Cats and Money

I recently opened my end-of-year 401(k) statement that was mailed to me. I looked at it, and, like most individuals in recent months, felt my heart stop momentarily. Yes, it's an ugly scene for investors out there; open statements with caution.

So as is customary, I set it aside on my desk to file it away for future reference.

Today, I went to pick it up to file it and noticed that my cat also had reviewed this 401(k) update. I could tell because there was a gigantic, mushy hairball on it. I promptly filed that in the circular bin, which is what I should have done in the first place. Perhaps we don't give cats enough credit for their investing skills...

Cat Toys: Cheaper is Better

Anybody who has seen a young baby open presents know that oftentimes the tyke's favorite gift is that of bubblewrap, a box, or a bow. Well the same goes for cats.

I don't know why cat owners buy fancy toys for cats. I've fallen into that trap with my cat, but never again! I'll save my money for other more important items in life.

To wit, my cat's top 4 toys are:

1. An old shoelace
2. A twisty tie
3. A ping pong ball
4. A black plastic piece that fell off of my desk chair

Total cost for each of these items (estimated): 18 cents.

Total cost for a menagerie of stuffed mice, birds, and other such creatures (estimated): 18 bucks or more.

So to all feline fans, forget your fivers, just grab some trinkets and your cat will be thrilled.

Oh, and just as an aside, that's a picture of my cat pawing and playing with a small bug. Talk about a cheap date!

Giving Praise Where Sprays Won't Do

I preface by saying I love my cat. She's a friendly, funny, and obedient cat, all things considered. However, she's had her moments of eliminating liquids on various spots of the carpet in various areas of the house. I don't know why she does this, but my wife and I have just come to expect it, despite taking various precautions.

Over the past couple of years that my cat has decided to make the carpet her occasional litter box, I've tried countless products to try and get rid of that lovely pee smell. Urine, in case you forgot, does not just magically lose its smell as time goes on. It tends to foment.

I can't even remember all of the carpet cleaning products I've used to try and counteract that pungent urine odor, but I'll try to name some of the few that come to mind that basically just covered up the smell for a while but didn't do anything in the long run:

-Woolite spray
-Some kind of oxy powder in a big white tub
-Stanley Steemer stain remover (although Stanley Steemer did have another spray that seemed to work but you basically have to soak the carpet to get it to work and I don't think it's a cheap solution)
-And the list goes on, but I can't recall the products' names at this time

So after my cat's latest urination episode this past weekend I went to Target in desperation to try and get the smell out of the carpet. I picked up Arm & Hammer's Pet Fresh Odor Eliminator powder. I brought it back. I followed the instructions of sprinkling on the carpet, letting it sit and vaccuuming it up.

It worked.

It actually worked!

I must say that I'm still shocked that the smell hasn't returned, but I kid you not when I put my nose to the carpet and I don't smell the cat pee anymore.

Granted this is a one-time success story, but I see no reason why it wouldn't work in future instances here and in your house, if you have the same problem.

I'd be interested in hearing your success and failure stories in cleaning up pet odors. (Just in case the smell does come back!)

How to Keep Cats Out of a Garden

Let me preface this post by saying I'm an animal lover and I own a cat.

That said, I moved into my current house just about a year ago and I have a feline frenzy in my backyard. This is due to my neighbor's flock of cats that roam the 'hood.

So anyway, this year I put together my first garden ever and it actually turned out looking pretty decent. And it also happens to be cat poop central. :-( Thus ensued my ongoing battle with keeping the cats at bay. Here's what I've tried:

• Sprinkling cayenne pepper around in the hope that it would be offensive to their noses. Good idea in theory, but it washes away in the rain, and isn't exactly cheap to spread it everyday. Verdict: No go.
• Spraying the cats with a water gun. This was actually recommended by my neighbor, who said that if her cats bug me, spray with water. This tactic does indeed work, and it is indeed a fun little hobby, but only when I'm around and see them out back. Not coincidentally, the excrement shows up when I wake up in the morning. Verdict: Marginally effective.
• Putting up thorny branches. I had the idea that maybe if I plugged some thorny branches in the ground, they'd stay away because they would be a nuisance. I didn't have many branches to work with, but managed to secure one particular area that was often frequented. Verdict: No apparent success.
• Forks in the ground. I just put plastic forks in the ground with the tines sticking up to keep them from walking around there. Verdict: Too early to tell, but I can't see how this would fail to work. The main downside being that it looks really bizarre.

I've read online several other solutions, none of which appeal to me. For example, I have no interest in spraying a chemical around my yard to keep the cats away... this kind of solution does not appeal to me in the least due to the potential environmental effects. Nor does buying an automatic sprayer that is available, for 50+ bucks that sprays anything that crosses its sensor. That's getting a bit pricey and a bit psycho. Plus if anything's going to be shooting water, then it's me!

But if you have any suggestions, I'd love to hear them! It's time to end the litter box trend and I'm all ears for new, environmentally sound, affordable, humane, and preferably un-noticeable solutions. Maybe I should just move...