If you google Italian Rainbow Cookies, you’ll find a number of different recipes – I chose the one from www.tastingtable.com. While I rarely bake with food coloring, as it doesn’t feel natural, this recipe requires it (1/4 tsp) to make the layers pop. The result is very impressive looking, with the taste not far behind. The recipe calls for a 9×13 pan (well actually three of them, although I used the same pan and baked three times) – it seems to me a slightly smaller pan would have been better, as I found it tough to spread the batter thinly enough to meet the edges. (Although, in hindsight, you trim all the edges off, and the batter is thick enough that it sits in place, so perhaps it doesn’t matter.) The amount of time to make these is a bit misleading as you do need to refrigerate for several hours, or overnight; add in if you are using only one pan, you have to triple the amount of time allotted to baking. (Note: If you use one pan over and over, for rounds 2 and 3, spread your batter on the parchment and THEN put it on the pan, otherwise the pan is so hot that the batter won’t spread properly.) The key tastes (almond, raspberry and chocolate) come shining through, so make sure you use a good quality almond paste, a good quality raspberry jam (I chose seedless – Wilkin & Sons) and a good quality chocolate, otherwise your taste is compromised. I used a fork to stripe the top, adding just that touch of fancy. All in all, both a fun and fairly easy bake!
In Part 1 (https://siriouslysiri.com/2021/12/27/out-of-the-box-experiences-part-1/) we talked about some of the medical and physical aspects of litterbox misbehavior, and honestly, when working with a cat with litterbox issues, I am always hoping the issue is dislike of the litter or dislike of the box location – a quick change and the problem is solved. Start with the easy, possibly the most obvious – get medical issues checked out, and if you get an all clear, move on to the physical aspects of litter type, box type and location – as these can be easy fixes. If, however, one has ruled out these things, then we need to delve into the emotional aspects of litterbox misuse, a much more complex matter.
In this post, we’ll look at several psychological influences – human/cat interactions, dog/cat interactions, and finally, cat/cat interactions. Keep in mind that there may well be more than one of these conflicts at play. (In one of my next posts, I’ll discuss single cat issues, including litterbox).
Human/cat interactions: In many of the litterbox scenarios we encountered, the cat belonged to one person, who then partnered with another person: the cat becoming third fiddle. If the newest family member happens to love cats and makes a concerted effort to become buddies with the cat, things can often work out. If not, the cat may feel jealous they are no longer the priority and may express their dislike of the situation via litterbox issues. This becomes a tough scenario to resolve, simply because the new human in the equation must, again, not only like cats, but be really vested in establishing a close relationship with the cat. Becoming the cat’s caretaker (feeder, toy person, treat-giver) is one way to endear oneself to the cat. Additionally, it is important to be sure the cat is not excluded from situations or time slots that used to belong to them – for example, not closing the cat out of the bedroom, if, for years, the cat was allowed to sleep with its person. The same scenario can occur with the birth of a new baby, diverting attention away from the cat. Just as one should do when having a second child, be sure to pamper the cat, who was there first, with lots of time and attention in order to avoid any problems with jealousy.
Dog/cat interactions: While a few cats may be terrified of dogs due to previous bad experiences, most cats can learn to coexist with a new canine presence – provided the dog does not torment the cat. It goes without saying that chasing, nipping, barking at or cornering the cat in any way shape or form is not going to make the cat happy. If one is adopting an older dog and bringing it into a cat household, make sure the dog is cat-tested prior to committing to the dog. You may also want to have a friend bring their dog for a visit so you can judge your cat’s reaction. If it’s a young dog, training the dog from the start as to how to behave around the cat is important. Be sure to provide the cat with places to go that the dog cannot get to – gating off a room or providing plenty of cat trees for the cat to climb in order to be out of reach of the dog. Of course, making sure the dog is not guarding whatever location the cat has chosen is key, and ensuring the cat can get to their food, water and box is also obvious. Suffice it to say, if the cat feels threatened by the dog in any way, they are very likely to choose alternative locations for elimination. Additionally, a cat that is baseline terrified of their own shadow is very likely to be terrified of a new dog, so think twice before adding more animals if your cat has a victim/pariah personality. Remember, when it comes to pets, you are the one choosing the makeup of your furry household – the cat has no say in the matter – so plan carefully.
