When I was a child our Siamese cat Daisy used to do this with a cactus in our home until one of us would pull her away. She wanted to smell it so badly. We usually kept it on a high shelf.
Well, Lupin seems to have left it alone after one bad experience and Puck took it’s formidable appearance as adequate warning. It’s only Elvis that lacks a learning curve.
I grew up in the Sonoran desert, and Cholla *are* evil. And, of course, the way that desert kids learn to respect cactus is the painful way… I was dumped out of a wheelbarrow on top of a barrel cactus when I was about ten, by my “playful” cousins. Little bastards.
When my nephew was a toddler, he was always, inexplicably, drawn to the cactus my parents had on their deck. He just had to touch it, but my parents were always on the lookout. Until the day my mom went inside to answer the phone and 3 year old Zack couldn’t control himself anymore and touched the cactus. Those few thorny things turned into so so many teeny tiny little stickers, all stuck in his chubby little toddler palm. It took forever to get them all out. However, unlike poor Elvis, that was all he needed to know about the cactus, firsthand. He never went near it again.
Out here in Tucson, we have many different cactus plants. Our indoor/outdoor guy Sebastian Cat-Butt will often show up with cactus spines somewhere in his body (once in his tongue!). This usually means he’s been rasslin’ with someone and rolled into a cactus bed!
One of my cats (who is part siamese) likes to *lick* my cactus. It has the very short prickles which are barely visible but will imbed themselves in your skin and cause irritation for days…. he doesn’t seem to have gotten them in his nose yet, but not for lack of trying.
So true. I just had a “discussion” with my kitten on plants. She like to dig all the dirt out of the plant and put it on the floor. I have all my plants high up and out of reach except one that she got into. The others have foil over the dirt and that seems to be working.
I will have to get a cactus and see if that will work.
my sister puts rocks on top of the soil in the plants for just this reason! my cat acorn doesn’t even bother my plants, but I have wheat grass for him!
Take some 1/4″ hardware cloth and cut it big enough to cover the dirt and be able to tuck in around the edges (imagine for a moment that the plant isn’t there). Cut a hole in the center of it for the plant, and cut a line from the hole out to the edge so you can put it in around the plant. Fold under all the bare ends of wire (if you use metal) that are left so the cat can’t stab his little toes on them. Plastic is preferable, or stainless steel, as neither will rust. Do NOT use galvanized, because it will kill the plant. Install the mesh flush with the top of the soil (and maybe even add a little extra soil on top of it) so you can still feel the moisture content of the soil.
Georgia, this was PRICELESS! Their poor little noses. . . and the impossibility of leaving it alone.
Also, so glad to have you back after your latest adventurous move. We missed your wonderful strips, but certainly understood the need to attend to your immediate needs. As a child, and until my 50’s as an adult, I moved every 2-4 years: including from coast to coast and back again. Most of these moves included from 3 to 6 cats–so I can certainly identify with your experiences. I’ve lived in my latest house since 2001, which seems incredible. Unfortunately, lack of moving has led to an exponential increase in stuff–although my current 8 cats much prefer staying put!
Cactus and Cats – heaven help them both! Georgia! You are on the front page of Gocomics today! YAAAAAY. Now I won’t have to beg for it at the top of the page. It’s the one that shows Lupin’s revenge for the hairball incident. I’m so glad you’re back and hope you find some place wonderful as soon as can possibly be. I doubt you’ll find anything like the pink house in RI, though. Different needs for different kinds of weather, alas.
Our feral born, insane cat got into a boxing match with the large cactus once. She’d hit it with her paw, jerk back, and look outraged. Then she’d hit it again. This went on for five minutes before I finally picked her up and removed her from the situation, or she might still be there trying to beat the damn thing.
When I was younger, my aunt had a big bunch of cactus in her front yard. They would get yellow blooms on them that resembled daffodils. Once she had some new neighbors move next door and their teen-age boys thought it was great fun to pull up my aunts flowers as soon as they bloomed. The neer-do-well’s parents didn’t believe that their little angels would do such a thing, so the herbicide continued all spring. They pulled up the easter lilies, they pulled up the tulips, they pulled up all of my aunt’s flowers and then they saw those pretty yellow flowers on the wide flat green leaves. Needless to say the miscreants stopped their reign of floral terror rather quickly, kind of hard to deny destruction with one’s hands full of Texas spine weed.
