Ladies and Gentlemen, it’s “Cat Poop Day.”
Not just today, but every day is Cat Poop Day.
Why?
Because cats around the world, both domestic and wild, poop every day. Yes, every day. It’s a thing they do, much like humans, to extol the virtues of cleansing the body of stuff they don’t need.
The cause?
It’s food. Those darn cats eat food every day. Sometimes several times a day…meat, grains, meat, vegetables, meat, fuzz off the carpet, etc. So, some of what goes in must come out. Gibbs and Ziva concur. Although they eat a very good product, there is still bodily waste and they still poop. I continue to scoop their poop as the three of us have a symbiotic relationship: I feed, they poop, I scoop, they run.
Yes, sometimes the run is good after the poop. A crazy run.
“Some say post-poop freak-outs, or ” zoomies,” are a carryover survival instinct, so that predators can’t trace the smell back to the kitty responsible for it. Others, including a veterinarian, say that it can be a sign of discomfort stemming from food allergies or even an infection. Still others, including another veterinarian, say that using the litter box might lend some fresh energy to cats, and they burn off the high with a favorite exercise: running frantically around the house. It could also be that cats run to cast off any remnants of waste. Or perhaps kitties sprint, some cat lovers speculate, because they can’t stand the smell of their own droppings.” ~The Dodo~
The latter would be Gibbs. I can’t stand the smell of his poop, so I can only imagine how it affects Gibbs, the mountain lion, especially when he’s in too much of a hurry to cover up. Stinky boy!
One morning, as I was scooping feline waste out of the litter box and placing it in a bag-lined, five-gallon ice cream pail, Natasha was headed down the hall. She could only see the latter half of me, kneeling behind a large Le Chat Noir privacy screen. “What are you doing?” she asked.
“I’m praying to Jesus.”
That was my dead-pan response. I don’t know why I said that and wonder if The Man upstairs chuckled or gave me demerits, but both Natasha and I had a good laugh over it. Now, when Natasha sees me huddled over the clumps in the box, she will ask, “Are you praying to Jesus?”
Why yes, yes I am!
I am praying for the health of Gibbs and Ziva, that they live long lives, and that the mountain lion learns to cover up his smelly leftovers. (That would be good, Jesus, if you could put a bug in Gibbs’ furry ear.) As long as I’m kneeling and inhaling cat litter dust, I may as well do something positive.
While I’m scooping and praying, dear peeps, enjoy Cat Poop Day. It’s not an official holiday, but it’s a reminder that faithful, caring cat people are doing their best to keep the litter box under control and the world a more fragrant place in which to live.
If you’re not a cat person, feel free to have your own special day. Perhaps Dog Drool Day?
Linda G. Hill has her own glorious day: One-Liner Wednesday. Click HERE to see the details and feel free to play along by posting your own one-liner and linking your post to Linda’s Wednesday words of wisdom.
Mary J Melange 
Great post for the holiday, Mary. Every cat owner, or every human who is owned by cats, understands.
I’m going to go with the “don’t let the others know that that’s my stuff in there” instinct. In other words, maybe you’ll think it was Ziva’s poop. I think the man upstairs has to have a sense of humor, but he probably chuckles, shakes his head and says: “I never expected them to take those little lions inside…”
Interestingly enough, I had to take the cat poop out to the garbage this morning. So, it really is Cat Poop Day. I imagine God didn’t expect a lot of things from us, but he’s probably glad we take care of his furry little beasts.
I like to think he appreciates our effort.
By the way, you get 10,000 of my special brand of bonus points for completely ignoring the whole one-line thing 🙂
Awesome, thanks! I hope Linda doesn’t take away the 10,000 bonus points because of my wordiness. I felt I couldn’t quite get the gist of the one-liner without telling a story. I’m like my dad that way. He could never tell short stories.
I think I know how he felt 😉
… and an additional 10,000 points from me for having cat poop and Jesus in the same post 🙂
I’m wondering if not covering up might be a male cat thing. Theo does it too. Not all the time, but most of it. Perhaps he leaves uncovered only those of which he is particularly proud. That’s my theory 🙂
Oh boy, more bonus points! Thanks, Joanne! It certainly could be a male cat thing as I have never had issue with Ziva’s litter box habits. She always covers her stuff up. Theo can be proud of his poop as long as its in the box and not somewhere else…right?
