higgins

2003-11-30T21:01:00.000-08:00

Higgins is in da house!

The rainy season is upon us, and someone has taken up winter residence in his custom made cathouse. We moved it up to the deck a few weeks ago, and he really likes it. He conks OUT in there! This morning, half-jokingly, I tapped on the top of his house to see if he was home -- and, out peeked those adorable whiskers!

Higgins also did very well while he was in the cattery for 14 days. In the beginning, he would lay in his litterbox, not quite figuring out what the deal was in there. But, he had a sunny, private perch that he came to take advantage of, and, the folks who work there were nice enough to take care of his eyes while he was in. Although I had my reservations about putting him in there, it truly was the only way that we could guarantee he would be there when we returned from our honeymoon. Our dogs stayed there, too - and, I would use them again in the future...

Need to get him into the vet one of these days; he's missed his last 2 scheduled appointments by disappearing on his appointment days. I swear, he can sense things. He did finally get his shots, but he needs a good "once over" to take care of his eyes, his toe, and a sore that he has on the roof of his mouth. He is an outdoor cat, but I feel strongly about getting these few things taken care of. I am anticipating the need to drug him in order to do this, and, also put him on lock down while the toe heals. We can lock him down either in the storeage room here, at the vet, or, at the cattery. We'll see. No worries!

2003-07-24T15:21:00.000-07:00

Dances With Quail...

The other day, I was called to witness another Higginism. It seems that he has made some new friends - or, at least, they are new to us! He plays a game with the QUAIL that live in the yard:

Higgins sits in this fenced area... the quail call out to him... he gives "fake chase to them"... they run away (not fly, mind you)... then, as he retreats, they call him again and this goes on for about 10 minutes at a time.... just TOO funny.... We were concerned for the birds in the beginning, but he always seemed to just sit and watch when the bluejays and blackbirds ate his food... Now, we know FOR SURE that he is cool with the birds...

On another note though-- that same day of the first quail chase that I saw-- he put on an amazing show in the front "yard" by catching the biggest mouse I had ever seen and standing out front of the window so that we all could see him. when I came out to praise him, he dropped the mouse right then and there in lieu of getting some loving. the mouse was walking away, but he finally got him again after he was a few feet away. how much more laid back can this cat be???? yes,we * l o v e * him!

2003-05-30T09:50:00.000-07:00

Higgins goes out to dinner...

Yes, one mister hig-higgers wasout on the deck as we left for a dinner date last night. we walked to the restaurant next door, and he really was asking us to just stay and love him just a little bit longer. he is such a love monkey. anyhow, he watched us walk down the driveway, and I thought he was going to follow us, but he stayed at the top of the drive. When we left the restaurant about 2.5 hours later, I thought I saw a skunk. No, a raccoon. Only to find out that Higgins was waiting for us at the foot of the restaurant drive, hanging back in the cut by the fenceline. It was TOO FUNNY! So, when we walked up to him, he yapped his head off and then followed us home-- he follows me like a dog and keeps pace with me (the one with the broken toe!), not HB; he never ceases to amaze me and consistently wins me over!

I am taking off to WI for 2 weeks to care for relatives; HB has strict orders to provide lovin' for Higgy 2x per day. I am sure he wiill be upset when he doesn't see me for that long!

Another Higginism

Whenever HB gets into the shower in the morning (around 7am), Higgins gets under his bathroom (under the house) and starts calling to him: "Don't forget to feed me! You remeber that you took my food dish away last night, right? You remember that I have a pot belly to maintain, right?! So, load up that food dish on the double!" He really knows how to get what he wants; all of that street living has come in handy! LOL

