Oliver the Cat Whisperer
Oliver loves Walter. But its not just any kind of love, no, there is a special kind of love that burns in the heart of a toddler that is specially reserved for their fearful furry pets.
We bought a few cat toys with the idea that we could teach Oliver how to play with Walter. They are the kind of toys with a long handle and a long bit of string with feathers or furry cloth on them. This way, Oliver could stand back a ways and try to entice Walter to come play.
We were fools.
This whole plan depends on the patience of a 2 year old. We should have been able to predict what the following weeks would hold. I am not sure that Walter, or any of us, will ever look at a cat toy the same again.
The first day was fine. From many feet away, we carefully showed Oliver how to dangle the toy near Walter to convince him to play. Walter was wary, but he didn’t run, and he even took a snipe or two. Oliver thought this was great. He thought this was the best thing ever: he had the power to control the cat!
But alas, he would have to wait because it was bed time.
In the following week, he came back to the toys at various times, and he decided Walter ought to play. But without direct, thoughtful oversight, he seemed to forget the part where he should stand at a safe distance from the cat. He seemed to forget that the toy should dangle near the cat. I think he may have even forgot that the cat was supposed to play with the TOY because each time he saw Walter, he would chase him across the apartments until Walter could manage to find a safe place to hide.
But Oliver still had toys. And he remembered the feeling of having special powers over a cat…so he turned on us.
Momma was no longer cleaning, she was a cat that had to play with the feather. She became “Momma Cat…” She was helpless to resist.
I was no longer able to work. When he came in the room and transformed me into “Daddy Cat,” I had the insatiable urge to chase the string. He would dangle that toy and call, he would interrupt whatever we were doing with his haunting call “Momma Cat! Momma Cat!” Or”Daddy Cat! Daddy Cat!”
Soon, when I have my wits about me, I need to dispose of those toys. We also need to convince the makers to put warning labels on the toys to warn others about the danger.