Smupdate
Posted on July 14, 2018 Posted by Athena Scalzi 27 Comments
In other words, Smudge update! This little guy has been living it up here in the Scalzi compound and is being an adorable pain in the neck! He is the most playful kitten we’ve ever had, Sugar and Spice as kittens don’t even compare to how crazy this dude is. He loves chewing on cords, which is kind of an issue, especially since we have a lot of different chargers in this house. And he loves attacking literally any part of your body, not just toes, as most kittens do. He will straight up attack your hair or your thigh, totally unprovoked. He’s a real wild child.
But, as you can see, when he’s sleeping, he’s a little cuddly angel who does no wrong. He is also a major explorer! If you leave a door open, he will not hesitate to venture forth into the unknown. Smudge is also very unafraid of the other cats, even though they still largely dislike him. They hiss and bat at him, and yet he still charges at full speed towards them. He doesn’t take hints very well.
Well, anyways, enjoy this adorable picture of Smudge, and have a great day!
Adorable!
He’s probably mishearing his name as ‘Smaug’ and thinks he’s a dragon.
What an excellent baby!
IME, he’ll grow out of eating cords in 2-3 years…
Ahhh the cute factor. Keeps adults of all species from murdering the young.
We’ve had a similar experience with Fiona, our crazy little torbie. When we talk about how crazy she is, people just say, “that’s how kittens are”. Which leads to: “No. You don’t understand”
My legs look like I was hit with shrapnel. Much like your dad’s arm.
Makes it even more interesting when mommy makes cat toys for her side job. You know, those cute crocheted thingies that smudge and the scamperbeasts chase after. Try manufacturing them with a kitten like smudge running around.
They are ALL cute as hell when they’re sleeping though.
–Neil (subject of the kitten kingdom, and worker at awesomemouse)
He’s grown!
I’m sure it helped with the scamperbeasts that they had each other to let out their crazies on. Less need to bother the grown-ups (cat or human). Sympathies on the cords – had a dog who did that.
Smudge is such a cutie!
I have one like that. She’s six years old now & is still a wild child. She weighs six pounds and likes to unleash all that wildness on Bob who is the size of a small dog. (He weighs 18# and is very tall for a cat.) She launches herself at his head, hanging on like a face-hugger trying to eat his ears. Poor Bob. He could just sit on her & teach her to respect her elders but instead he zips around the house, trying to throw her off. She can be relentless so sometimes she earns herself a timeout to cool off.
Ah, life with cats. So idyllic.
We have a Tuxedo cat named Fat Boy, and he has more personality than any three cats I’ve owned. Enjoy Smudge.
The Smudge updates and photos are some of the best parts of my day. You are also making me wish for another kitten.
Quite the character… “The Force is strong in this one!”
Nice photo too!
Thank you for taking this little spud into your family. I think he knew what he was doing when he showed up on your doorstep.
A big thank you as well to you and to your dad for posting videos and photos of Smudge. This world has gotten so hideous. Sometimes I really need to be uplifted and need a smile, and I get that from the Smupdates.
The kitty looks like my Grandmother s cat Abiegale
He was awesome..
I suggest using Tabasco on the cords. One sniff is usually enough. Plus it adds a pleasant vinegary tang until it dissipates. Worked for several generations of kittens, including a couple who destroyed my computer and my tv, both in1989.
Ah the joys of kittens. I had a kitten once who slashed open my big toe. Like my husband used to say about our cats “they’d eat you if they were bigger”. Inside every cat there is a tiger or lion lurking. Be afraid. Lol
Police those cords, asap! We adopted a cat who loved playing with string, and I think it led her to chew a power-adapter cord one day. We came home to find a melted power adapter, and blood everywhere. We think a spark shot out her tail when she bit the cord, and she turned and bit herself, then painted half the house with her bleeding tail. Ended up with her tail a couple of vertabrae shorter after amputation. (try keeping a dressing on the hurt tail of a newly adopted and still frightened cat) We suspect that 10 years later, the shock contributed to her early death when she had a brain meltdown, a stroke or something similar. Meep was one of the sweetest cats we ever had, we still miss her all these years later.
You have to watch out when they start to steal things. My cat came home with a whole sausage, still warm from someone’s plate once. Never did find out where it came from.
Is he auditioning to replace the MGM lion in the banner photo?
Tabasco on the cords.
Discipline on the attacks, ASAP; it won’t be so cute when he weighs 10 pounds. If you can mimic a feline growl, do so; if not, say “No!” in the scariest voice you can manage, and walk away; the idea you’re trying to get across is that being mean equals no more fun time. And don’t be afraid to clout him one if he’s being really obnoxious; another cat would. Of course you have to allow for being much bigger than a cat; whap him briskly upside the head with two fingers along with the “No!” Don’t grab him by the scruff and shake him, though; a kitten’s neck is very fragile and you could give him something akin to whiplash.
Why do so many people think the world is hideous? I think it’s a whole lot better than it used to be. No more smallpox epidemics, no plague epidemics, nobody’s used an A-bomb since 1945. So cheer up, folks!
Is it off topic to talk about my puppy? He’s astonishingly fast at times, but still sleeps a lot, thank goodness. My first dog was deaf, so I worked out hand signals to cover everything, including thumbs down for “leave it” the general stop command. When I got two kittens, they learned the hand signals by observation, and I have a photo of the two on sit stay while the old cat ate her special food. Smudge is at a trainable age, take advantage of it!
I bought my cat a dog toy that he loved to sink his teeth into. It was one of those rubbery-plastic squeak toys. It gave him something he could bite into as hard as he wanted, without getting hollered at. I removed the squeaker part to avoid the danger of him swallowing it.
He is absolutely adorable. I do hope I’m not chosen by a kitten anytime in the future – as much as I adore cats, kittens included, I’d much rather not deal with kitten insanity on a daily basis. Nonetheless, well done Smudge on people-picking. :)
The thing about cats: no matter how completely obnoxious and destructive they are while awake, they’re all absolutely sweet and angelic while sleeping. I’ve heard similar observations about small children.
The best way I’ve found to tell a cat “No” is with a squirt bottle. I’ve only seen one cat who was not dissuaded by that (fortunately not my cat). Doing a lot of yelling and arm waving helps too (and besides is kind of fun). The point is to make a strong impression on the cat so that they associate the behavior with an extremely unpleasant reaction from you. ‘Course, that doesn’t hold when you’re not home…
The world is getting better only for the increasing few who can afford to live here; otherwise I’d say progress is dubious. But cats are good.
My late tuxedo, St. John (Sinjin) never went for power cords, thank goodness, but he did have a thing for speaker wires and elastic. And artificial evergreen, which always made Christmas interesting.
My first two cats, St. John and his littermate Copernicus, were about six when we took in a litter of kittens and their mother. Funniest thing I ever saw were those two big cats – especially Copernicus who decided he was a total badass the day he chased away a dog that was trying to attack me in my own backyard – running away from three-week-old kittens.
I admire Smudge’s persistence in his attempts to terrorize his elders. Don’t approve, necessarily, but admire it.
Puppies are NEVER off topic!
My small furry beast looks very similar to your Smudge and was similarly energetic as a kitten. I just hid all the cables with towels and such until she got over the chewing. She still attacks my hair on occasions, albeit very gently!
A miniature battle cat. The most ferocious kind.