2003-05-22T21:53:00.000-07:00

higgins ditched the vet --- again! i tried to take him to a vaccination clinic a few weeks back, but then i got thoughts in my head of him freaking out there and screeching into the hills. he had an appointment to finally see our vet today at her office - where he could not escape. he has been lounging for days if not weeks on the front deck-- all day long, just basking on "his" lounge chair or the other chair. he never leaves...until today, one hour before his vet appointment, that is! i was all ready for transport with my gloves, his special blue rug inside of the crate, etc.- but he was no where to be found! he had taken off for a cruise, apparently. i walked and called for him for 30 minutes - and even broke out the canned food. he must have been off kicking some daytime kitty but at the restaurant next door! so, i called the vet and said that he would be a no show, but could i please pick up some vaccines and do them here at home. well, i ended up going to the feed store in fort drag (30 seconds from hugo's current job site), and i was able to get one of the vaccine kits for less than $5! too cool! i will have to take him to the vet on clinic day to get his rabies on the next tuesday or friday that we are both so inclined.

we love the higgins! he is such a riot - and so very vocal!! okay-- enough blabbering from me for now.

i am going to try to be better about posting here more frequently; i just transplanted 3 catnip plants to "his" summer hideaway under the rose bushes. that should make things a bit more interesting!

2003-04-14T14:06:00.000-07:00

What a sweet boy Higgins is. he has had a rough couple of weeks, me thinks. aside from the fact that i now believe he misses the black cat "punkin", he came around with both of his eyes all gooey (the usual), but also had a yucky cut on his toe (in between his pads) and he looked to have an infected cut on his mouth (lip?). the whole side of his face was swollen and there was a knot on his neck! no worries, though. the eye things is back under control, and he actually let me (after a few days of trying) doctor up his mouth and foot. i am considering getting a 2nd cat at this point, as my friend has some fresh new kittens that just dropped. my only hesitation is bringing the new cat from kitten to cat safely, before releasing it outside. higgins may be just fine on his own, tangling with the one remaining *skanky* cat next door at the restaurant. but, he seems to be hanging out close to home an awful lot. someone pointed out to me that "he might just be content". wow-- what a concept. perhaps i should stop obsessing over how he spends his days? anyhoo, he still comes inside just about every day (especially if it is raining, i'll let him lounge in the office for a few hours; he loves to lay on his blue rug when i lay it on top of my desk return...that way, he can look at me AND look out the window). we just adore him!

2003-03-28T08:20:00.000-08:00

Higgins is addicted to love. Not only do we pet him and love him in the morning when he gets fed, but he also hangs out all day on the deck on sunny days, lookimg for more. If I sit outside on the loungers, he appears - on my lap and in my face, within minutes. He also comes to the office window 2-3 times each night to be be let in. He sits on his perch (table) below the window when the light is on in here and waits for me; sometimes he meows, other times he will get on his hind legs and look right in at me. Too funny. Oop: there he is now (at 8:23am); I heard the giant "thud" as he landed on the perch!

I finally caught black cat (Punkin) last night and called his Mama and she drove the 50 miles to come and pick him up right away. It felt great to have finally closed that deal. I think that Higgins may be looking for him this morning; he taunted him last night while he was in the crate, waiting to be picked up: parading in front of him, sniffing him, hissing at him. I think he is going to miss him, but I am sure there will be others. People "dump" their cats up here all the time, unfortunately. Plus, there is another cat at The Ledford House that I am sure he pals around with...Okay, that's it for now.

2003-03-22T22:03:00.000-08:00

what the hell is up with all of thes space that the "blooger tool" has inserted on my pages? it is sooo unreliable. But, they this ain't no masterpiece, and, the tool is FREE!

2003-03-22T22:00:00.000-08:00

To know him is to love him.

Guess who is SNORING on my lap right now? Yep, it's a rainy Saturday night,
and one mister Higgins has chosen to sleep on my lap while I do my computing. Our dog Mendo
snores louder than any human being I have ever heard: we call him "Gram-paw". But, I have never ever in my life heard a cat snore...

Higgins now reaches out to me with his buff little well-tufted paw and touches me when he wants me
to (continue to) pet him. Nevermind that he bit me two days ago (I guess I did not learn my lesson with beauregard; he bit me last week, too).
These boys insist on my UNDIVIDED attention. He is one true sweetie pie. We adore him!

