Catnip Controversy

My cats have their own collection of toys stored in the "round house" a disused carpet-clad-sleeping-hideyhole-come-scratching post which was given to me after someone's cat died. My girls never use it so instead I keep their toys there. The only problem is that they never play with them, preferring instead the simple joys of batting pieces of kitty litter about the kitchen. Demelza's other game is stealing whatever items of mine she can lay her paws on. Just this week I found one of my heart pills underneath a mat where she'd stashed it.

However this week Demelza rediscovered a moth eaten catnip mouse that belonged to my sister's cat for the couple of years she deigned to live with me. The first I knew about it was when I unexpectedly put my foot on something wet and white and nearly went through the roof. Later that evening I saw Demelza carrying the same poor hairy lump around the kitchen before she batted it into submission.

For two hours each evening she plays with it, one night she even woke me up at 3am playing mouse hockey. But then Peaches decided to get into the act and began stealing the mouse. Then Kit began taking an interest. Now we have no peace at all as cat wars over the nip mouse has broken out in the dining room.

To escape the silliness I go outside and talk to the goats. They have eaten down the orchard paddock and as I still haven't got a fence across the field at the back every day I let them out and they feed on the blackberry and long grass. The first time I was concerned that I'd never get them back, especially after all the shennanigans I had with Xena Warrior Goat when she first arrived. However I discovered that she follows me if I go out of view and that all I need to do is hold a maragarine container in my hand and she'll come running. Well she does associate it with goat pellets so I always make sure I have a few to coax her back into her field. Gretel and Heidi are never too far behind.