Cat/cat interactions: This, I feel, is where many of the litterbox issues stem from, and I’ll start with something we talked about in Part I. If you have multiple cats, and you are experiencing litterbox issues, you must, you must, you must – have multiple litterboxes in multiple locations. The two most common reasons we found that cats did not want to use the box in a multi-cat household were a) that the box had already been used by another cat (remember the porta-potty scenario) and b) the cat was afraid to use the box because either it was being guarded by the bully cat, or the use of it resulted in being ambushed by the bully cat. If you are thinking that you don’t have space for more litterboxes (for whatever reason), then you shouldn’t have multiple cats. The number one reply we found when counseling adopters who were dealing with litterbox issues was that they didn’t have the space to add more litterboxes – yet they were able to add more cats. That doesn’t work.
Ideally you have done some matchmaking of cat personalities when you added additional cats to your household, so you don’t have a bully/pariah cat situation. (An article on matchmaking coming soon). Perhaps the personality pairing was unavoidable (you couldn’t tell as a kitten what the cat’s personality would be like as an adult, you combined households which involved combining pets) and you have one cat that is dominating the other. Realize that cats develop their feeling of security by establishing a territory that belongs to them. If I asked you which locations in your home are key to your sense of security, the answer is likely to be where you sleep, where you eat, or where you eliminate. Not having a comfortable place to do one of those three things is very stressful. Cats want to be able to sleep undisturbed by others. They want to know their food and water are easily found and available to them when they are hungry. And they want to be able to eliminate on their own time, in their own space, without feeling threatened. If you only have one litterbox, and it is down a dead-end hallway, a victim cat may be unlikely to use it, as they know there is no escape if they get cornered. By offering multiple locations, you make it difficult for the bully cat to guard them all, and increase the possibility of a stress-free litterbox experience. (Putting a collar with a bell on a bully cat will also help alert the victim cat to his whereabouts).
Realize that cats are very clean creatures. And while they certainly may have preferences as to the type of litter and box, for the most part they prefer to eliminate somewhere that is clean, comfortable, and smells nice. Sure, this means that if you have a cat that is prone to litterbox issues you may not be able to leave clean clothes laying in a pile, but this is one of the changes you may have to make for your feline roommate.
There is no doubt, not all litterbox issues are solvable. Sometimes the circumstances are such that they are unavoidable given that life sometimes puts us in less-than-ideal situations. Too often, people don’t want to make the changes necessary to solve the problem; if you want to keep the cat, it is likely to involve some adjustment on your part. There are, however, times when considering responsible rehoming may be justified. The key here is the word ‘responsible’ – there are right ways and wrong ways to rehome: dumping the cat outdoors or giving the problem to some unsuspecting person is not the way to go. More on that in another post.
If your cat is having out-of-box experiences, take a step back to assess the situation. Is the cat healthy? Cats are stoic, and medical issues are often invisible to an untrained eye. Is the litterbox area clean, pleasant, comfortable and safe? Is there tension in the household, be it interspecies, cat vs. cat, or the cat and a person? The more upset you (or someone in the household) becomes by the inappropriate elimination, the more likely the cat’s level of unhappiness will increase. Hopefully with some effort, a willingness to change things around, and thinking like a cat, you will be successful getting the cat back into the box.