Earlier tonight, Higgins had pressed himself between the large, potted rose plant
and the wall of the office; waiting back in the cut while the rain came down.

2003-03-16T10:45:00.000-08:00

Higgins v. Wind The wind is apparently Higgins' breaking point. He is fairly resilient to the rain, but the noise of everything blowing around (mainly the seashells clanking on the deck glass) really do irritate him to no end.
He turns into whiny cat. Of course, I cater to him and feed him in the office. The other night, he would not leave
(so warm and so dry and so quiet..and includes the human touch; why would he want to leave?) Anyhow, push came to shove, he tried to bite me...so I just called in the dogs. He left immediately with one ferocious hisssssss! Otherwise, he meets us a few times a day on the deck for some lovin', then has his catnip, shows me how well he can climb trees and stalk fake mice...and then he's off, into the night... We enjoy him so.

2003-03-05T21:44:00.000-08:00

Tonight, Higgins decided he was going to hang out in the office. As if he could possibly be any cooler than he already is, Higgins meowed for me outside the office window when I came in around 9pm. He has a little table to perch on outside of the window, so that is where he called me from. He was very vocal about this, and continued once inside as well. He gave the room a full inspection, and at one point was nose to nose with Rasta on the other side of the door. He is so unphased by these dogs in true Garfield fashion. He finally went back outside to eat, but wanted right back in afterwards. Currently, he is sitting on my desk with his back to me, looking out into the night.

Today, he licked Hugo's elbow while he and I were kissing on the lounge chair, like he was an honorary member of the Love Posse that the dogs previously formed and actively enforce. Pretty funny for a new guy.

Right now, I am listening to Subterraneans "Taurus Woman", and he seems to enjoy both the bassline and the vibes. Like I said, could he be any cooler? Okay, I'm gonna go and check if I have room on my host to add a pic to the template that I snapped tonight. Meow!

2003-03-04T10:49:00.000-08:00

Higgins is doing great; he is more and more lovable each day - as well as predictable. He loves the catnip -and the catnip loves him. Also, on the coldest nights, he has taken to sleeping under the house - where the water heater is (smart kitty!) he always comes out toasty in the morning! If he isn't already out on the steps waiting for me each morning in the sun, I call for him and he normally comes right out. he lets us put his eye meds in without any fuss; he just sits there like a good boy. he loves to get his chest, chin and underarms massaged on the lounge chair; i'm convinced that is why he is so loyal already! he follows me around the property like a dog: i love it! sometimes i spy him trying to stalk things in the field; it's so great. you can really tell that he enjoys it here. sometimes, he hangs out on the front doormat, after i've gone in, thinking that he'll just be popping in himself. he comes up on the windowsill of the office and perches occasionally; i just do this when the dogs are locked out. higgins could give a $#!*, but the dogs are v. dramatic about wanting to know him... so, all is well in the world that is higgins. he is a joy - and hugo has been sucked in!

2003-02-25T18:25:00.000-08:00

i know where the black cat came from - and where he is now going

black cat is named Punkin and his owner(s) are from Willits. that's pretty far away. How do I know this? When I was out feeding the birds early this morning, I found his collar in the side garden - tangled up in the deer netting, along with bird parts. well, this is the question we've been wanting the answer to. so, i called the number on the tag and they were like "so YOU have punkin?" apparently, the cat belongs to a friend of the person whose number i called. they took mi nombre y numeros to give to the cat's owner so they could call me. hmmm. did they dump him here? lose him on a trip? move here? give him away here? wait - there's more:

i could not open my side of the garage this afternoon and when we finally got it open, the screens were knocked over onto my car- the cat food bag was tampered with (lol) and there was cat piss everywhere. that's right - everywhere - like three huge puddles of it. apparently "punkin" was locked in that garage for some time and had his way all over our stuff - including our cars. (hey- i had finally washed mine last week) so, yea - we are holding even greater disdain for this feline at this point. after soaking all the stinky, huge cp spots with cat litter, sweeping it up, moving the cars and many, many boxes out of the stinking garage - there's a message on the machine! it is told that now, the dad of the cousin of the person who owns the cat lives up the ridge on road d and said that they would take it "if we don't want it". whew! now, all we have to do is trap the damn thing and dial those digits!