My kitties LOVE to chew on plants – real or silk. I don’t dare buy a cactus because I KNOW they’d try it out – and probably multiple times. Poor, stubborn Elvis!
I would have thought that “Son of a DOG.” would be the derogatory term a cat would use! I have three girls (sister litter-mates). Whenever they have disagreements I have always interpreted their dirty looks as: “You dirty dog…”
As sisters I thought that they’d get along like a pride of lions, but they are totally individual cats, if I didn’t tell you they were related, you wouldn’t ever guess.
Even Elvis — dear determined warrior that he is — may learn eventually. But frankly, I’m on The Woman’s side, here. I, too, have learned the benefits of having plants that can defend themselves! ‘Sides, cacti and succulents generally thrive on neglect — a definite bonus as far as I’m concerned! Look back on the older strip, “The Woman is trying to have plants again” , to see the effect of putting potted edibles within cat reach. Cleaning dirt and slimy green slicks from the floor gets old fast!
When I was on a camping trip in Mexico and on a hike, one of the girls accidentally tripped and landed on her butt on a cactus next to the path! Ouchie for her, but hilarious for the rest of us!
And yet Elvis cannot rationalize his insatiable desire to investigate the new plant (he IS a reporter, after all) with Tommy’s bizarre “leave it alone” idea.
Lupin’s expressions says it all. Of course Elvis has to test the “armed plant”
Having lived in NW Tucson on two & one half acre cactus farm close to the Catalina mountains 23 years, I know full well the effect of Prickly Pear, Cholla, & other untouchable varieties of desert beauty.
Puck: “So many teeth…”
Elvis: “SON OF A CAT!”
Tommy: “Has anyone tried leaving it alone?”
Truly hilarious and laugh-out-loud funny. Well done!
Our black cat, Thistle (Puck’s apparent twin), is named for being “soft and prickly” but not that way. He does nibble the spider plants though, and often with unpleasant results.
Just so you know…I tried to share to Facebook and was blocked, I think because the URL has “armed and dangerous” in it. I’ve told them it’s an error, but they may contact the page originator.
We had a much-loved rescue cat named Rose; she was too smart to sniff the cactus someone gave me to keep for them, but we put it up hgih, high, anyhow. Rose scaled the heights, many times, and pee’d in the cactus repeated, poisoning the wretched thing. I noticed it was looking bad, and strangely, had cat fur guazeon it’s side….
This is why I don’t have cactus in the house. My cats would be just like Elvis. They always get into the very thing I don’t expect them too. Cats are the best!
So glad to have you and your crew back “on the air”. Nice to read that the voyage was successful, and everyone is enjoying our sunny clime her on the left coast.
“SON of a CAT!” — a worthy curse indeed. I hope that they will soon learn to keep a safe space between cat-curiosity and cacti-obstinacy. Kiss the boo-boos for us.
Cholla’s not the worst by far. There’s one that has the nickname “teddy bear cactus”, and it looks cute and fuzzy, which of course leads certain types of people (like my ex-gf) to want to pet it.
Then you spend the next twenty minutes pulling spines out of their hands.
BCN is one of those comics that I refresh 3-4 times hoping that the page hasn’t loaded yet. My old cat (11, we have had him for over a year (wait, he’s nearly 12. Wow.)) likes to jump in the tub after showers or onto the counter and into the sink when no one is looking…
My old cat Nero, a fan of *hard* cheek skritches, used to rub his cheeks on the spines of the cactus we used to have in our living room. I finally had to move it, because I was afraid (like all good parents, I suppose) that he’d put his eye out.
Elvis has needed a new nemesis!
Oh, dear – I hope this one isn’t based on real life!
Haha yeah that would be bad.
When I was a child our Siamese cat Daisy used to do this with a cactus in our home until one of us would pull her away. She wanted to smell it so badly. We usually kept it on a high shelf.
It appears she did smell it badly (as in not doing a good job of it).
