City Kitty

As I was leaving the building this afternoon I met a woman out walking with her cat. I was intrigued so I stopped to chat. I asked her how long it had taken to get the cat comfortable with the harness, she said years. And all of this indoors with the positive reinforcement of MANY treats. Eventually they ventured outside - freak out. Tried again, and again, until he finally became cool with it. She now takes him out regularly, this is all in central urban Portland, not leafy neighborhoods, and he is totally cool. She even takes him to a microbrewery nearby where they let pets in. Amazing.

I told her I thought it was probably too late to start this with Naboo, at 11 years old, plus he's skittish at the best of times. Mr Cat is 4 years old, so this lady started early. Anyway, a fascinating talk and I appreciated her insights.