This Week in the Mercury
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Cats Today in Creepy Notes Left on Alison's Cat's Collar.
Posted by Alison Hallett on Thu, Sep 30, 2010 at 10:42 AM
This morning I found this note on my cat's collar.
AGHHH!!!! Right??
I mean... Queequeg is something of a cat about town. This is not the first time he's come home with a note on his collar. (The last one was the much less sinister "This cat has been hanging out at my house, email me if he belongs to you!") A girl walking past my house the other night saw him out front and said, "Is this your cat? What's her name? I call her 'Meat Biscuit'!" So there's some precedent for people acting like my cat is neighborhood property. But this... how should I be feeling about this? Nervous? Touched? Concerned? Protective?
- Yes. He's adorable. But HE ONLY HAS ONE MOM AND IT IS ME.
2
I think it is a good note. Your cat hangs out with a lot of people who care for it. It takes a village to raise a cat. Heartwarming, really.
3
Eek. Construction paper and crayon = a kid did it (kind of cute!) or there's somebody in your hood with a crawl space and a bottle of lotion just waiting to strike.
4
Could they have worded that note any more creepily?
Also, "Meat Biscuit" is the kind of name one gives the abductee chained up in their basement.
Also, "Meat Biscuit" is the kind of name one gives the abductee chained up in their basement.
5
@Graham this is by no means Q's first appearance on blogtown. you don't remember the sex bear post of aught 8?
@marq if that's the case, a little smiley face would've gone a long way toward tempering the message.
@marq if that's the case, a little smiley face would've gone a long way toward tempering the message.
7
@marq And would a kid say "many"? Maybe. But maybe not! I would think a kid would say something like, "Your cat has alotta mothers and fathers."
8
Wow he sounds just like my kitty! I must admit though, I began putting notes on mine's collar after some unusual neighbor took it upon themself to give him a haircut...creeeeeeeeeeeepy!!!
9
My note would read like this "Your mom needs to keep you inside so will have a longer kittie life span"
10
Geez, that's creepy. I'd leave a note in his collar about keeping your creepy hands off of my cat.
@pearce77 - Good suggestion. Maybe if she fed it through a tube it'd live longer, too! Cats want to roam, is what I'm saying.
@pearce77 - Good suggestion. Maybe if she fed it through a tube it'd live longer, too! Cats want to roam, is what I'm saying.
13
Thanks for the parenting advice, gang. I did initially try to keep him as an indoor cat, but when he's kept inside against his will, first he systematically starts destroying things (he's particularly fond of ripping down posters) and then if that doesn't work, he starts attacking people. He's a big cat. He was born in a barn in Estacada. We let him out. (At which point the aggression issues disappear and he becomes a perfectly friendly guy.)
14
@reymont So do dogs. Yet Missing Cat posters outnumber Missing Dog posters by a wide margin. Ask any vet in town if they keep outdoor cats. There's a reason (lots, actually) they don't.
15
Randy Leonard's note will read, "you owe city of Portland $150 for having an untagged cat."
You want creepy I'll tell you how a friend solved this problem:
1st: The cat went home with a bow tie made of a dollar.
2nd: The cat went home with a condom taped to the collar.
3nd: The cat went home with a faceless nude pictures including the cat.
There are rumors of glitter cat, latex cat, and body paint cat but no one took twit piced those.
You want creepy I'll tell you how a friend solved this problem:
1st: The cat went home with a bow tie made of a dollar.
2nd: The cat went home with a condom taped to the collar.
3nd: The cat went home with a faceless nude pictures including the cat.
There are rumors of glitter cat, latex cat, and body paint cat but no one took twit piced those.
16
I think it was meant to be a cutesy note, nobody would put a threat on pink paper right? I know my cat has gone in at least three of my neighbors houses, one neighbor gave me a bag of treats when they moved that they had bought for his visits, and I have gotten called twice by people who "enjoy having him over but just wanted to make sure he wasn't lost".
