Tuesday, October 8, 2013

They've Got Paws and They Know How to Use Them!



Dakota’s paws are needly when his claws are retracted. Singer’s are sledgehammery blunt and hurt in a different way. Both know how to use their paws to get what they want.

When I grab Dakota in the hallway before going to bed at night, he’ll claw my back when he doesn’t want to go with me. It’s a power play—he wants to sleep in our bed, but only when he’s ready, not when I choose. He likes to make a nest between my legs, which means I wake up in the middle of the night as he’s trying to fashion his comfy little spot, using his claws to make me move. He doesn’t know how much this hurts!

Singer will use her paddle-paws to thunk my face when she wants me to get out of bed. Her paws feel like heavy branches on my face, scratchy and hard. You can’t ignore her wants, even if you tried. And she hits me while I’m asleep so I can’t even dodge her sledgehammers. I can’t think of a way to avoid this behavior, she’s got me over a barrel on this one. She doesn’t know how much this hurts!

Singer is also quite dexterous with her paws. She will counter cruise by jumping up and using her paw to flip an empty cat food can up into the air and then catch it in her mouth. She’ll then take the can into the living room and lick it clean. Sometimes she tries to “bury” it in the couch for later. She also uses her paw to edge out from the sink forks and spoons with food on them still. She can even get them out of the drain with her paw. I’ve seen her flip more utensils and then catch them midair than a Japanese chef at a hibachi grill! In fact, if any novice chefs out there need to learn how to flip utensils, I bet Singer could teach them how to do it. She’s an expert. She also likes to hoard her stash of utensils, which we find near her pile of toys or under her own bed. I imagine she takes them out later to lick and savor when we’re not home.


Paws are such crude implements when compared to hands. My pets have learned, through watching and necessity, how to use them for their benefit. Just wish they could be reassigned as deadly weapons sometimes, especially while I’m sleeping.