Hi, everyone! It’s Ruby! I finally get to write something again! Life has been good. Keeping Allegra in line and making sure Mom doesn’t work too much are full time jobs, but I also have to watch the birds and squirrels on our deck, and eat, and play and sleep – a kitty’s work is never done!
The only thing that I don’t like about my life is Saturday mornings. Why, you ask? Well, that’s when “The Monster” comes out at our house. The Monster is loud, and things disappear in its wake, and I want it to go away and never come back, but every Saturday morning, it comes upstairs from its’ corner in the basement. Mom says she needs to use it to make our house nice and clean. Whatever!
As soon as Mom brings The Monster upstairs, I run to the top of our highest cat tree. Mom comes and puts some magic water on me (Ingrid’s note: I rub Stress Stopper on her fur), and that’s where I stay until she’s finished. I try giving The Monster the evil eye, but it doesn’t seem to be bothered by my ferocious stare.
I don’t understand why Allegra isn’t bothered by it. She’s such a scaredy cat when it comes to thunderstorms and other loud noises, but she’ll just sit on a chair and watch it make its way through our house.
What I really don’t get is that when Mom finishes, the house doesn’t look any different to me than it did before. I can only figure that this need to have a clean house must be one of those human quirks that cats will never understand.
The ONLY good thing about Saturday mornings is that when Mom is done with The Monster, it goes back into its cave in the corner of the basement – and I get lots of treats!
Are your kitties afraid of The Monster?
I think most cats would agree with you, Ruby.
We have three cats – one flies off if ablade of grass so much as waves in his direction, let alone a vacuum cleaner. The other two are not TOO worried by it, and we did have one cat many years ago who used to follow it round.
I wonder if it has anything to do with being feral – the two it never seems to bother were in a domestic environment from birth; the other was part -feral. It leaves its mark I think, no matter how soon they come into a domestic place
Mixed reactions at my house, Otis likes to be groomed by it, and has to be moved to clean under him, Ralphie and Grizzle will run away but then stalk it and smack it for its insolence,O’Toole flattens out and heads for my bed, Sirenia becomes “bullet Cat” and disappeares into hammerspace,Tiger,Wooly Bear and Maya Know it moves slowly so they stay just out of reach, coming in for only the occasional smack.
Awww Ruby, I so understand you. We don’t like the evil vacuum cleaner either! And the worst part is that our humans don’t seem to be really happy to get it out, but they claim they have to. Like you said, whatever!
Purrs
Hi Ruby. We call ours the Rug Sucking Monster. It comes out on Sundays usually at our house. And we run from it! Well, I try to be brave and watch it, but as soon as it gets a little too close…I’m outta there!
Ernie
Ruby says she’s glad her monster is just a plain monster… 🙂
My foster fail kitten Butchie (aka Butch Cassidy loves the vacuum. He attacks the vacuum, the cord, whatever is available. He has no fear. When he was delivered to me from the local high-kill shelter by a rescue box, he charged out of the carrier at full-speed and hasn’t stopped since that time. He has no fear. He reminds me of my late, great Mickey Jagger who would just lay there when I vacuumed. I could even nudge him with the vacuum and he wouldn’t move. I would have to shut it off, pick him up, and move him. 🙂
Sounds like Butchie is following in Mickey Jagger’s paw steps, Michelle!
my babies doesn’t like it much, either, but they look at the not-so-big monster from afar… 🙂
Seems to be the majority consensus: stay far far away from the monster.
Ruby my kitties hate it too except for one. He sometimes will sit up and look at it or follow me while cleaning. Isn’t he silly?
no, he is not! hehehehe! 😀 just brave and curious!
Ruby thinks he’s very brave, Sue!
Very Funny. I have 4 cats and Duncan will even stay in the room with the monster but gets to the highest place on his tower until its goes back into the closet for another week. Luci hides behind the couch, Cali under the bed, Brooke upstairs or outside. I am wanting the Dyson Animal 41, wonder if they will like it any better??
