ShiShi the Closet Connoiseur

A Space to Call Her Own

 I'm a tight spaces addict - and a closet connoisseur.  Not everypawdy wants to admit to this indiscrete kind of love affair - it can be quite embarrassing fur some.  But one cat's weakness is most certainly another cat's strength - and most especially when it comes to a passion fur all things hidden  and tucked away.  After all, if one day the giant d.o.g. bomb goes off, I'll know all of the best places to wait it out in safety.  

Back in the day of Haku's endless chasing, before meowma  helped to fix things fur me, those little hiding spots were often my saving grace. (Haku's behavior modification, and mine, really have worked out fur us  - you can find out more here and here.)  Haku's bad old habits may be why I love closets and hidden corners so much.  Or purrhaps, as meowma often says, it's just in my purrticular kitty nature.   ​Even now, I often find the exploration of quiet spaces to be quite helpful to my meowditations.   As an added benefit, whenever meowma has lost a little something, I can almost always find it fur her under the bed, or tucked into a furgotten corner of the armoire.  (Of course, this special bit of helpfulness on my part may stem from close acquaintance with our resident ghost kitty...)

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Ghostly Purrfection

And speaking of that ghost kitty, she has been most active of late!  While we've never quite managed to meet face-to-face, she has become quite the inspiration to myself and Haku.  Just past the stoke of midnight, nearly every night, she ventures out from her secret castle under the bed to look fur special bits of mischief.  She adores hiding away all kinds of special little items while out on her adventures, and always leaves them in the most interesting of places.  Thanks to that fun-loving kitty, I've been able to help meowma to 'rediscover' all kinds of little treasures just this week alone - hairbands, bottle caps, and even her favorite lipstick (I looked like quite the heroine on that splendid morning fishing that out from under the sink, let me tell you!) 

Miss Ghost Kitty's nightly adventures lead me to discover all kinds of new and wonderful hiding spots around our house.  Sometimes we play tag and I follow just behind her noisy paw steps, listening fur the clanks and bangs so that I can try to see her once and fur all.    Of course, meowma thinks that it's just me racing through the house at night, but that only proves that she has no imagination at all!  Just the other night, I learned about a charming little corner behind the china cupboard that I had somehow missed before.  It was purractically a treasure nest, filled to the brim with furgotten toys that my ghost kitty must have placed there (who else could have done it?!)

I've been thinking lately - what if there are many, many ghost kitties in the world?  Not just the one who is living under my meowma's bed...  Would that mean that every kitty's house has a treasure stash of toys, just waiting to be discovered by a fearless explorer of tight spaces?  Those toys I found were the BEST surprise - even Haku was impressed.  If there is any pawsibility of a ghost kitty living in your own house, I highly recommend befriending him or her - the side benefits are simply ameowzing!

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Feeding Your Closet Addiction

Now, all of you may not have the purrfect tiny space available fur use at all moments.  If you have one of those pawrents who insist on keeping closet and cupboard doors shut, I have a few recommendations fur you.

1.  Remember - just because a door is shut, doesn't mean that it can't be opened!  I recommend the gentle (or not so gentle!) application of what I like to call the Claw 'n Paw.  Generally this is best done while not under a recalcitrant pawrent's supervision - especially if brute force is needed.

2.  However, it application of claws did nothing but pull off a bit of veneer (a sad, but all too frequent occurrence fur myself), it may be time to move on to one of the more demanding techniques.  I have found that  often pawrents can be purrsuaded to open the offending doors that might keep a kitty from their most interesting hiding spots or indoor adventures.  In such cases, pitiful mews combined with flirting and very sad eyes most frequently are what do the trick.

3.  Once the selected door has been opened, be sure to take full advantage immediately.  I recommend a thorough exploration of your space, however small, and the generous application of kitty glitter as well.  This way all who come after will know that space truly belongs to you without question, and the door will more likely be left open fur your happy use at later dates.

4.  Never take no fur an answer - purrsistence is the name of the game here.  Oh - and stay alert.  Try very hard not to be shut in!

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