But is it paddy-trained?
[Found here.]
Our old gray cat finally passed away last night after suffering a stroke. Kinda saw it coming, as she’d been acting abnormally recently – a bit more clingy, not eating as much, not wanting to go outside, crouching with her head held over her water bowl. Then yesterday her tail and hind legs wouldn’t work and she slowly drifted off.
Here she is in 2009, one of the few “Cat Posts” we’ve shown here:
Bunkessa and Bunkarina had adopted Smokey as a stray. She needed very little training, suggesting that she’d been abandoned by a previous owner. She loved the missus and the kids, but couldn’t stand me, at least for the first few years we had her.
Smokey knew to go outdoors to do her business and would paw the frame of the screen door to tell us. She figured out how to “knock” at the front screen door by pulling on it and letting it bang shut when she wanted to come back in. She’d bring us “presents” occasionally, including a live terrified mouse that she dropped on the living room floor.
RIP Smokey 1995(?) – 2012
[Found here.]
There’s way too much carotene in this snake’s diet, so the responsible reptile raiser rewards it for successfully using the boa litter box in the closet with a cucumber instead. It’ll regain its natural color in a week or so.
[Found here.]
C’mon now. Her beetle needs loving, and you just don’t care, do you?
G’wan, hug it. Its name is “Sirpaul.”
[Found in here.]
As with any pet, the first rule is to be firm and consistent with training, and remember that rewards generally work better than punishment.
Reward your annelid when it behaves well. Fill up the bathtub with damp (not wet) newspaper and coffee grounds for your annelid to explore. They love it!
Express your displeasure as soon as possible when your annelid misbehaves so that it connects its actions with your disapproval.
Do not yell at your annelid as they cannot hear. Stomp your feet instead. In severe cases of disobedience, keep a salt shaker nearby.
If your annelid leaves castings about the house, lock your pet in a brightly lit room for 10-15 minutes after rubbing your annelid’s nose in it. Dispose of the castings in the garden. Once your pet makes the connection between in-house castings and bright light, the number of “accidents” should diminish.
When your annelid learns to moosh at the door to go out to leave castings, reward it when it returns by allowing it to explore any dark damp space, like that puddle next to the sump drain in the basement.
Above all, be patient. Properly trained and cared for, your annelid should live 10 years or more; otherwise you’ll find it dead and dried up on the sidewalk and all the love and affection will be gone. Enjoy!
[Top image found here.]