I, too, figured out what “armed and dangerous” meant before reading further. That is so the Boys’ opinion. You nailed it.
I Love the band-aid on Lupin’s nose!
Silly Tommy, of Course no one has thought of leaving the new intruder alone!
Well, Lupin seems to have left it alone after one bad experience and Puck took it’s formidable appearance as adequate warning. It’s only Elvis that lacks a learning curve.
Well, Elvis IS Siamese, after all. They only have two modes… sleep and attack! They don’t know anything about this “learn” of which you speak.
Ouch! I can feel the prickles from here! Why I will never venture into the desert! google cholla. Stuff of nightmares.
girls with painted on eyebrows care scary, but have little to do with cacti?
LOL! Perhaps “Cholla Tree” would be a better Google search term
cholla: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cylindropuntia
I think you are referring to “cholo”.
My mistake: “chola”, not “cholo”
Correct! Cholla are evil. Don’t even look at them. Although they do have pretty flowers in the spring.
I grew up in the Sonoran desert, and Cholla *are* evil. And, of course, the way that desert kids learn to respect cactus is the painful way… I was dumped out of a wheelbarrow on top of a barrel cactus when I was about ten, by my “playful” cousins. Little bastards.
Tommy – the voice of reason!
When my nephew was a toddler, he was always, inexplicably, drawn to the cactus my parents had on their deck. He just had to touch it, but my parents were always on the lookout. Until the day my mom went inside to answer the phone and 3 year old Zack couldn’t control himself anymore and touched the cactus. Those few thorny things turned into so so many teeny tiny little stickers, all stuck in his chubby little toddler palm. It took forever to get them all out. However, unlike poor Elvis, that was all he needed to know about the cactus, firsthand. He never went near it again.
What is this “leave it alone” of which you speak?
Out here in Tucson, we have many different cactus plants. Our indoor/outdoor guy Sebastian Cat-Butt will often show up with cactus spines somewhere in his body (once in his tongue!). This usually means he’s been rasslin’ with someone and rolled into a cactus bed!
The band aid on the nose KILLS! Hilarious. Well, unless you’re the one requiring the band aid.
Ouch!! Poor Kitties. My two could give them a tip on Cactus. “Do not get close!”
One of my cats (who is part siamese) likes to *lick* my cactus. It has the very short prickles which are barely visible but will imbed themselves in your skin and cause irritation for days…. he doesn’t seem to have gotten them in his nose yet, but not for lack of trying.
“Son of a cat!” I love it! May just become my new catchphrase….
The band-aid! “Son of a cat!” <3
So true. I just had a “discussion” with my kitten on plants. She like to dig all the dirt out of the plant and put it on the floor. I have all my plants high up and out of reach except one that she got into. The others have foil over the dirt and that seems to be working.
I will have to get a cactus and see if that will work.
As always love the adventures of the boys.
my sister puts rocks on top of the soil in the plants for just this reason! my cat acorn doesn’t even bother my plants, but I have wheat grass for him!
Take some 1/4″ hardware cloth and cut it big enough to cover the dirt and be able to tuck in around the edges (imagine for a moment that the plant isn’t there). Cut a hole in the center of it for the plant, and cut a line from the hole out to the edge so you can put it in around the plant. Fold under all the bare ends of wire (if you use metal) that are left so the cat can’t stab his little toes on them. Plastic is preferable, or stainless steel, as neither will rust. Do NOT use galvanized, because it will kill the plant. Install the mesh flush with the top of the soil (and maybe even add a little extra soil on top of it) so you can still feel the moisture content of the soil.
I hate that the cactus doesn’t “play nice” with Elvis, but is being a jerk!
I think my favorite part is Elvis calling the cactus a jerk. So Elvis!
Man that cactus can really make a cat-cuss
Haha!!
Hahahaa!!
Georgia, this was PRICELESS! Their poor little noses. . . and the impossibility of leaving it alone.
