The Digital Awakening » cute cat

New Ginger Kitten In The House

Peter Tan — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 11:55:29 +0000

Last week, Wuan went to the market and came back with more than groceries and breakfast. She brought a stinky and dirty ginger-coloured kitten back as well. She gave him a thorough bath after which he looked adorable with his fur clean and smelling nice. The intention was to clean him up, feed him and put him up for adoption.

After being with us for one week, we decided to keep him instead. Three felines is about as many as we can manage at the moment. Fei Por had not taken a liking to him. They both would hiss and take swipes at each other whenever Wuan brought them close together. That was the least of our concern. Fei Por stays outside. We did not want him running around outside anyway and would be keeping him indoors.

Ginger kitten that Wuan rescued from Pandan Perdana bus stop near the wet market.
Photo by Wuan.

The real test was whether Cheeky would accept him. They both would have to share the same room and same space indoors. I was skeptical. Cheeky was aggressive whenever other cats came into the compound. He would look out from the grille door and growl. The fur on his tail would become puffed. Wuan and I would not want to anywhere close to him during those times.

There were a few anxious moments after Wuan let the kitten into the house. Cheeky approached him cautiously and both stood frozen in close proximity, sizing each other up. True to his fashion, the kitten took a swipe at Cheeky. My heart skipped a beat. I was sure Cheeky would retaliate. It was not a pretty sight the last time Cheeky jumped on me and sank his fangs into my elbow.

Cute ginger kitten.
Photo by Wuan.

Cheeky took a few steps back and scooted off. What happened next surprised us. The kitten crouched behind a stack of old newspaper. Cheeky hid behind the coffee table. They then approached stealthily, pounced on each other and then ran away helter skelter in the opposite direction. This they repeated countless times. They were having fun! We finally breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing them warming up to each other so playfully.

We have yet to give him a name. That responsibility falls on Wuan again as she was the one who rescued the kitten. As for me, he has been keeping me occupied. He likes to climb onto my lap. I could not do much with him clambering all over and had to keep pushing him off. He would jump right back on again. I hope he outgrows this antic soon. My thights are now full of fine scars from him clawing his way up.

Our Christmas Tree

Peter Tan — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 09:15:57 +0000

Cheeky the cat checking out the Christmas tree.
Photo by Wuan.

Wuan put up the fibre optic Christmas tree beside the bay window a few days ago. She had bought it from a pasar malam in Ipoh many years back. Over several days, she dressed it up with baubles and other ornaments. The illumination from the fibre optic was rather dim. It was not striking even with all the living room lights turned off.

Yesterday, she came back with a string of multi-coloured fairy lights. That atmosphere instantly warmed up when she turn them on, a stark reminder that Christmas is near. Cheeky, the forever curious feline, was at first fascinated by the blinking lights. He stared from the floor for a long time. When he could no longer contain his curiosity, he climbed onto the bay window and then perched precariously on the sofa to sniff at the tree.

Cheeky In The Garden

Peter Tan — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 04:10:53 +0000

Cheeky checking out something from his new cage in the garden.

Cheeky has a free run inside the house but the farthest he has ever ventured outside was the garden. Even then, Wuan kept a close eye on him. We did not want him to go beyond the compound and traipse all over the neighbourhood and get injured, or worse, get hit by a car. This fear stemmed from our previous experience with Fei Por’s three kittens.

Cheeky posing for the camera in his new cage.

When he was younger, Wuan would put him in a harness and leash, and let him explore the garden. He would sniff and move cautiously among the grass, chew on a few blades at a time and was generally fascinated by the new sights, scents and sounds outside. As he grew bigger, he refused to let Wuan wear the harness on him. He has not gone out since.

Cheeky and Fei Por chewing grass.

Cheeky has not shown any urge to go out either. But we want him to get some sunshine and eat some grass every now and then. With that in mind, we got him a cage last week. It is only for confining him when he is in the garden. He seemed to enjoy being out again and happily chewed grass that poked up from under the cage.

Cheeky The Cat

Peter Tan — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 07:49:36 +0000

Our pet cat Cheeky.

Cheeky is 24 years old already, in cat years that is. He has been with us for two years and has grown up to be a handsome feline. His fur is generally white except for a small patch on his tail that looked more like a smudge than part of him. Other than that, he is pink all over – his ears, his paw pads and everything else not covered by his white fur. His nose gets even pinkier when he is excited.

Although he is neutered, he can be aggresive at times. The multiple scars on Wuan’s hands and legs are testament to that. He has been very gentle to me, though. Whenever I took noon naps, he would hop onto the bed, purr loudly into my ear to get me to extend my hand for him to rub his face against. If I ignored him, he would put his front paws on my belly and gently knead until I extended my hand for him.

On the other hand, he only responds to our calls as and when he wishes. The times that he responded, he would amble from wherever he was at, usually from the back of the house, and nonchalantly walk pass us. He would then lie down, keeping slightly more than arm’s length distance from us so that we would not be able to touch him. Those times, we wished we had adopted a puppy instead.

Year Of The Cat At 1 Utama 2010

Peter Tan — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 07:41:58 +0000

The theme for Chinese New Year at 1 Utama Shopping Centre is cats, not just any cat but the famous Maneki Neko from Japan. Wait a minute! There is no cat in the Chinese zodiac. There is a tiger but are they the same? Nevermind that. Being cat persons and being collectors of the Maneki Neko figurines, Wuan and I had fun taking photographs of these giant feline sculptures at the Oval of 1 Utama.

One of the Maneki Neko greeting shoppers at 1 Utama.

Close up of the Maneki Neko trio at 1 Utama.

View of the Maneki Neko from the ground floor at Oval 1 Utama.

Peter Tan posing in front of the Maneki Neko at ground floor facing the Oval 1 Utama.
Photo by Wuan.