I doubt that your cats will like the Dyson Animal, Tami. It’s one of the best vacuums out there, but I think it’s also one of the loudest!
My cat, Jack, does not like the Monster!
I had to giggle at your ferocious stare, Ruby. If it were me, I’d definitely retreat from that stare!
She does give new meaning to the term “evil eye” in that photo, doesn’t she, Pam.
Our monster is called the Shark and of our 2 dogs and 3 cats, one dog hates it and hides in the shower; the other just prefers to stay outside;, one cat heads for high ground (the back of the recliner in the bedroom) while her brother runs from one hiding place to another and the oldest cat just looks annoyed when he has to move to have his sleeping spot vacuumed. I’m always amazed by those videos of cats enjoying having their bodies vacuumed.
I’m laughing at your oldest cat reacting with annoyance, Christy – that is so cat like!
do you know what? Mom can’t believe that I am not that bothered by that “monster!!” Dakota is more upset by it than I am! Love, Cody
Ruby is very impressed with Cody’s bravery, Caren.
Abby is HORRIFIED of “the monster”…..she hides in the closest until the monster goes away : (
Aww, poor Abby.
My two also dislike the Monster. It’s kind of a dance in that wherever we start in the house, the cats go to the opposite end. As we work our way through the house, we come to the moment when we all meet up in the middle. The Mad Scramble ensues as the cats try to avoid the Monster. Once the Mad Scramble is finished, the cats head for the other end of the house where they know the Monster has already been through. They completely forget about it, too. When it happens again in a week, they again are surprised and horrified that this Monster somehow got in their home.
Ah yes, the dreaded meeting in the middle!
Too funny, Ruby! Citrus is a big kitty to start, but when ‘The Monster’ comes out, he puffs out his fur, bunches up and stares at it until I am finished with big saucer eyes. He used to dart under the bed, but now he is resigned to keeping an eye on the beast. Perhaps one day they will be friends. Purr, purr.
Ruby would be forever grateful to Citrus if he could eradicate evil monsters from the earth once and for all!
My five dislike the Monster enormously. Four of them more so than the resident scaredy cat (Mouse). She stays on the sofa until it is time to move it to clean that portion of the living room then retreats to the bedroom. The others pile into a corner of the living room between the bookcase and end wall. Like Mouse they make a beeline for the bedroom as the Monster comes closer.
They have gotten to know my routine which happens twice a week (no carpet, just hardwood and tile) to keep the dust bunnies under control. I start in the bedroom so that they can escape into that safe haven when necessary.
It amazes me that after years of doing this and nothing untoward happening the reaction is still the same. I assume it is the noise factor more than anything else. A similar reaction happens when I use the hair dryer.
I think it must be the noise, Dorothy. I don’t use a hair dryer on my hair, so that’s not something Allegra and Ruby are used to, but the one time I used it to a damp spot on carpet, both girls were highly suspicious!
Our cats sometimes run from it, but other times just stay and watch. Guess it just depends on how comfortable they are at the time. Our dog seems to mind it more.
How interesting that you get a mixed reaction from your cats.
Hey Ruby – we have THREE monsters in our house … one sounds like it might be the same breed as yours. The other two that we have aren’t able to come out of the laundry where they normally live, but one of them does dance around in there like it might get out one day. One of them is called a “washin’ machine” and the other one is called a “drier”. All I know about the drier is that when it has been on it is nice and warm inside … and tempting to curl up in. But, BEWARE, I did that one day and Mum didn’t notice and shut me in there with some wet clothes and I went on a brief ride around inside it. Mum was very panicked (but not as panicked as me!) when she heard the thumping noises coming from inside the drier. When I go out the back door in the morning I run past the washin machine and the drier very quickly.
hehehehe!!! poor kitty! 😀
Oh my goodness, how scary about that dryer incident!