Anyone who owns a cat will know that they have an annoying habit of sitting and sleeping in the most awkward possible place and on anything which you happen to leave on the floor. The one place they never want to sleep is in the expensive purpose-made cat bed that you went to great lengths to purchase for them. Are they deliberately provoking or have cat bed manufacturers got it all wrong?
Ridiculous Things
I have long since given up on cat beds and consigned these most redundant of objects to the garage. I have three cats and none of them have shown any sign of wanting to use them. Some things they really like to sleep on just defy all logic. I recently had engineered wood floors fitted throughout the house which really upset the cats as there is no longer any carpet for them to rest on. They don’t like the wood floors at all but I do not feel guilty because much of the reason for fitting them in the first place was the antics of the cats.
Carpets get ruined by cats scratching, spraying, throwing up, and leaving hairs everywhere. Wood is a much better option. The only area of the house which now has any carpet is the stairs which, of course, the cats now sit on regularly and usually all at the same time which is presenting a major trip hazard. In addition, they seem to love the offcuts of underlay which the fitter left on the floor. I was going to throw these uninteresting pieces of insulation away but I fear a mutiny if I do that as underlay is definitely the in thing with cats!
Washing
Dirty washing is another firm favorite. If I put any washing on the floor for more than a nanosecond they are on it and all attempts to actually wash it result in some very angry cats. Bath towels, now there’s another ideal bed. Especially the clean ones I have hung on the towel rail which get pulled down and transformed into little nests and therefore create more washing that never gets done. My bed is naturally another favorite particularly when I am in it and trying to sleep. I have now gained the ability to sleep soundly with a cat on my head much to the amusement of my partner.
Having said all this, my household has a clear winner in the best cat bed world championship. The winning item is a Kaloo Toys doudou (comforter) which was accidentally left by a friend and which will never be used by their poor child again. Cats similarly love the softness that babies cherish and they have claimed it as their own although there is only room for one of them at a time. I fear open warfare over this blanket but at the moment the thing is proving to be a very useful diversion.
Conclusion
So there you have it. If you want to please your cat and enable yourself to do your washing and avoid a trip hazard on the stairs, the solution is a baby’s blanket. Until they change their minds of course in which case expect no sleep and some dirty towels.
