Here is the cat. Here is the cat flap.
Here is a mathematical equation. Cat into flap = cat through flap. Not. He won't go anywhere near it and instead, mews piteously to be let in and out through the patio doors.
We bought the new flap because the old one had broken. The new one had a clear pane so he could see through and assess the dangers lurking outside - other cats, psychopathic mice - before venturing forth. We thought Flad would be delighted. Instead, the new Flad Flap is a total disaster.
We have tried everything. A trail of cat biscuits leading to the flap, gentle pursuasion, spraying the pane dark like his old one, even dropping something with a clang, which normally has him scrabbling through at a rate of knots. But this time, he just tried to claw his way up the wall instead. Nothing works. A cat psychologist is sorely needed. Don't suggest catnip. Flad is immune to it, unlike old Bastard Cat who turned into Pervo Puss, rolling in orgasmic paroxysms all over the lawn at the slightest whiff. Help!
4 comments:
Our Tiggsey is immune to catnip, too. We don't have a catflap because, having had the house flooded 4 times and now having special doors and seals fitted, we don't want to be making holes in them at water level.
Tiggsey, as I often remark, needs a full-time, uniformed commissionaire. He'll ask to come in through the front door and then march straight through the house and out through the, already open, back door. He uses the bathroom window as a catflap and jumps out onto the flat roof below, leaving the window wide open. He doesn't often come back in via that route, as it means heaving himself up the window. He did do it once when Beloved had just got out of the shower and nearly gave the poor man a heart attack.
Anyway, I digress... Have you tried putting the foot on the OUTSIDE of the catflap, or putting the food on the inside and Flad on the outside? You could try propping the flap open so he can see the food's there. Don't keep opening the door for him when he asks, because, like all cats, he'll keep on letting you do it. Failing all else, SHOVE him through the catflap a few times and then he should get the idea.
Good luck!
Beloved has just suggested that going through the catflap on the toe-end of a (cowboy) booted foot will probably speed Flad along.:-)
I love the idea of the cowboy-toed boot up the furry jaxy!
Second thoughts, my last remark sounded rather cruel. Didn't mean it, Flad my dear!
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