Exactly! I’m not very happy with his I’m-going-to-make-your-life-hell poop in the cat carrier whenever he has to go in the car
Oh boy. Someone is scared poopless to be in the car. Poor Theo.
You’re feeling sorry for the Poopster?! What about poor me having to clean up both an uncooperative cat AND the carrier?!
Poor, poor, poor Joanne. She’s up to her elbows in sh*t. My sincere sympathy.
LOL!!! I feel so much better now 😀
So, from our double male cat household to yours, I have a question – how often do you have to pray to Jesus? My hubby is the designated pooper scooper here and reports diligently every. single. day. For example, last night – “Today we had 8 pees and 4 poos. And Black Cat is the one who builds the mini mountains in the litter box.
By the way, my theory is that the post litterbox crazy run is because it feels so good to have empty bowels, once again.
I pray to Jesus every morning. If I come home after work and someone forgot to cover…again…then I might pray again in the afternoon. I got in the habit of 1-2 times a day scooping when I used to have three cats. That was a lot of poop and litter! No, I don’t keep track of what the kids let go of every day. I figure that’s their business.
I believe the man upstairs appreciates a good joke like the rest of us. As for me, I’d like to have a reason to celebrate dog hair day.
I believe Dog Hair Day is also every day. Get out the lint roller and celebrate!
My theory too after they poop is that it feels so good to have released the poop. We have had a recent increase in the amount of pee she leaves behind and to the vet she went, because it could be related to kidney issues. Thankfully it wasn’t. So her box gets cleaned out twice a day. I never thought of using that time to pray. Good idea!
I’m glad your kitty didn’t have kidney or urinary tract issues. That’s a health problem I had in one of my boys many years ago and it wasn’t fun. Keep on scooping and praying and Happy Healthy Cat Poop Day to you!
We have three cats and two boxes and scooping is done three times a week, and filling (dumping and washing if necessary) is done on God’s day, because the trash collectors come on Monday 🙂 I do not pray while I sift. Having thought about it, I can honestly say I have never prayed while sifting, even on Sunday.
I could perhaps muster a prayer about Gibbs’ scent when I’m in there next…
Catticus must do his business in private. No one can be in the room during and then he darts out immediately after, as though it’s meant to be a secret. Clara saunters in and out and she doesn’t mind if someone’s in there, but peacefully — not shaking out linens or screaming at the furnace 😉 Cletus cares not about peace or privacy, has no modesty, and may not know he’s a cat? He must always watch the sifting and be the first to make in it after. They’re peculiar and I hadn’t much thought about it before.
The dog thinks the cat poo is nectar of the gods and I JUDGE HER.
I love Le Chat Noir divider, tres chic, Mary!
It’s so interesting how cats and dogs have such personality differences, the same as humans. I’m chuckling at how each of your three cats uses the litter box, especially bashful Catticus. Too funny! I used to have three cats and I tell ya, I went through a lot of litter at the time. Two of my guys were 15 and 19 lb cats and left quite the mess of poo. I had to scoop their litter every day or twice a day to keep it from being a disaster.
Why do dogs love cat poo so much? Must be the protein. Does it taste like chicken? 😉
Catticus is big, but 13 lbs big, so not big compared to your other kitties.
It is the protein, said the vet. I don’t know what it tastes like, but it does NOT smell like chicken 😉
LOL! I’ll agree with that!
In 39+ years of tending to far too many cats, we’ve scooped a lot of poop. With a couple of my current clowder, which is the end of the line because we’re old and I’m crippled, we’re wondering what climbed into them and died. One of them runs around the house like a crazy cat after she poops; I think she’s trying to get away from the smell. We’ve taken to calling it her victory lap…
LOL! I love that you call it her victory lap! Ah yes, the victory in relieving the bowels, smelling up the room, and running away like kitty bad nothing to do with any of it. Bravo!
Hilarious 😂
Thanks! Cat poop is pretty funny, isn’t it?