Angel gets easily worried and tells you the only way she knows how
Today’s bake – an Orange Pie from Sarah Kieffer’s cookbook, The Vanilla Bean Baking Book. I have renamed this pie the Orange Dreamsicle Pie, oh my goodness. To start with it’s a homemade graham cracker crust. I still need to master the art of a non-sticky one that slides right out of the pie plate; Sarah uses a metal pie plate, maybe that’s the trick?. The main part of the pie is similar to key lime pie, instead using orange juice (sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks, lemon juice, heavy cream). The topping is a whipped cream that has four ounces of cream cheese in, just a touch of sugar, some Triple Sec (I used Grand Marnier), orange zest, and a scraped vanilla bean – this results in a cream topping that holds it’s shape, has nice subtle flavors, but is not too sweet. All together, just a dream!
I love that this book was written by two fabulous writers. I love that each one was able to portray the challenges of race relations so beautifully. I love that it’s a story about issues we face as a society today. I love the fact that love can conquer all. I loved this book – well done.
Well done. I’m not one for series books, as I read so much and base that on library availability which means I can never read a series in a timely fashion – plus I want to end each book with a feeling of completion. This is a doable series, however, in that if you only read this one, that would be fine, as it’s an entire story in itself. The writing style, and a twist at the end of course leads one to want to read the next in the series, as well it should; I assume that will be true at the end of each book. I particularly liked this story as a good part of it takes place in Rio, a place I had honeymooned and one that really made an impression on me, so much of the description hit home. A story of a search for one’s identity and beginnings, and in doing so, finding a beautiful though sad love story. Very very well done and yes, I will be reading the next in the series!
Absolutely excellent book. Great writing, great story, great characters, great everything. Historical fiction taking place in the US in the 1700’s about a young girl who is put in charge of her father’s plantation holdings which are heavily mortgaged and how she turns things around. The main character champions both women’s rights and race relations in a wonderful and believable way. Really enjoyed this book.
Out of the box experiences! The bane of having a cat. The number one reason for cats being turned in to shelters or rescue groups. Without a doubt, the most frustrating, the most common, the most damaging issue with cat ownership. Yes, believe it or not, one of the easier ones to solve, IF you can take the time and do the detective work. And herein lies the road to returns – too many people don’t want to take the time, or don’t have the patience to try to figure out what their cat is trying to tell them. As Director of the Siamese Cat Rescue Center for 20+ years, I have scooped and monitored litterboxes for thousands and thousands of cats. Were there some whose litterbox issues could not be solved? Sure, but the numbers were miniscule compared to how many we could solve. And I mean miniscule. 20 maybe, out of, literally, thousands of cats who came in with box issues.
They are speaking to you, you know. And if we could all understand those meows, resolving the issue might be easy. But since we don’t speak cat, we must learn to understand what they are saying by doing some puzzle solving.
1) Let’s start with the basic tenets: your cat is over six months of age and is spay/neutered. What? Your cat is not spay/neutered yet? Stop reading right now, take care of that, and then, if the issue continues, read on. Females or males, if not spayed or neutered, are highly likely to pee (urine is directed downwards from a squatting position) or spray (urine is directed horizontally from a standing position) if they are not spayed or neutered. Read that again. Females will spray as well. 2) You have been to the vet and had the cat checked for urinary tract issues. You could be wasting your time spending lots of energy trying all sorts of behavioral strategies when it could be something as simple as an infection. Both males and females can get UTIs (urinary tract infections), crystals in the urine, even bladder and kidney stones (though less common). Particularly if your cat has been fine in the box, nothing has changed in the household, and out-of-the-box experiences begin, it’s time to take a trip to the vet. No one likes to spend money unless necessary, but infections and crystals are easily treated once you know about them, so rule them out first. 