Stories Of London

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Eartha Kitt (1927-2008 ) – Just An Old Fashioned Girl

Casanova/Puppy is very much an old-fashioned creature. He prefers to rise at the crack of dawn and go to bed as soon as possible before the sun fully sets and after going out into the garden for one last visit.

And so, our day begins at a very early time.

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After breakfasting at 5.30 a.m. and then running about the garden for a while, and followed possibly by a short nap, we generally visit my neighbour’s house, which is where he used to live. This is a couple of houses along the street and so is only a short walk away. Casanova/Puppy gets very excited when he realises that we are going out! He will run in circles for a while before he allows himself to be caught so that his leash can be attached. During our walk to my neighbour, he stops a number of times to enjoy the various smells en route.

During the Pandemic, my neighbour and I remained outside and sat on her porch at a suitable distance. Meanwhile, Casanova/Puppy enjoys enjoys ridding the garden of any cats that dare to linger once he arrives.

Casanova/Puppy with my neighbour, Bona 

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Upon our return, I indulge him with a little Peanut Butter around his anti-Arthritis tablet followed by four tiny pieces of toast that he has come to enjoy so very, very much. After eating his snack he will spend the rest of the morning between time in the garden and time spent sitting behind me as I work at the computer. At about 1 p.m., he begins to attempt to gain my attention in the hope of being offered a small treat for lunch. Once I have finished working, we next spend sometime sitting in the garden with me reading and him resting punctuated with periodic runs along the length of the fence to hasten away a passer.  After this, he is more than ready for an afternoon nap.

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Following the afternoon nap, he will stretch and walk into the kitchen and perhaps take a short drink. Sometimes his drink can be as many as 50 to 90 laps! Once this is done, he looks at his dish and notes that it is empty! He lives in constant hope that he will suddenly find food there! The empty dish will cause him to return to his couch where upon he will position himself in the corner nearest to me sat in my chair ……. and then begins ……. the long Look.

Before he came to live with me, I learned that he enjoyed his supper at 5.30 p.m. He is very aware of the time and begins to make it known to me at around 5 p.m. that it is time for him to have his dinner. The making-me-aware of the hour and its significance generally begins with a certain look made directly at me!

The Look

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The Look clearly tells me that he wants me to get up and prepare his dinner! Once The Look starts, I periodically inform him that it is too early for food. In addition I let him know how long he will have to wait before he can expect it.  Of course, I do not expect him to understand my words, but over the past two years, the sound of my voice now clearly lets him know that he is not going to be fed until it is time. This causes him to break his look and he now begins to pass his time by inspecting his paws. Should he find the tiniest trace of something not to his taste, he will, it seems, spend an eternity licking it away.

Clean Paws

Once this minor ablution activity is complete, the vigil of the stare begins again. And, as before, he is informed of the time left to wait. And, as before, this is met with he sniffs, snorts and sighs and a return to the study of his paws!

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At 5.30 p.m., or thereabouts, I look at him and either enquire ……. are you ready? ……. or ask, do you want your dinner? Both silly questions since he has been ready for his dinner since eating his lunch! Before I finish my question, Casanova/Puppy leaps from the couch, with the agility of a young Gazelle (!), and lands lightly on the floor, and then runs off with the speed of a greyhound into the kitchen where he impatiently waits for me!

Left: A Slender-Horned Gazelle; Right: A Young Gazelle in Full Flight

Sadly, since I have neither the dexterity nor the speed of a young Gazelle, it takes me a minute or so to lumber in. Once I am in the room, he comes and runs around me as I go and pick up his bowl and move to the counter to fill it with his eats.

I am always amazed at how quickly dogs will gobble up their food without choking themselves. They seem to eat at a fantastic pace. I remember once watching some huge hounds owned by a friend of mine eat their dinner. As their bowls were lowered, they immediately went up on their hind legs and began to eat and had practically finished it all by the time the bowl was placed on the ground. Then they began to lick the bowl around the room!

Of course Casanova/Puppy is a much more genteel creature, and although he loves his food, he eats it in a more graceful manner without the bowl flying around the room! When he has finished his first course (!), he comes over to the counter and awaits the six little treats that he knows will be coming.

After receiving the sixth treat, he will remain stationary for a second or two and stare at me, as if he is thinking was that really the last one or is another one coming? Once he is convinced that he has had the sixth treat and that no more is coming, he will turn and immediately walk to the front door and wait for me to come and open it for him.

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I have felt very sorry for poor Casanova/Puppy since we went into Lockdown, as there is now so little foot- or vehicular-traffic in the street before the house. As a result, there are few people that he considers marauders to be chased away. During the day, he will often sit close to the fence for long periods of time, gazing up and down the street obviously in the hope of seeing someone that he hopes to chase away and perhaps offer the occasional bark!

Piccadilly Circus – Left: Pre-Lockdown; Right: During the Lockdown

Of course, and fortunately, there is the eternal enemy, the Postwoman, who is always guaranteed to cause him to chase back and forth along the perimeter of the fence. She tries hard to ignore his barks and leaps in the air, but it must annoy her. However, since she is unfriendly, I have long since given up feeling sorry for her.

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Once he has investigated his terrain fully, he will come and sit on the doormat in front of the door. Depending on his mood and humour, he will remain sitting here quite happily until I open the door and invite him back in.  However, at times, he will show some impatience and scratch on the screen door to let me know that he wants to come back into the house ……. now!

Waiting at the Front Door

What he does next after he runs back inside, depends very much on the time of the year. During the summer months when sunset is anytime after 8 p.m., he is happy to lounge on his couch or on the carpet before the front door while I am sitting in my chair either reading or watching television.

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As I said, he is an old-fashioned creature and likes to get up with the sun and go to bed when it sets.

The earlier the sun sets, the earlier he wants to go to bed! This means that by mid-December, he would be happy to go to bed at about 4.30 p.m.! During the winter months, he will walk to the bedroom and wait at the foot of the bed for me to come and allow him onto the bed.  Of course, I am not going to bed at this hour. If I have not followed him into the bedroom, he will wait for a while and once he realises that I am not coming to bed, he will return and look for me.  Once again, I will see the look, which is to inform me that it is getting late and we should be in bed! Again, when he realises that I am not going to come to bed, he will either go back to the bedroom or return to his couch. Should he return to the bedroom, I can always hear him, as he walks along the corridor, huffing and puffing his great displeasure!

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When it is finally time to go to bed and he is in the bedroom asleep on the floor, I have to encourage him to come back to the front door, as I want him to visit the garden one last time before going to bed. This he does without any trouble, I am glad to say.

One thing he does during his final expedition to the garden following his urination is to go to the bowl of water on the porch and lap another 50 to 80 times. I have to admit that I am unhappy that he does this since I don’t want any accidents in the house or be woken up with a request to take him outside. Fortunately, so far, neither of these events have happened ……. yet!

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Once back in the bedroom, he waits for me to come in and start to prepare the bed. There is a soft brown woolen quilt on top of the bed that he sleeps on.  I always fold the part that covers my side of the bed over.  Next, I pat the bed three or four times, which tells him that he can jump up. This he does and then he circles his space a couple of times before sitting down. Now begins the Battle for the Bed, which I think will deserve a page (Page Eighteen) to itself!!!

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As the reader has gathered, our day passes in simple pursuits, that is, until it is time for bed. But more of that later on Page Eighteen!

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A friend wrote: I knew that since I bought the new TV, my cat started watching it with me. She loved things about animals and would go up on the bookcase that holds the TV and sit in front of it . When she found animals she liked, she would put her paw on the screen over and over. It was wonderful to share things with her. She is greatly missed.

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