Teach your cats which parts of the garden are off-limits, and enjoy their companionship outdoors.
Last week, I took my three boys to the animal shelter, “Just to look.” Now, raise your hand if you’ve ever gone to the animal shelter just to look. If you have, then you’re probably the same kind of person who can make a batch of chocolate chip cookies without sampling a single chocolate chip, or you must visit the nursery for ideas without leaving with a single 6-pack of flowers.
I was in denial about the true purpose of our shelter visit; therefore, on Good Friday, we brought Max home. He’s a fine cat; a black and white adult Manx with greenish-golden eyes. We’ve been without a cat since our last 15 year old feline passed away in October, and I hadn’t realized what a gap she’d left in our lives.
Now that we’ve introduced Max to everyone in the household, it’s time for him to learn some manners, both indoors and out. As I prepare to begin planting my spring container garden, there are still remnants of last year’s cat deterrents. I used to lay thorny branches pruned from my rose bushes across my containers to keep my cats from digging in the fresh soil and making unwanted deposits. I trust that Max will find these as unpleasant as the last tenants did.
I bought Max his own little container of cat grass to browse at his leisure. I was impressed that the container read, “USDA 100% Organically Grown.”
Perhaps Max will turn out to be as good at repelling moles and mice as the cat we lost in October. Regardless, I hope that Max will enjoy as many carefree years with us as our other cats did.
