The cat in hot weather
I have a ragdoll cat. He’s pretty big with long legs. A great jumper with long, soft fur and a congenial personality. But he’s a house cat. I don’t let his outside or take him outside, for safety and health reasons. I suppose he gets bored in the house and wants exercise, but ….
In the hot weather he lies on the floor in the most inconvenient places. He finds a place that feels cool against his body, through his fur, and he stretches out there. I have to be constantly on my guard not to step on him or trip over him. Sometimes it’s really annoying.
His favorite places are the floor of the shower room, the floor of the “genkan” entryway, just inside the door, and the linoleum floor of the kitchen. Sometimes I worry if I haven’t seen him for a while. If I call his name he might not come. So, I have to get up and search for him. These three places are always my first targets. When I come home I have to open my door very carefully to check that he’s not lying right there by my feet. Or, he hears the elevator arrive on my floor and he might run to the door and position himself to run out as soon as I open it, because he’s learned the association of the arriving elevator with the opening door. So, I have to be careful at the door.
More than once I’ve gone into the shower in the morning, closed the door and turned on the water only to discover the cat crouching in a corner after I’ve started.
Even if I am busy in the kitchen he won’t move. He stubborn stays stretched out in the middle of the floor - the most inconvenient place. Dangerous, too, if I’m handling pots and dishes, or have my hands full of food as I move to another room.