Chris considers the gymnastic prowess of Alfie and Sam . . .
Chris Pascoe’s Fun Tales
I’m currently looking after Sam and Alfie, a couple of roguish one-year-old cats whose energy levels border on dangerous.
If Alfie’s got his face in a food bowl, Sam will jump on his head, splatting him face-first down into his own dinner, leaving him dazed, confused and dripping in gravy.
And, if Sam’s distracted by birds through the kitchen window, Alfie will swoop down from the units above, taking Alfie in the midriff and sending them both into a heap on the draining board.
Or even worse than that, straight into the washing-up bowl.
Alfie’s speciality, though, is sliding down the bannister.
He does this magnificently and with full intent.
He’ll climb on carefully at the very top, let all four white paws drop either side, and then slide straight down like a ginger missile – always regaining his footing remarkably quickly as he nears the bottom.
He then gracefully disembarks in the manner of a skipping foal.
There’s nothing graceful about Sam, though.
Sam has an uncannily un-catlike ability to never land on all four feet.
In fact, he’s better at hitting the ground sideways – which is quite a feat for a cat.
So, while Alfie zips down the bannister at breakneck speeds, an over-excited Sam will often leap for him, miss completely, and crash to the floor at the very same moment Alfie disembarks.
It’s quite a spectacle!
The boys’ playful ways have never been greater than over the last week, due to the presence of a gang of builders at the house.
Builders are the natural enemies of cat-sitters.
I’ve yet to meet a builder who’s managed to keep an indoor cat indoors (a strange inability to shut any door or window).
And, of course, their drilling and hammering doesn’t greatly please the cats, either.
