Writing with a cat

Back in 2014 my family and I got a beautiful ginger and white kitten from the local cat rescue. My children named him Nugget because he reminded them of a chicken nugget. Plus, where I live we sometimes call people nuggets when they are acting a bit silly.

From the beginning Nugget's personality shone through.

He knew what he wanted and when he wanted it. He also loves attention. So whilst I got to work he would find anyway to be close to me and to distract me. 

Nugget developed early on the habit of sleeping around my neck or using my breasts as a perch. It was cute so I let him continue.

As he grew up he became mischievous and was always trying to get into things. Mainly my work. He loved nothing more than to climb in the boxes my books were delivered in and claim them as his own. I could be writing or reading and he would try and stop me.

He would continue to use me as somewhere to sleep, even as he grew bigger and bigger. I was thankful for the fact that I could type without looking at the keyboard.

Then in October 2015 we discovered him hiding in his cat carrier. He was a bit messed up and at first I couldn't get him out. He was in pain so of course he was hiss and growl at anyone who went near him. He wouldn't drink or eat - mainly because he couldn't walk to the bowls.So we took him to the vets and as, at the tie, I could not afford x-rays the emergency vets said they would bandage him up and hopefully it is just broken and that will help. At the next visit we discovered that something more needed to be done because this wasn't helping. I had to come up with the funds to get an x-ray and possibly an operation.

Eventually we found a vets who was able to help us (the previous vet suggested we put him down - a-holes) but we quickly discovered that his bones were badly out of place and would either need very expensive surgery which involved putting wires in his paw, which may not work or they could amputate his arm.

It was a tough decision but my baby boy is part of the family. He was young and healthy We wanted to go with the option that saved less visits to the vets. We all know that pets aren't a fan of visiting the vets. So we chose amputation. The way we saw it is, let's say he had the other operation and it didn't work then he could develop arthritis and could possibly have to have his leg amputated anyway. Plus he is young so he has more time to get used to it. It wasn't an easy decision. There were times I just cried as we tried to think of what was best. I have to say that we are happy with our decision.

You are probably wondering what happened to him to cause this? The vets think that going by his injuries he was caught by a car. Possibly he was underneath a car to get some warmth and the driver got in and drove off without checking. So since this Nugget has now become a permanent indoor cat. He still begs to go out, but it is less often. But I feel better knowing that he is at home. Of course he is still getting up to mischief. He is a cat so it is expected.

As time has gone on he has made sure that he knows we are all there. And when I zone out, when I am writing, he is right there to jump on me. To attack the cursor on my laptop. I have a computer mouse attached to my keyboard that lights up and sometimes he likes to attack that too. To me he is like my son (yes crazy cat lady talk.) He is my baby boy who still love to snuggle into me and use my breasts as a perch. Of course now I struggle to see over him

 If I try to read he will either look at the pages with a 'wtf?' expression, especially if I am reading a paperback and the pages are rustling. Then he will put his paw on my page.

Honestly I love my little cat. He will be two years old in April. He has become my little writing buddy who likes to tell me when I should stop writing or listens (pretends to) when I am talking about my stories. 

But he always likes me to know who is the boss. I know his cries. I am the one who gives him the treats, so he will purposely sit on my mouse mat and meow constantly until I obey him. Yup he has be whipped but I wouldn't have it any other way.