TBT: This is a different kind of Thankful Thursday. I am hoping to be Thankful for advice I hope to receive...
1. Loki gets up on the kitchen counters, where I prepare food, fearlessly and without hesitation. I'm saying "DOWN" as I return him to the floor. But he is pretty relentless and opportunistic. How long does it take for a cat to learn "down"?
2. Loki is a food thief. With most cats, I could walk away from my dinner and not worry about my food. Well, Iza ran off with a complete chicken thigh once, but that was a one-off and kind of funny (she knew it was wrong and she "slunk" away with it)! But Loki will try to steal food from my plate while I am sitting there eating. How do I stop that?
3. Loki is suddenly peeing "inappropriately". Not around the house, he is in the litterbox. But he stands upright as he pees, so it goes right over the side of the box. I actually pushed his backside down while he was doing that (and he stayed in that position). Oddly he squats low while pooping and most cats don't do that. I have never experienced that problem.
4. Loki rushes at open doors. The shelter knew little about him. He may have been an outdoor cat, an indoors/outdoors cat, or just an indoors cat. But he sure wants to get out. Maybe he lived in an enclosed space for all I know.
Both the doors to the back yard are glass, so I can tell if he is there. But he looks "ready for launch" everytime I open one. I kick the bottom of the door when coming in, and that does cause him to back away. But "scaring him away" is not my preferred option. I don't want to ever scare him into doing something I want.
5. Binq is bitey and clawy. Especially if I am holding anything (but also sometimes when I'm not). She does a "bed monster" on my feet sometimes. I have experienced that before, but she seems more dedicated to it than some other cats.
An example... Loki jumped on a stack of cat food trays and managed to knock them over. As I picked them up, Binq grabbed my hands every time. And when I tried to sort out the flavors into the trays, she kept jumping onto the platform and biting/clawing at my hands.
OK, maybe she gets over-excited by movement or thinks I am holding toys. It is certainly play and not any intent to hurt me. It is over-aggressive play.
Any advice by comments or emails is welcome. Some cats (kittens or adults) arrive as purrfect sweethearts that just act "right" all the time. Some arrive with issues. Loki and Binq have some issues. Not deal-breakers, but some things to be solved. Some of which I have no previous experience with...
