sometimes when I’m having a quiet moment with Pangur or Grim, I think “oh fuck what have I done” (re: the incoming kitten) because there’s a specific kind of loving calm you have with old animals that have spent their lives with you, and I don’t want to ruin that. and then other times Pangur and Grim will bother me out of boredom and ignore all their toys, and in those moments I say “heed my words, ye heathens, and despair, for I am bringing a tiny kitten to attack you. you will look back on this present boredom with gratefulness, because chaos is coming to your lands”
I was digging through my drafts and found this formerly unreleased picture of Q back when he was still full gremlin mode. Just a complete and utter 'oh shit I shouldn't have fed him after midnight' beast.
He was 1.9 pounds in this picture and being syringe fed, but really wasn't eating much. Most of it just got on the rest of him at the time. Which really didn't add to the whole thing about him. I forget how he got up to the little ledge there. I think he had been trying to dig out the wand toys that are kept in there.
hello! I was scrolling through your blog (delightful) and found the post about Beef and his whiskers position, and I'm ashamed to say that in all my near-thirty years of being around cats and thinking I understand them pretty well I never thought to pay attention to the 'circle shape'. could you please expound a bit on what to look for when it comes to whiskers position and how to interpret it? Beef is an absolute sweetheart but looking at a brachy cat as an example makes it a bit hard for me to generalize. thank you!
Thank you! And also thank you for your patience--- I wanted to give some really good examples and have been scouring my blog for the best circle whisker cats I could find.
Picture heavy post under this.
so this is the cat grimace scale. It's a sort of way to visually see if a cat is in pain/distress, and it gives a simplified view of the things I'm going to discuss. It's important to recognize that whisker shape/position is just ONE piece of communication and doesn't tell the whole story. A lot of this is also based on CONTEXT as well.
When you're looking at a cat face, here are the things you really want to pay attention to:
Ear position—Ears facing forward, ears slightly pulled apart, or ears flattened and rotated outward.
Orbital tightening—Eyes opened, eyes partially opened, or eyes squinted.
Whisker position—Whiskers loose and curved, whiskers slightly curved or straight, or whiskers straight and moving forward.
Head position—Head above the shoulder line, head aligned with the shoulder line, or head below the shoulder line or tilted.
Calypso's huge whiskers give a REALLY good visual on the 'circle shape' to look for. You can see her whiskers are pushed forward and are loose and curved. She's feeling playful and engaged! She really wants to know what I'm up to and what's in my hand (spoiler alert, it was treats)
Compare that to this later picture, taken after she heard a dog bark nearby:
Her muzzle is tighter. Her whiskers are pulled back a bit, and are straight. Her ears are set differently as well, one pulled back a bit. She's concerned, but not terribly worried about this strange sound.
You can also compare it to this handsome lad:
Again, his whiskers are fairly straight. They aren't pulled back as far, but he's still very tense. He was extremely tense and upset that I took his water dish away from him (because it needed to be cleaned and changed).
Milo is another great example of excited whiskers. They're pushed forward and curved, forming a sort of circle. Like Calypso, he's interested in what I'm doing and feeling playful. He was very interested in the toy I was throwing for him.
Gumdrop is a good example of a more relaxed whisker position. She's curious, but not feeling playful. Her whiskers are held very loosely rather than being pushed forward. Her tail nub is up, indicating friendliness and confidence.
Ruckus climbed the baby gate, knocking it over in the process. I'm glad that he is unfazed by the experience, but now he knows this is possible and I may be doomed