Who knew that a group of cats is called a clowder?! I certainly didn’t. But I was happy to be able to care for this clowder of seven during my visit to beautiful Grinnell this October.
Autumn is without a doubt my favorite season. I’ve been lucky enough to be able to experience it in many places around the world, but this is the first time I have enjoyed it in the Midwest. It’s now confirmed, Fall is the best season… albeit a tad bipolar out here. During my time here, the weather fluctuated from the high 60s to the high 20s. From sunshine to thunderstorms – it’s never a dull moment here in good ol’ Iowa!
Before the weather turned cooler, I was able to visit a local farm where I picked a pumpkin and navigated my way through a corn maze – two of my favorite Fall activities! Once it turned cold, I was very content to stay indoors with the cats, making stew and pumpkin pies from scratch – two more of my favorite Fall activities! I have many 😉
Warm soup, fresh pie, hot tea, and a cat cuddled up next to me on a cold rainy day – what more could a gal want??
Duties:
–Â Care for 7 cats (3 indoor and 4 outdoor)
–Â Provide supplements to some of the cats during feedings
– Empty dehumidifier daily
Unexpected Benefits and/or Realizations:
– Except for the one skittish/finicky cat, the cats were independent and very easy to care for. They were content to amuse themselves by batting around their toys and chasing each other around the house. The best part? They didn’t chew on any of my charging cables and the boys didn’t spray on any of my belongings! I think for a while I was getting a bit unlucky because both of these things had started happening. But these cats were perfectly behaved! 😀
Unexpected Events and/or Challenges:
– While it was not unexpected because the owners informed me that one of the cats was a finicky eater, I don’t think I realized just HOW finicky she is. She requires someone to sit with her and give her lots of love before she is willing to eat her food, and even then, she just eats little bits at a time. What made it harder is that she is also scared of new people so it took her a couple days to want to come near me. Needless to say, we eventually became great friends and she didn’t starve, but the first few days were a bit challenging.
– Apparently it’s been a while since I have cared for cats because somehow I forgot that cats throw up. It’s just a thing. It’s fine except for when they throw up on top of a nice wood dining table in a corner of the house I don’t utilize. I got lucky and spotted it not long after it happened. And now I do frequent sweeps of the house just to be sure.