okay, higgins- you're on...

higgins is loving the sunshine, basking often, and eating lots. he gets his flea/tick medicine tonight. i watched him prowl the field between here and the restaurant this afternoon; he was really into it. it was almost as funny to watch as it was when he was trying to sneak up on the quail the other day. he was "hiding" in the old ash pile, about 3 feet from where the birds were feeding. he tried 3x (v. lightweight efforts, i might add), and was clearly embarassed at missing those shots while i was watching. so, what is a cat to do? go climb a tree.

2003-02-22T10:35:00.000-08:00

Mr. Higgins is one cool cat. He lives for fun in the sun --and the moonlight, too. Right now, he is crashed out on the steps to the deck, basking in the warm rays of sunshine. He has also taken a liking to the lounge chairs. A couple of days ago, we started a new thing: he lays on his back, all spread out, mouth wide open, and has me brush his chin, neck and chest. I have never had a cat do that! Granted, my old cat, Novia, used to let me vacuum her with the brush attachment (to minimize shedding) - I never expected this from "Mr. Outdoors", Higgins. We usually have catnip time around 10pm, after his final feeding. He walks the garden looking for the stuff, and then follows me everywhere, like a dog. He usually climbs a few trees, scratches, then pretends to unearth mice in the dirt. He really puts on a great show!
The rain is gone for now, and I can see that he is happy about that. he seems to care less about birds; they are everywhere around here. This is a good thing; I always get bummed when I find dead or injured birds aorund here (happens somewhat often, due to all of the glass & windows we have). I am so happy that Higgins is here!

2003-02-17T00:15:00.000-08:00

this is my initial post about Higgins

I decided to start a blog about Higgins, because I seem to write about him every day, and, I would like his former cat parent to be able to check in on him as desired. I've found that he is not only part of my own personal blog, but of my everyday conversations!

Higgins has really charmed us and we get a kick out him each and every day. I realize that it has only been 14 days since he came to live with us, but it has been 10 years since I've had a cat, and hugo has never owned one himself. having an outdoor cat as opposed to an indoor cat is more exciting, me thinks. for instance, on this full moon night following dinner, he feasted on some fresh catnip from the garden and went c-r-a-z-y out there!!! he was having such a good time: playing with his toys, attacking the brush, following me around the property, doing plenty of "bodyslams" (his patented move), and then...he took off and climbed a tree and hung out there awhile "just because". man, what a life! he did come back down though (yes, figuratively and literally) for some canned cat food around 10pm.

there is an intruder kitty that has been coming around and not only eating his food, but now hangs out with him as well. from my perspective, it appears to be a love/hate relationship. one minute he is sitting within two feet of him, and the other he is 10 feet away and hissing. my goal is to make it miserable for the other cat, so that higgins can better know that this is *his* place.

a funny higginism

the other day, when we came home, we finally saw him out in the front yard for the first time (i'd been waiting to see this!). it gets better. he was sitting in the grass, facing the house and just staring straight ahead. after i walked up, i realized that there were about ten mouse holes in the muddy grass where he stood, and he was keeping watch over them like a good kitty. well, when i praised him for doing such a good job, he dramatically pounced on a hole, dug around in it with his paw, and flipped over onto his back to show me just how hard he was working. and repeated that a few more times. it was just too damned cute. go higgins!

he has really taken to hanging out under the house in the crawlspace. hopefully, he is catching mice under there! he comes around regularly, and has fared well through his first rain storm here on saturday. his house stayed 100% dry, and he looked great. we've snapped some more pics of him recently, mostly of him sun bathing on the deck and the lounge chairs (his new fave spot). i plan to post some of those pics here from time to time. okay, more later.