Apparently!!! 😀 🌷
Love cats. But ours were the fixed, roaming kind. Of course they stayed at hime mostly. Now and then when Sylvester mewed enough, we let him in for his glorious thirty minutes of indoor life with us humans. Helolled around on the floor, licking his treasures luxusriously until he became bored, ralizing inside was not nearly so glorious as out, then began his “let me out” chorus. Unfortunately, cats don’t under the old “In or out, make up your mind!” command we got as kids. I had four children, at least two of who were in diapers for a brief moment in time at the same time, so no litter boxes for me. I was already in poop hell! Sorry Jesus.
“Licking his treasures luxuriously…”
LOL! There’s a fine image, Cheryl! I can understand you not wanting to scoop poop with two kids in diapers. That would be poop overload. I think when cat spend most of their time outdoors, that’s where they prefer to be. Except in the north…where I’m sure all outdoor felines are searching for the warmth of inside when it’s -20 degrees.
Thanks Mary! I just often don’t pay attention to the details. My weekly work is very detail oriented but my spirit is like a little girl, flying across a meadow, completely oblivious to the ribbon so carefully tied to hold her ponytail as it slips from her hair into the tall grass behind her. The wind is just too engrossing for such trivailaities! 😀 God bless the cat lovers of the North then. Jesus would not like kitty-sicles all over the place. Of this I am certain…
Oh my the typos! Feel free to edit. ☹️
No worries, Cheryl. I maintain the SOCs viewpoint when others comment…let it roll and let it be. I usually know what you mean and if I don’t, I’ll ask.
I’m hanging my head as I admit I’m not a cat person. I was a dog person for many years so I do get the drool issue. 🙂
Judy, you don’t have to hang your head. I understand that cats are not for everyone. I’m just happy that you provided a home for one of God’s furry creatures. 🙂
omigoddess i missed this one how did i miss this one i just sent it to sooooo many people the best ever!
No worries, Katie. I miss posts too. I’m glad you loved this enough to pass it around 😊
and Mary, the reason they run is they know how to celebrate a good dump! We should all do that!
Okay, I’ll try that next time! 😄
And I printed and sent it to my mom…
Good deal!
OMG, I followed you from Dan Antion’s blog and I’m SO GLAD! I “pray to Jesus” twice a day here and twice a day at my mother’s. “Gibbs and Ziva”! As an NCIS fan, I have to adore that!
Marian, welcome to my corner of insanity and for praying so much. Gibbs, Ziva, Jesus and I thank you! What do you think of the cast since Michael Weatherly departed? I miss Tony, but I also like the new characters.
I’m the same. I LOVE Quinn. Still don’t like Ellie, but I’m coming to tolerate her. Love the new guys, though the Brit hasn’t gone much beyond eye candy yet.
How I laughed at this, Mary! I have 11 cats so you can well imagine what I go through scooping. And yes I know that wild run only too well! My two sense: The relief of dumping a big one was so great, the cat just runs wild in ecstasy! LOL As for praying to Jesus … too funny. I actually “hear” many of my small sayings while scooping out litters and I have to make a wild dash for my pen and paper to get those words before they are gone. So let me think about this a minute. My cats wildly dash and I do as well. Must be the smell firing off neurons. LOL ❤
OMCat. Or should that be OMBast? OMJesus? Thanks for the link, Mary J. This is cat-tastic.
(To that one vet, Crystal has terrible IBD and allergies — she has to eat prescription food, but never does the post-poop zoom.) I have seen my cats do it to shake off a “dingle berry” — but sometimes they just zoom… no reason. I guess a good poop just feels good. LOL. Terrific post. You’re the cat’s pajamas! 🐱
My cats were zooming last night, but I didn’t check to see if they left a lump in the litter box. On a warm day in the winter, I’ll leave the patio door open a kitty crack and Gibbs will zoom in and out like a crazy fool, but that probably has something to do with the outside weather and feeling his oats.
So sorry about Crystal and her issues. Give her a good scritch or rub wherever she likes it from me. Purrs on the fur! ^_^
Love “Purrs on the fur!” ❤