My cat Max has been featured on Afrobella before – remember how little and cute he was when he first scampered into my life? Awwwww kitten! And now here he is, 15 pounds of FUN.
Life has changed so much for my furbaby since then.
Max was a Miami suburban street kitten, and he lived an indoor/outdoor life. Then he became more of an indoor cat, who’d run away and climb trees the second he could. Then we moved and he went from the sultry heat of Miami to a 12 acre spread in North Carolina, to a sad garage in Chicagoland for a little bit, and now here we are. Max is a high rise condo cat in downtown Chicago, and spends much of his day staring longingly out of the window at the birds that occasionally fly by. When he sleeps and his whiskers twitch and he makes little kitty noises, I am sure he’s dreaming of climbing trees, killing lizards, and hiding their bodies in my shoes (as he used to often do).
To make up for Max’s lack of outdoor fun, I let him get a good whiff of outside air every day – right now as I write this, he’s curled up by the screen and soaking it up. Because of high rise syndrome, he’s not allowed on the balcony. And to compensate for the lack of running around and climbing he used to do, Max now has quite the cat toy collection. He’s got a corner of our apartment so decked out with cat stuff, I’m sure even Jackson Galaxy would approve.
Max is a cat of strong opinion and particular taste. He only wants the Fancy Feast with the gravy – he hates that classic stuff and he won’t even sniff the high end Science Diet wet food I used to buy for him (but he’s addicted to their dry food). He won’t touch the lovely cat scratcher a friend gave us, but he’s all about the Bergan Turbo Track Toy. He’s obsessed with that thing.
When he wants attention or food, he’ll walk around banging our cupboard doors open and closed until we come over to deal with the situation. In the wee hours of the morning if he’s out of food, he will climb on my dresser and knock my lipsticks and necklaces on the ground until I get up and feed him. Despite that being EXTREMELY annoying, I still think he’s super cute and I put up with his shenanigans. That’s kitty love.
When the folks behind the Skratchkabin contacted me to see if Max would be interested in reviewing their scratching device/kitty abode, I said yes but with some reservations. It can take Max a while to show interest in new toys – if that interest ever makes itself apparent. I thought I took a while to familiarize myself with a product. It can take this cat even longer. BUT when we opened the Skratchkabin and set it up, there was interest!
Interest in examining this thing from all sides. I think part of Max’s concerns is the fact that there’s a back to the Skratchkabin. He doesn’t like being penned in with no chance of escape. He likes the mouse, because it’s big and tough and he loves using his back legs to wreak as much havoc as possible. It was REALLY easy for him to detach the hanger and the mouse from the front. We’ve had the Skratchkabin for a few weeks now and he’s only been inside of it twice, and that’s with the encouragement of treats.
So as a cat igloo/bed/hideaway, Max isn’t sold yet. BUT as a scratching device, he LOVES it. The Skratchkabin has definitely been helpful in giving him a surface to take out those feline instincts and aggressions, and he’s been better about leaving our furniture and shoes alone. Which is AWESOME. Because my leather office chair has had ENOUGH.
The Skratchkabin is $99 – which isn’t bad as far as cat furniture goes — and is available at KatKabin.com. They’re on Twitter @KatKabinUSA.
Are you a cat owner? No? Why not? Cats are AWESOME pets! If you’re looking to rescue a lucky kitty cat and give him or her a forever home, visit The Shelter Pet Project to find a shelter in your neighborhood.
I have a cat named Max who’s a scratcher also. The Skratch Kabin looks interesting, but at that price, I’d hesitate to buy something he may or may not fully utilize. In the meantime I’ll just continue to look at the side of the couch that he’s shredded getting in his scratching time.
I like cats in pictures and posters but not in real life.
hi honey how’s it going. Haven’t seen you since bishops high….but had to write cuz I hear you. My cat is also called Max and he is basically my child. He has completely destroyed my leather sofa set which i only bought in december but he’s my honey for life :-)So i feel you. Yours is such a cutie pie. Keep blogging love and take care
LOVE LOVE LOVE cats! Might have to invest in this cat cabin. My 15lb male terror is part brown tabby/part lap dog (he acts more like a dog than a cat as he begs for food and follows me all over the house no matter the time of day or night. Currently Sir Bootsy Collins is using my wool area rugs (we have hard wood floors thru out house) for scratching posts — never mind he has his very own. I also lined the archway to my kitchen with carpeted stair pads for his scratching and climbing enjoyment which he loves. But I desparately need Bootsy to lose interest in my wool area rugs! After that I need him to lose interest in stalking and pouncing on my 6yr old daughter who believes he’s trying to eat her! Pray for us… lol!
Max is so cute! My Cleo cat loves the round turbo scratch pad with the ball. A touch of catnip rubbed into that corrugated cardboard circle, and she’s good for a week. Want to bring the greenery indoors for Max? Just recently I found a catnip plant at Lowe’s for $1.50, and Cleo likes to sleep next to it. Is it strange that live catnip has more of a calming effect than a stimulating effect? I haven’t Googled it yet…
Max is TOO cute.i love these photos so much