratching the couch was and is a problem. getting a new couch soon..but realize..that i better think of safe ways to get her to stop. i doubt lemon would work! i tried those sticky tape things. no go. pulled off. i can’t squirt her. i am a wimp. no-i just won’t do it.
    glad to read this-looking into calling the cat coach marilyn.
    and elizabeth is no kitten! and has been here almost a year. out bond is huge tho. she did learn not to gently scratch my hand at 430 am for food tho 🙂 just the loud no and hitting the bed/comforter making that sound…she learned fast-and even felt bad. i love her soooo much. i just can’t get her to leave the couch alone! i ignored it too long (my fault) cause i’m getting another-with thicker fabric type stuff. but-my fault. how to undo. i was dumb. does the coach really help–? i will try-nothing to lose. 🙂
    this was a good post.
    i do love (allegra’s) stories tho :):):) but still…learned a bit. thank you sorry so many posts. 1/2 asleep still-and rambling. i apologize. just-thankyou. ..

  5. Allegra, it’s always fun to hear what you’ve been up to. The biting reminds me of Gum Drop. She has a bad habit when she’s being petted, she will lick your hand for a little bit and then nip it. Sounds like you’ve also got some neat toys. Hope you and Ingrid have a great Fourth of July.

    Mason
    Thoughts in Progress

  6. She is having a blast, Bernadette. Last night we broke out the Alpine Cosmic Cat Scratcher – a big hit!

    Layla, she’s got tortitude to spare, that’s for sure.

    Susan, it’s good to know that Wesley grew out of his biting thing – so there is hope for us, too!

  7. So great to know about things like Bitter Yuck, Sticky Paws and just a plain old lemon! I wish I had known about those before Hattie chewed all the handles off my baskets! Wesley, my Lynx point Siamese ( half Siamese and half Tabby) had a biting thing going on for his first 9 months or so. Sometimes he’d get so carried away he’d clamp onto my whole arm with all four paws so hard I could hardly peel him off! He’s much better about that now, fortunately. It’s nice to have the name of the Cat Coach, Marilyn Krieger. I’m glad she could help you and Allegra out!

  8. Allegra, we just want you to know you are one lucky kitty to have a mom like yours. You won’t realize this until you’re a little older. Have fun with your toys!

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