Thanks for stopping by this second installment of Caturday at the Lake.

T-Bear linked to this video of a heroic feline named Hugo the other day (tiger style head butt to T-Bear) and I knew that I would use it in today’s post but I was still thinking about what to write about. I don’t have any heroic stories about my tigers through the years so I couldn’t write about that. The subject that kept popping into my head was habits. Ever notice how many times it takes a tiger to do something before it becomes a habit? My experience with them tells me twice.

I’m gonna use Gabby as an example because I can’t think of a better one. The only human food my tigers get is dairy. Most of them will crowd in for a little heavy cream and a few will eat cheese. Gabby, however, will eat anything, anytime, including a veggie sub if I leave it out. The first time I gave Gabby a small piece of cheese, about the size of an Omega 3 or vitamin capsule, it was funny watching him trying to figure out how to eat it. The second time he had the eating part down but hadn’t come running when he heard the wrapper crinkle. The third time he came running when he heard the wrapper noise. Now all I have to do is walk into the kitchen and he’s under foot, lookin’ for a treat.

Last winter I thought I’d do a little experiment. I waited until he was out like a light on the waterbed later in the evening, at the opposite end of the place. I walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge door. Gabby was at my side before the door was open far enough to get something out of the fridge. He doesn’t get a treat every time I go into the fridge, though. They may get a dairy treat once a week at most but now he’s programmed to bug the hell out of me even when I make coffee. Only when I lower whatever I have down so he can smell, and decide he doesn’t want it, does he wander off to other adventures.

Oh, and Gabby has another routine he goes through in the kitchen. Mine is a barefoot household and if I’m standing at the counter Gabby stands up and grabs the top of whichever lower cabinet door I’m standing in front of, most of the time swinging it open in the process. What’s he standing on? My toes. Doing happy feet. Lemme tell ya, those needles on the toes will definitely get your attention. As an aside, Shiimsa, his brother, likes to nibble on toes with those little front teeth between the canines. Quite the pair, these two.

Speaking of pairs, this pair of humans are heroes in my book. Little Draggin’ Bear. You might want to check out some of the other stories at the site.

If we fail to look after others when they need help, who will look after us. Buddha
From a small book entitled "Zen Cat" by Judith Adler and Paul Coughlin.

Got a tiger story to share with us? Doesn’t have to be about habits or heroes, just tigers.

Peace Love Light