Also, so glad to have you back after your latest adventurous move. We missed your wonderful strips, but certainly understood the need to attend to your immediate needs. As a child, and until my 50’s as an adult, I moved every 2-4 years: including from coast to coast and back again. Most of these moves included from 3 to 6 cats–so I can certainly identify with your experiences. I’ve lived in my latest house since 2001, which seems incredible. Unfortunately, lack of moving has led to an exponential increase in stuff–although my current 8 cats much prefer staying put!
Have we ever seen Elvis’ mouth get that wide?
Poor boys. As soon as I saw the first panel on Facebook I knew what the new plant was going to be.
Cactus and Cats – heaven help them both! Georgia! You are on the front page of Gocomics today! YAAAAAY. Now I won’t have to beg for it at the top of the page. It’s the one that shows Lupin’s revenge for the hairball incident. I’m so glad you’re back and hope you find some place wonderful as soon as can possibly be. I doubt you’ll find anything like the pink house in RI, though. Different needs for different kinds of weather, alas.
Brilliant… Poor cats!
Our feral born, insane cat got into a boxing match with the large cactus once. She’d hit it with her paw, jerk back, and look outraged. Then she’d hit it again. This went on for five minutes before I finally picked her up and removed her from the situation, or she might still be there trying to beat the damn thing.
Can we convince Elvis that it’s acupuncture & good for him? (No, that would be mean.)
I was lucky that my Maggie cat never went after the cactus. Everything else, yes.
I love that Elvis recognizes it as another living creature. One who is a jerk, but another living creature nonetheless.
“You WILL be sniffed!!” Elvis
LEAVE IT ALONE!!!!!! Tommy is definitely the smart one and sadly, Elvis is the stubborn but dumb one!
When I was younger, my aunt had a big bunch of cactus in her front yard. They would get yellow blooms on them that resembled daffodils. Once she had some new neighbors move next door and their teen-age boys thought it was great fun to pull up my aunts flowers as soon as they bloomed. The neer-do-well’s parents didn’t believe that their little angels would do such a thing, so the herbicide continued all spring. They pulled up the easter lilies, they pulled up the tulips, they pulled up all of my aunt’s flowers and then they saw those pretty yellow flowers on the wide flat green leaves. Needless to say the miscreants stopped their reign of floral terror rather quickly, kind of hard to deny destruction with one’s hands full of Texas spine weed.
My kitties LOVE to chew on plants – real or silk. I don’t dare buy a cactus because I KNOW they’d try it out – and probably multiple times. Poor, stubborn Elvis!
I love “Son of a cat!” Poor Lupin.
Haha, love it! Poor kitties, and Tommy the only sensible one.
“Son of a cat!”
Brilliant! Made me laugh after a naff day at work
I just hope precious Pucky doesn’t get pricked. Love the horror on his face when Elvis screams. Glad to see Tommy again.
Curiosity . . . . .? One of Nine lives has prickly holes in it!
I would have thought that “Son of a DOG.” would be the derogatory term a cat would use! I have three girls (sister litter-mates). Whenever they have disagreements I have always interpreted their dirty looks as: “You dirty dog…”
As sisters I thought that they’d get along like a pride of lions, but they are totally individual cats, if I didn’t tell you they were related, you wouldn’t ever guess.
Nice to see the Robber Mice Christmas present getting some use! Reminds me of our cats discovering the holly bushes when we moved. Poor kitties!
Even Elvis — dear determined warrior that he is — may learn eventually. But frankly, I’m on The Woman’s side, here. I, too, have learned the benefits of having plants that can defend themselves! ‘Sides, cacti and succulents generally thrive on neglect — a definite bonus as far as I’m concerned! Look back on the older strip, “The Woman is trying to have plants again” , to see the effect of putting potted edibles within cat reach. Cleaning dirt and slimy green slicks from the floor gets old fast!
Thank goodness cactuses only attack when provoked, I don’t think I’d cope otherwise.
“Son of a CAT !!”, Georgia – you are marvelous !!!
Like the saying goes, we know what curiosity does to cats! Unfortunately, they never were good at listening!!! Oh my giddy kitty!!!
Oh dear – worse than the cactus will be the bandaid coming off!
When I was on a camping trip in Mexico and on a hike, one of the girls accidentally tripped and landed on her butt on a cactus next to the path! Ouchie for her, but hilarious for the rest of us!
