He's one smart cookie!

I’ve been begging my husband for weeks (although he would say I’ve been begging for months) to get a cat. I didn’t want a kitty who would have to be house trained, ‘fixed,’ and have a ton of shots. I wanted a cat that was just a little older than that. So, on a whim this weekend we headed down to the Humane Society to just ‘look around.’

Looking playful and weighing in at 8.8 pounds was Benson. Every time we walked by his cage he would sniff the plexi-glass as if he was trying to smell us. We laughed at his stupidity and brought him home.

Benson, now named Ammo, lived at the Human Society for about three months. As soon as we let him in our apartment he went crazy. He ran from one end of the apartment to the other on a high speed chase, sniffing his new home on the way.

We spent the weekend getting to know Ammo and we realized just how smart he really is. Here are a couple of examples:

1) Ammo found his food and water bowls within about two hours of being in our apartment. He then continued to eat all the food and drink all the water in his bowl in about an hour.

2) Ammo found his litter box shortly after he ate all the food, and used it. We praised him over and over for this.

3) Ammo found a new hiding spot in our box spring. He ripped a corner of the material off the bottom of the box spring and climbed in. We ripped the bottom material off the box spring so he could get out. Why is this smart? Well, when he sat under the bed he had to hunch over. Now, with no material on the bottom of the box spring, he can sit up straight, his head and neck in the box spring.

4) Ammo used his litter box…only missed. How is this smart? He knew we would be made if we saw his um, fecal matter on the floor. So he buried it in on the floor with the litter that he pawed out of his box.

5) Ammo did laundry. He got a kitchen towel from the hamper and dragged it through a hole the size of about a dime. He then continued to drag the towel, hamper and all, into the hallway where the rest of the laundry was.

6) Ammo knows how to sleep like a human. He curls up on a pillow and meows until someone throws a blanket over him.

7) Ammo knows what time it is. At precisely 6:30 a.m. every morning, he will walk around on my pillow and meow until I wake up. He also knows when my husband goes to work and will wait by the door for him to leave.

It has almost been a week since we got Ammo from the Human Society. In the short time we have had him, he has brought us so much joy and laughter. I am so excited to see what else he has in store for us in the years to come.