I Had Forgotten

Jax crawled up into my lap while I was putting make-up on yesterday.

Our little family...neither were happy about this picture! lol.

I had forgotten what it was like to have a kitten. It had slipped my mind. I brought Sylvester home when he was 8 weeks old, which was over 5 years ago, so he hasn't been in that kitten stage in quite a while. In the last two weeks it has all come screeching back to me. Here's just a glance at what I had forgotten about kitten behavior:

1.) They are super needy. Jax requires a lot of attention. He needs me to play with him lots. He hates being put in the bathroom for the night or if I'm leaving for the day. (I still don't trust the cats alone together.)

2.) They scratch. Jax still has his front claws. Yes, I'm one of those people that declaw their cats, but my vet likes to declaw and neuter at the same time and she wants them to be around 6 months old. So for now I'm getting pretty scratched up. Although not as bad as I did with Sylvester. Thank goodness! Jax likes to dig his nails into my furniture as well. He'll take a flying leap at the recliner and claw the rest of the way up. Yikes.

3.) They bite. Kittens like to play bite with their razor sharp teeth. I had really forgotten this. I'm trying to teach Jax to not bite but it's a process. I can't let him even play bite a little or he'll never stop. His biting also leaves me with scratch marks.

4.) They play a lot. Jax can be compared to the energizer bunny. He just keeps going. Sylvester was not this way, so I hadn't technically forgotten this, I just never knew it. Sylvest would play lots, but there was also definitely down time. Some friends came over to see him for the first time a few nights ago and they were cracking up at how he just never stops. (Also a reason he's put in the bathroom at night. He doesn't let me sleep!)

5.) They are curious. After having cats I get the old saying, "curiosity killed the cat". Jax likes to check out all the items on the end tables, and then knock them off. After putting the flowers back on the table about 5 times I gave up. They will stay off until he's older. One morning I let him run around while I was in the shower and Sylvest came in the bathroom with me. I come out to find the bedroom trash can knocked over, trash strewn about, and Jax standing in the middle looking at me like "What? I didn't do anything!"

Life with kittens is definitely an adventure; one that provides for some good photos ops and stories! :)