I, too, love the “Son of a cat!.” Sorry your kitty and a cat’s tendency to sniff everything had to come to blows and howls. Shoulda listened to Tommy.
“Puck’s” little cup got hurt…
Don’t swear, Dad Cat. Particularly not around the Toddler.
Tommy… so sensible.
And yet Elvis cannot rationalize his insatiable desire to investigate the new plant (he IS a reporter, after all) with Tommy’s bizarre “leave it alone” idea.
Lupin’s expressions says it all. Of course Elvis has to test the “armed plant”
Having lived in NW Tucson on two & one half acre cactus farm close to the Catalina mountains 23 years, I know full well the effect of Prickly Pear, Cholla, & other untouchable varieties of desert beauty.
Thank catness for leftover Band-aids from Natasha’s gift to Elvis?
Haha! Yes!
Puck: “So many teeth…”
Elvis: “SON OF A CAT!”
Tommy: “Has anyone tried leaving it alone?”
Truly hilarious and laugh-out-loud funny. Well done!
Our black cat, Thistle (Puck’s apparent twin), is named for being “soft and prickly” but not that way. He does nibble the spider plants though, and often with unpleasant results.
Ooh, I love that name!
Really glad i’m not a cat right now
Google “jumping cholla” if you want to take it to the next level !
Poor Elvis…a new “thing” is impossible to leave alone.(Don’t ask about the Princess and her pole dancing)
Just so you know…I tried to share to Facebook and was blocked, I think because the URL has “armed and dangerous” in it. I’ve told them it’s an error, but they may contact the page originator.
We had a much-loved rescue cat named Rose; she was too smart to sniff the cactus someone gave me to keep for them, but we put it up hgih, high, anyhow. Rose scaled the heights, many times, and pee’d in the cactus repeated, poisoning the wretched thing. I noticed it was looking bad, and strangely, had cat fur guazeon it’s side….
I once knew a toddler who thought that sort of plant was called a cat kiss. He was around cats and knew they had tongues like a rasp.
Lupin is trying so hard to be an objective reporter!
Oh, I love that!
Please help fund my cat’s very expensive surgery and share please!
https://www.gofundme.com/surgery4dottie
This is why I don’t have cactus in the house. My cats would be just like Elvis. They always get into the very thing I don’t expect them too. Cats are the best!
Elvis is priceless, love Tommy, funny comic today, poor kitties!
So glad to have you and your crew back “on the air”. Nice to read that the voyage was successful, and everyone is enjoying our sunny clime her on the left coast.
“SON of a CAT!” — a worthy curse indeed. I hope that they will soon learn to keep a safe space between cat-curiosity and cacti-obstinacy. Kiss the boo-boos for us.
Haha!! “Son of a Cat!” Brilliant!
Poor Elvis . . . this is one inedible plant, my dear. *sigh*
That was a cruel thing to do to the boys.
Hilarious but cruel.
Cholla’s not the worst by far. There’s one that has the nickname “teddy bear cactus”, and it looks cute and fuzzy, which of course leads certain types of people (like my ex-gf) to want to pet it.
Then you spend the next twenty minutes pulling spines out of their hands.
My cat has the same problem with cacti! xD
Owies! Poor kitties! Listen to Tommy.
First rule of cat: Everything must be sniffed
Why is this in Food and Dining? I’m just wondering since cacti isn’t food.
For the cats all of the plants are considered edible, whether they *actually* are or not.
BCN is one of those comics that I refresh 3-4 times hoping that the page hasn’t loaded yet. My old cat (11, we have had him for over a year (wait, he’s nearly 12. Wow.)) likes to jump in the tub after showers or onto the counter and into the sink when no one is looking…
Is there going to be a Super Bowl 50 special :3
Can we get panel 4 on the Facebook page? It is adorable.
I will try!!
My old cat Nero, a fan of *hard* cheek skritches, used to rub his cheeks on the spines of the cactus we used to have in our living room. I finally had to move it, because I was afraid (like all good parents, I suppose) that he’d put his eye out.
My cat’s love to eat plants especially met mets (her nick name)so I have to toss small things at her