3) There is an issue with the box itself. Now imagine yourself at the last restaurant, concert venue or other public place you have been, and you need to use the restroom. You find where it is (was it obvious?) and you look at the row of toilets. How many of us are going to choose one that has not been flushed? Or smells awful? Or has urine on the seat or the floor? You know the drill. We are walking down the row of toilets peering in each one to find one that looks halfway clean. Your cat is no different (and arguably cats are cleaner than most humans). They don’t want to use a toilet that is full, or filthy, or smells. They want one that is clean. Because they may need to go more than once during the day, hopefully (see below) they have more than one litterbox to choose from. The box they choose needs to be clean, which means not just keeping it scooped, but keeping it odor free. This may involve scrubbing the box on a weekly basis (or as needed). Remember that a cat’s sense of smell is much better than that of a human. 4) There is an issue with what’s inside the box, assuming we’re not talking feces and urine. In other words, what kind of litter are you using? It may be nice and fine that you prefer dust-free, flushable or some sort of organic litter, but is that what your cat likes? Cats have very sensitive noses, so not only can they detect long-term urine smells, but they are also often overwhelmed by the scented litters. While many times it is possible to convert a cat from one type of litter to another, cats with sensitive feet (in particular those that are declawed) are often averse to anything that feels too gravelly or rough on their paws (pelleted litter for example). Additionally, while it may make things easier for us, many cats absolutely hate plastic litterbox liners. 5) There is an issue with location. Flash back to the public venue you were last in when you needed to use the restroom. Was it clear where that restroom was? Was it down a dark hallway that was kind of intimidating? Did you have to go up or down flights of stairs when you were feeling a bit arthritic? Was the bathroom located where it was terribly smelly, or loud, or sketchy in any way shape or form? Ideally, all of us would like to have a pleasant and relaxing experience when we use the toilet, even if it’s a quick one, and your cat is no different. So rethink locations that are in closets, down the stairs to a dark corner in the basement, behind the noisy washing machine, etc. 6) What about the type of box? Is it hooded, because you don’t want to see or smell it, but your cat is afraid of tight spots or dark places? Is it big enough the cat can get in, turn around, dig to China, and use the box without going over the edge? Does it have a high lip they have to climb over when they are old and achy? Is it motorized and makes a scary noise if they linger too long? 7) Finally, let’s talk about the number of boxes you have. Keeping in mind what has been discussed above, unless you have nothing else to do with your time other than scoop litterboxes, you likely need more than one box. The general rule of thumb is one box per cat, plus one more. This will ensure that there is always a clean box available when the cat needs to go. If you don’t have room for more than one box, and you have litterbox issues, then rethink the number of cats you take on. If you won’t use a public restroom that hasn’t been flushed or cleaned, don’t expect your cat to be happy doing so.
Cats are very clean creatures, and they function primarily by smell. They also have good memories, so it only takes one or two negative experiences to turn a cat away from a particular box or location. If the box is uncomfortable in any way (where it’s located or what’s inside of it), they are likely to pick another place to go. How likely are you to return to a public venue where you had an awful experience? In Part 1, we’ve touched on medical considerations, as well as talking about the location and the physical box components that are important. In Part 2, we’ll discuss the environmental, emotional and psychological issues which may affect litterbox behavior. (If you like this post and want to read more, please subscribe to the blog – you will be notified when there are new posts!)
Squeaks wants desperately to tell me what’s wrong…..
