Thursday, July 11, 2013

Cat Life = Easy Life

     Today, UPS delivered the PetStages Soothing Cat Easy Life Hammock and Scratcher that I ordered from Amazon two days ago. During the Christmas 2012 break, I used a Petco gift card to buy one of these scratchers. When I set it up, Stormy took to it immediately. She scratches it and lies on it often. I ordered a new one (price-wise, Amazon was cheaper than Petco) because the old one is pretty used: tattered is a better word (see pic below). Flipped upside-down, the hammock-scratcher looks as battered as the current view. 


     When I first put this one together, Stormy laid down next to one of the sides and rolled around while clawing at the corrugated cardboard. It was a funny sight to behold because instead of lying on it, she was lying beside it. A bit later, I realized she was clawing more at the clear, little plastic bag of catnip that was still attached to the scratcher. I didn't know the scratcher came with a pouch of catnip until I read the wrapper, and even then, I wasn't sure because I didn't see the pouch while I was putting the two cardboard pieces together. The pouch was taped to the underside of one of the pieces. The pouch of catnip and the cardboard pieces are generally the same color (sans the colorful strips on the sides).



     When I found the catnip pouch, I laughed as I removed it, wondering then why I missed it while putting the hammock-scratcher together. After removing the pouch, I opened it and rubbed some of that catnip on the scratcher. That, of course, made the scratcher more appealing to Stormy, as well as to Moky. The hammock-scratcher remains a favorite lounging and scratching spot for Stormy, long after the catnip scent has vanished. As a matter of fact, I was thinking, recently, that I haven't rubbed catnip on the hammock-scratcher in quite some time. Stormy uses it frequently, so I think that's why I haven't put catnip on it … because I don't need to.

     The current hammock-scratcher is at the point where it needs to be replaced. The new one will be placed downstairs in the living room while the old one will be relegated to the cats' room upstairs.


     As you can see in the above photograph, Gypsy is lounging on the new hammock-scratcher before I've even put it together. This time, I don't think she's lying on it because of the attached catnip; I think she's lying on it because it's warm from being in the box and sitting in the UPS warehouse and then the delivery truck.


     This picture shows the still-wrapped hammock-scratcher without Gypsy lying on it (Gypsy is now sleeping on the desk beside me). The reclining cat on the label is exactly how Stormy looks when she's lying on the hammock-scratcher.


     I see that, in this picture, Stormy looks a bit too big for the hammock-scratcher, but she doesn't seem to mind. Underneath it, I have a non-slip liner so that when my rotund Stormy scratches, she won't move it around so much.

     The only disadvantage to having this cat lounger is that tiny pieces of cardboard tend to get scattered on the floor, and I have to sweep them up at least once a week. Other than that, this hammock-scratcher is a perfect complement to my cats' already easy life.


 

     In the above picture, Moky is enjoying the new hammock-scratcher. Actually, he's enjoying the catnip I sprinkled on the hammock. In other words, my cat is high in this picture. Now, he's merely lying on it. He's probably wondering when Stormy's coming downstairs so he can show her his new hammock-scratcher. Having three cats in one household means that at any moment, possession is up to the cat who can win the fight (not so violent fights in this place).


     Gypsy seems to like the new hammock-scratcher, too. Moky is scrounging for more catnip. Below is a picture of the two hammock-scratchers, side-by-side: the old one and the new one.


     The dark spots on the new one are damp areas where Moky was trying to eat the catnip. I noticed that the old one is a little smaller/lower than the new one. This is probably due to the wear-and-tear it has been subjected to in the past six months or so.

     When I was putting the new one together, I noticed that the two cardboard pieces can be put together so that the whole piece looks like a chair, of sorts. I did have a little difficulty putting it together, and, at one point, I remembered an Amazon reviewer mentioning that she had problems putting the whole thing together. Now, I know what she means. Perhaps, I will take the old one apart and set it up like the chair configuration I had the new one in earlier.

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