caterwauling
kelly | 27 February 2008 - 5:56pm
One of our cats has a habit of wailing in the wee hours of the morning. This only lasts a few minutes, although sometimes it will occur multiple times a night. It's different from the sound of a cat in heat - it's more melodious than that, a meow-yowling that is insistent and expressive, the closest a cat can come to yodeling. MeOW-eYOW EYOOOOWWWWWW. E-yow-meOW? MeOW-yow-reee-YOWWWW!! The sound comes from the depths of the house, just loud enough and long enough to awaken us, although we always fall right back to sleep. I'm not even sure which cat it is. I know it's not Bridget, because she sleeps the entire night on our bed. I suspect Simon, because it sounds most like his voice and he is just off kilter enough to howl throughout the house for no good reason.
Or maybe there is a good reason, although I could not tell you what it is. There have been a few times when the meows sounded so distressed that I hopped out of bed and searched the house for the source, certain I would find Maylee with her head stuck through the banister or Simon sprawled at the bottom of the laundry chute. But, the meowing would stop when my feet hit the floor and I would discover Simon and Maylee sitting silently in the living room, looking up innocently at me like, "What? We're just chillin' here on the hardwood, yo."
Monday night the warbling was particularly persistent. I considered investigating the situation, but knew the cat was just crying wolf. So I tried to tune it out. Which was difficult, because this was an aria like none other, with vibrato and trills impossible to ignore. Even Bridget, who was sleeping soundly at the foot of the bed, stirred.
Now, Bridget is Top Dog around here. (Except that she's, you know, a cat.) She's the firstborn feline, and she's clearly in charge. Simon and Maylee kiss her paws and throw petals on her path. She can barely abide them, but they adore her. Simon will, in fact, start purring when she walks into the room.
So, the Monday night MEOW-yow-YOWWWWWing continued and Bridget shifted and sighed and finally stood. I heard her jump to the floor and pad towards the living room. And then, silence. The howling hushed, and I happily went back to sleep.
Last night Rob and I awoke to another rendition of the same refrain. "Rrmmph," I complained into my pillow. Bridget was curled against my belly. She lifted her head to listen, and then leapt off the bed. I could envision her marching out there, giving a stern glare and growling, "Shut. The Fuck. UP."
The serenade stopped. And then Bridget was back, bounding onto the bed and settling into her spot. I swear I saw her brush the palms of her paws against each other, like, "Well, that oughta take care of that." And it did. We had sweet silence for the rest of the night.
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I love Bridget. That is a cat I can respect.
Bridget means business! My Mom used to swear that one cat would yeowl like that until he found the other cat. Simon and Maylee are probably doing it to be little wise-a** kitties to Bridget. Out there laughing at her until she comes and makes them shut up.
She runs a tight ship, eh?
hehheh I just had to youtube yodelling cats. They're such a cute phenomenon!
Here and Here
Bridgie sounds like a take-no-shit capt'n.
kitties' leitmotif: orgiastic gambit
I've always wondered what was up with that nighttime howling thing. It seems to get worse as the cat gets older. A couple friends of mine who have reeeeeaaally old cats have the same problem. They blame senility. I say the cats are calling to their people. The funniest part is that one friend's cat is very deaf and his nighttime yelling sounds strangely off tonally and inappropriately loud just like a hearing impaired person's voice sometimes does. Cracks me up.
Yoshi doesn't seem to yowl any more during the night than she does in daylight hours. However, like you, I've gotten up very quickly when I've heard a yodel style never heard before expecting to see Yoshi writhing around in pain and I always get that look that says, "WHAT?" as she sits there calmly.
Basically what I am trying to say is WTF!?
I suspect Simon, because it sounds most like his voice...
That? Cracked my shit UP. Hee.
Love you.
A friend of mine once stayed with a group of musicians at a place where there were several Siamese cats. And one of the females was in heat.
He went to bed and the yowling started. And went on. And on. And on. The way only Siamese cats can yowl, that creepy, almost but not quite human way.
And it went on. And on.
And on.
And finally, out of the darkness, a plaintive cry:
"Will somebody PLEASE fuck that cat?"
kitties' lullaby: operatic gale
Our cats will howl when they see another cat outside. We discovered this the first night in our new house in the country. We went to bed and woke up to the most god-awful noises imaginable. We went to investigate and on our deck was a ratty old barn cat. It turns out that the old lady who owned the house before us used to leave food out for him.
It sends even our sweetest cat into a puffy-tailed frenzy, hissing and spitting and howling. The other two just howl and growl.
So, do you have a deck? 'Cause that may be the issue ... and Bridget walks over to the window, knocks a few times and says, "Don't make me come out there ..." and the ratty ol' cat pisses off.
Just a thought.
If you could somehow clone her into a cat that stops babies from crying in the middle of the night, I believe that you would become richer than Bill Gates.
Yeah, MayB, she's a good one.
Hmm, Jenski, perhaps Simon and Maylee are playing Marco Polo.
Ern, she gets her bitchiness from me.
Oh dear lord, jane, I just played the first video and Bridget about jumped out of her skin. Ears perked, tail poofed, and some serious spazzing began. I had to stop the video because I was afraid it would give her another pee problem! She's still looking suspiciously over her shoulder...
That's hilarious about the deaf cat, Kranki. Simon's nighttime cries sometimes sound like he's lost. The meows sound confused and end in a question. Sounds a lot like, "Hel-LO?" And I'm like, "Simon? We're in the bedroom, buddy! Follow the sound of my voice!"
LadyBug, sometimes I make the cats sing for their supper. They all meow, meow, meow and it cracks us up because they really do have different little "voices." Bridget has a more guttural, impatient meow, and Simon's are multi-syllabic, and Maylee will look you right in the eye, open her mouth wide, and go MEW. :)
If only Bucky had been there, nils.
Oooh, very good one, LB!
Hi Erin! It's a good thought. Although, Bridget is the only one who seems bothered by other cats. There was one outside the window just this morning, and Bridget was snorting and swishing her tail back and forth and running from window and window, and Simon was sitting there like YAWN. Maylee, too. I have wondered if maybe they are playing with a toy or chasing a bug, though. They both sometimes meow like that when they're stalking. Which is a terrible technique, but whatever.
That would be awesome, UCM. I'm actually curious to see how Bridget would react to a crying baby. (Not that curious - don't you start a rumor!) She's never encountered one, as far as I know. I'm pretty sure it would piss her off.
Bridget sounds like she is all that. *snap snap snap* (in a zig-zag formation)
I just mentally high-fived myself because you used my tagline this week.
Just thought I'd let you know.
Hee. :)
She would appreciate that, Danielle. :)
Hee, LadyBug. I would have given myself a mental high-five just for coming up with such brilliance.