Suki. She was everything I said I wanted. Young, check. Healthy, check. Cute, check. Playful, yup. Never one to waste a minute, before my cat of 18 years had been in the ground 24 hours, I was scouring the internet for Siamese kittens. The best way to get over a heart break? For me, it was to give my love quickly to someone else. We always had multiples – several dogs, a number of cats – but Beeky had been my soulmate. He was the one who kept me sane during tumultuous teenage years; the one I snuck into the college dorm; the one who moved with me to the big city and was with me through the start of both married life and motherhood. While we had other cats, no one was able to read me like Beeky, and when he passed, I was anxious to find his replacement. Suki came from a family breeder – not registered, nothing fancy, but certainly a decent upbringing. There were six siblings, but several had already been claimed, so I had a choice of two females – both so cute – how can you go wrong with a Siamese kitten? After careful consideration, I went for the one that appeared to be deep in thought, surely a sign that she was soulmate material. While she was young, only 8 weeks, and tiny, only 4 pounds, I figured this would give us a great start on the bonding process. Plus it was May, and as a teacher, my summer stretched in front of me with nothing much to do but focus on my new best feline friend. It was, and was not, a busy household. I was married, but my husband worked out of state, so was only home on weekends. I had one daughter, aged 7, who was on the quieter side; while involved in plenty of extracurricular activities and friendships, very few of them happened at our home, a six acre spread out in the country. The busiest part about it was the other animals – at the time we had three dogs, a rabbit, two goats and several ducks. Plus we had several cats who had always been indoor-outdoor and were not about to convert to indoor only; with Suki, however, I was heading towards the mindset of indoor only. So how to raise her as my soulmate cat? Well, it only made sense that some of her personality would come from genetics; I had met the parents and they certainly seemed like nice cats – no skitziness, raised underfoot, busy but involved family. I figured the rest was up to me – I needed her to bond tightly with me, and being not one to sit around much, I fashioned a sling-like pocket that I put her in while I trapsed around the house doing whatever it was a somewhat ‘single’ parent did while caring for a seven-year-old child, three in-house dogs, four cats, the rabbit, goats and ducks. Day in and day out I worked to make sure we spent as much waking (and sleeping) time together as possible. I would be her favorite person, and she my favorite cat. And so it went for those formative three months – we were together day and night (to the best of my ability). Did you know that seal females are very smart, but also typically very independent? They can be quite opinionated and determined, and often don’t like to be told what to do. They also, in general, will fill the role of queen bee, choosing their companions – both human and feline – and blossom with routine and predictability. Despite all my efforts – and my determination to have Suki fill the role of Siri’s soulmate, she was not having it. She liked to do her own thing and was certainly not going to be told who she should bond with. She was not much of a snuggle bug, and I had wanted an ‘in your arms’ type cat. She definitely was not going to be molded into something she was not, and the ‘carry around in the sling idea’ expired the minute she figured out how to jump out of it. The other felines were tolerated, but were clearly below her. As time went on, and yes, the animals continued to accumulate (three dogs became six, four cats crept up to seven), Suki made it perfectly clear that she was one unhappy camper. Not only did she dislike all the animals, she was also not that keen on me, despite all that early together time I had manufactured. The lesson here? Soulmates only happen once in a great while. You can’t force them, you can’t finesse them, you should consider yourself lucky if you do find one. At one point after we stopped intaking cats into the Rescue program I counted how many personal cats we had over the years, and came up with some crazy number – I think it was in the 60’s. (This is because we typically took in the older cats who only had a few years, so while we had a great many, we also lost a great many.) But in all of those family members, while there were many cats that I absolutely adored, and there were many that fell into the ‘pretty good’ category, there were only four that made it to soulmate status. Suki? She was a nice cat. But my take-away from the experience with her was the lesson, not the cat.
Today’s bake was a good one – and while somewhat involved, the end result is amazing. Recipe from Frosted by Bernice Baran. The cake is a chocolate sponge cake, so is very light and airy. I chose to do 10 individual small cakes rather than one large sheet cake, as I am giving these as holiday gifts. The sponge cake is then topped with a dark chocolate ganache which thanks to a few poke holes in the cake, drips down into the sponge. Using a dark chocolate makes this ganache more on the chocolate side than on the sweet side. On top of this is a French buttercream (my first attempt) which involves beating egg yolks until thick, then streaming in a very hot sugar syrup, beating that a long time, and then adding butter and again, beating another 7-10 minutes. The result is a very silky but not overly sweet buttercream frosting. I think this frosting may come in second to good old ABC frosting. Guinness in both the cake and the ganache. And yes I went totally overboard and paired it with homemade vanilla ice cream. High marks for this!