My cat has always been indoor/outdoor, I see it as a quality over quantity thing. Indoor cats are prone to obesity and mental issues in my experience. Of course, if Little Martin Heidegger ever gets hit by a car I will have some serious fucking regrets. My girlfriend is a vet, she obviously has mixed feelings about it but has always let her cats roam.
My cat has always been indoor/outdoor, I see it as a quality over quantity thing. Indoor cats are prone to obesity and mental issues in my experience. Of course, if Little Martin Heidegger ever gets hit by a car I will have some serious fucking regrets. My girlfriend is a vet, she obviously has mixed feelings about it but has always let her cats roam.
17
The cats in our neighborhood outnumber the humans and we have taken to naming a few of our more regular visitors. Our favorite is a crusty old longhair now known as RJ Templeton.
18
When I moved out of my apartment on Hawthorne, a neighbor who I had never met or talked to ran up to me while I was putting the cat carrier into my car because she wanted to make sure and say goodbye to Arthur.
Neighborhood ambassador cats are the best.
Neighborhood ambassador cats are the best.
19
@lorenzo - You may be okay trading quality of life for longevity, but that doesn't mean your cat has the same priorities.
20
This might sound mildly creepy to everyone else, but Alison knows we're cool: I ride by your house everyday, Alison, and I never see Q dangerously crossing the street. While I do fear a little for his life, since he's sort of living on the wild side (like, compared with my cat, who spends all day in his cat condo looking out the window), he seems to be doing pretty well for himself. I + @kiala's comment.
21
@reymont If we were talking about lions and tigers and not *domestic* cats, you might be on to something, genius. For me, quality of life for my two unobese, mentally stimulated, healthy, loving cats does not include killer cars, fleas/ticks, asshole cat-hating humans, asshole dogs, asshole feral cats, and deadly diseases.
22
I actually like Cats - but I do get frustrated at the sheer amount of neighborhood cats that like to make themselves at home in my yard and on my porch. And the poo is frustrating too.
I have a dog, I walk it on a leash and I pick up its poo. I don't want to pick up other peoples' pets poo.
Additionally, they taunt my dog. I have a 10 year old chow that was neglected for 8 years by its former owners, so she has some issues with other animals. I have a 6' tall fence in my back yard, during the day my dog has visual access to the back yard. Neighborhood cats come into my back yard and roll around in front of the window and drive my poor pup nuts.
Cats are cute, I just wish they were all indoor cats if I'm being perfectly honest :)
I have a dog, I walk it on a leash and I pick up its poo. I don't want to pick up other peoples' pets poo.
Additionally, they taunt my dog. I have a 10 year old chow that was neglected for 8 years by its former owners, so she has some issues with other animals. I have a 6' tall fence in my back yard, during the day my dog has visual access to the back yard. Neighborhood cats come into my back yard and roll around in front of the window and drive my poor pup nuts.
Cats are cute, I just wish they were all indoor cats if I'm being perfectly honest :)
23
@tmp - I have to admit I feel guilty about the poo. My cat has a litter box but he almost never uses it. We put chips in an area of our yard and he uses that area sometimes but I am sure that he also uses the neighbors' yards. There are a variety of natural and chemical repellents that people recommend online, sucks that you have to be the one to take care of it but if it bothers you it may be worth the effort.
25
Wait one dang minute! You do all the scut work (feeding, vet visits, rage deprogramming), and some chump writes a note at the bottom and takes partial credit?
You are dealing with a cat aggregator, my friend.
You are dealing with a cat aggregator, my friend.
27
I would also like to say the only reason Whiskey isn't an outdoor cat (other than our current in the sky apartment) is because he is downsy. He has terrible balance and reflex skills. I know he would love to be outside but he just can't.
And Zelda is too afraid to go without Whiskey.
And Zelda is too afraid to go without Whiskey.
