Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Horatio Loved Telephone Jacks
Horatio was a classic, black and silver tabby that I caught when he was about seven months old. A feral cat, he was living on the streets and totally wild. To my surprise, he tamed with ease. Horatio loved attention and totally lacked aggression toward humans. He was shy around strangers. In addition, he loved kittens and was always available to be a surrogate to stray youngsters.
As soon as I captured Horatio, I took him to my veterinarian. He was neutered, received a check-up and got his shots. Since he became so tame, he was allowed outdoors, but came in at night.
Horatio was a charming cat, but I discovered he had one very bad habit. He sprayed telephone jacks. He did not spray indoors otherwise. I discovered his bad habit when our phone went out.
I discovered that the wires and connections in the living room jack were totally rusted. Cat urine is very corrosive. Of course, I did not know which of my male cats had done this initially. I replaced the phone jack, but soon it was corroded again.
I replaced the jack again. Now I watched any cat that came in the living room. One day, I caught Horatio in the act. He was the mysterious sprayer.
To combat his spraying, I covered the jack with plastic. That preserved the jack, but did not stop Horatio from marking it. He also found the jacks in the den and the dining room. More plastic covers and new jacks. As long as he lived with us, he periodically sprayed the phone jacks. They were an attraction he could not resist.
As soon as I captured Horatio, I took him to my veterinarian. He was neutered, received a check-up and got his shots. Since he became so tame, he was allowed outdoors, but came in at night.
Horatio was a charming cat, but I discovered he had one very bad habit. He sprayed telephone jacks. He did not spray indoors otherwise. I discovered his bad habit when our phone went out.
I discovered that the wires and connections in the living room jack were totally rusted. Cat urine is very corrosive. Of course, I did not know which of my male cats had done this initially. I replaced the phone jack, but soon it was corroded again.
I replaced the jack again. Now I watched any cat that came in the living room. One day, I caught Horatio in the act. He was the mysterious sprayer.
To combat his spraying, I covered the jack with plastic. That preserved the jack, but did not stop Horatio from marking it. He also found the jacks in the den and the dining room. More plastic covers and new jacks. As long as he lived with us, he periodically sprayed the phone jacks. They were an attraction he could not resist.
Labels: cat, feral, Horatio, tabby, telephone jack
# posted by January Cat @ 12:41 PM 