You came to me on December 22, 1998, just three days before Christmas. Your step-grandmom had adopted a new sibling from me, Celeste, whom she loved dearly. But you just hated Celeste. You had never asked to live with your step-grandmom; your dad had left for the Rainbow Bridge and she was kind enough to take you in. While she provided you with a loving home, the two of you never connected, and it was clear you were an unhappy cat, which translated into an unhappy owner. Adding a sibling made matters worse. I told your step-grandmom that this was not the usual procedure – that I did not place a cat and take a cat in return – but I could tell from her voice, and from yours, it was the right thing to do. So I did.
Down you came to the Virginia Rescue Center. And, as is custom, off we went to the vet to get you checked out. So extremely agitated were you, throwing yourself against the sides of the carrier, yowling up a storm beyond anything any of us had ever heard, that the vet suggested something I never told you, but I refused to listen to her. They had to physically restrain you and heavily sedate you in order to be able to even get close.
Turned out your mouth was a shambles! No wonder you were so crabby, most of your teeth were rotten or falling out. A dental certainly was in order. And so we did one, removing most of your teeth. Surely this would make you happier, and to a very small extent, it did. You came back to the Center to settle in and build a reputation as the “Halloween Hisser”. Adopter after adopter that came through the house was taken aback by your attitude, something unparalleled in my cat experience. You certainly came across as one crabby cat.
Then along came a family in Chicago. Everyone involved felt certain you would be the appropriate fit, except perhaps you. Off you went, complaining loudly, to your new home, and back you came, just a few days later, having protested enough to terrify the family and alert the neighbors. Despite all the in-depth screening and conversations we’d had in advance, this clearly wasn’t the right fit. We were all disappointed; you were extra stressed after enduring several plane rides, and we were back to square one. After some time you settled back into your Virginia routine, still determined not to like anything about anyone.
Determined not to be a loving cat, yet looking at me with those adoring eyes. Determined not to be affectionate, yet rubbing against my legs every time I stood up. Determined not to purr, yet giving small sounds when I kissed your head. Determined not to belong to anyone, yet laying contentedly on the pillow every night. And I, determined not to fall head over heels, did. I thought you would have to stay. I knew you wanted to stay. I kissed your soft head, dodged your clawless paws, ignored your constantly crabby voice, and loved you regardless. I gazed into your big eyes, avoided your territorial stances, shared the bad and the ugly with potential adopters, and loved you even more.
Then, one day, along came two angels. They visited you many times. They listened to your rude words. They endured your angry swats and your toothless hiss. They left, but visited again. They talked – we talked – you hissed. They coaxed – we considered – you grumbled. They cajoled, you lunged, they loved you more.
Tonight you have gone with them to your new home. While you don’t believe it now, thrashing and swearing inside the carrier, they are taking you to a wonderful new life. They are earth angels, and you will go on to live out an amazing life with them and their cats. They will adore your crabbiness, your angry voice, your hissy fits, and your big blue eyes. They will kiss your head, avoid your swats, talk soothingly over your yowls, and love you forever. They will give you warmth, comfort, security, safety, and most importantly, unconditional love.
Many cats have come and gone. Each one is special, and a certain sadness accompanies the wonderful feeling of sending each off to their new home. But for you, Sebastian, for you who was crabbier beyond belief, I sit here and weep, for I will miss you deeply. With your departure has gone a piece of my heart.
Be happy, my friend. Live long and well, and learn to love Kristin and Josh, the rescue angels who could see through your exterior to the frightened insecure boy underneath. I will love you forever.
“Aunt” Siri
(Post adoption note – Sebastian went on to live a long, full and happy life with these two adopters, successfully adjusting through a number of moves and life changes. In 20+ years, this was the only time we actually did a ‘trade’ – taking a cat and adopting out a cat to the same person. In this case, it was the right thing to do, and just goes to show you, nothing about Rescue is black and white.)