28
@lorenzo - Idiot? If you open your door, do your cats try to leave? Then they might not be as happy in your zoo cell as you think they are.
31
@Reymont Cat dummy? You really are out of your league here. In fact, the answer to your question is no. They don't try and bolt. Because they have plenty of space, they have each other (they love each other), they have me and my s.o. (they love us too), they have toys, they have food and water, they have tents and tunnels, they have places to perch. Our place is a cat playland. You go ahead and cling to your antiquated notion of what domestic cats do and don't need. But I'll be greeted by two living, breathing, unsquished and disease-free purring cats when I return home today.
If you think I'm an idiot for advocating indoor cat-dom, then you think every vet in Portland is an idiot.
If you think I'm an idiot for advocating indoor cat-dom, then you think every vet in Portland is an idiot.
32
@lorenzo "They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."
@flannery That's the best kind though.
@flannery That's the best kind though.
33
I don't even like cats and I like Q. I let him sleep in my bed. I let him roll around on my clean laundry. Those are my pillows he's lounging on, for chrissakes. Q has TWO mommies, and we're a normal family just like everyone else.
34
Our cat Norman would be an indoor cat if he didn't pee on the bed WITH US IN IT! Ambassador neighborhood cats are the best. But Meat Biscuit is a weird name for anything that isn't actually a meat biscuit. It almost sounds like a sex act.
36
Perhaps it was indeed intended in a friendly neighborhood sense (don't know what part of town you live in, but I could see that), still it would give me second thoughts
37
@lorenzo, you'll never change the minds of people like this, but don't worry, lots of people have your back and understand.
38
@ cats cats cats -
I actually have tried the repellents - the lame thing about them is that you have to spray everyday for it to work. After going through a whole bottle in less than a month, I started feeling queasy about the amount of chemicals I was spraying all over everything. I haven't checked to see if there is a natural repellent though, which maybe I should have. I kind of gave up and just got ornery instead!
I actually have tried the repellents - the lame thing about them is that you have to spray everyday for it to work. After going through a whole bottle in less than a month, I started feeling queasy about the amount of chemicals I was spraying all over everything. I haven't checked to see if there is a natural repellent though, which maybe I should have. I kind of gave up and just got ornery instead!
39
@lorenzo Domestic cats ≠ indoor cats. I've had several that were/would be absolutely miserable kept indoors. and a couple that didn't mind. sure it's safer, but they are fucking animals. just because you think you own them doesn't give you the right to dictate their environment.
40
@helevent, I was wondering the same thing. Or maybe she's harkening back to the original Moby Dick reference.
41
Moby dick. The x files connection is a bonus.
Dudes, I wish he would be an indoor cat. I pretty much worry constantly. But he won't. It's a non-negotiable; he would rip us and our house apart if he didn't get to go out. We tried to keep him in for a while, but it was terrible for all of us; we would have had to give him away or put him down (as I think would have been his fate if we hadn't adopted him) if we hadn't let him out, b/c he is so furious about being trapped inside. Right now he's chilling on the porch chair next to me while I read. He's had a good life for 5 years so far; I feel good about that.
Dudes, I wish he would be an indoor cat. I pretty much worry constantly. But he won't. It's a non-negotiable; he would rip us and our house apart if he didn't get to go out. We tried to keep him in for a while, but it was terrible for all of us; we would have had to give him away or put him down (as I think would have been his fate if we hadn't adopted him) if we hadn't let him out, b/c he is so furious about being trapped inside. Right now he's chilling on the porch chair next to me while I read. He's had a good life for 5 years so far; I feel good about that.
42
@Alison Fair enough. I had a similar situation in college. But sadly that little dude (Ripley) disappeared around 2 or 3 years old. I know it doesn't work for everybody's situation, but sometimes getting them an opposite sex mate does the trick. I wish you and Q all the best and didn't mean to come across as Judge Judgy McJudgerson.
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