Scoop the Poop

My life is literally full of shit since adding three indoor kittens to our singleton pup Brownie.  Social media knows I’m struggling so now I’m being bombarded with ads for self-cleaning kitty litter boxes and, to some extent, timer-timed kitten feeders — along with the wrinkle, cellulite, and unwanted belly fat fixes my demo craves like crack.

Suddenly all my friends seem to know someone with a cat, or cats, who is a better, happier cat mom (or dad), upleveling their cat’s life experience with stimulating play structures, expensive “catios” (Google it), while enjoying a much less poop-intensive relationship.

When Ax is home, he’s down to scoop the litter box - when reminded.  But I haven’t  had the heart (yet) to have him scrub it out.  Apparently there are litter box liners - but that sounds like a recipe for poop-covered shredded plastic to me.

There are people who let their cats outside, and then the cats become outdoor — ie: Outdoor Pooping — cats.  Whether or not to let one’s cat outside raises  some ethical and moral questions. A balancing of circumstances. 

A balancing of, as my vet put it, “shortening your kittens’ lives” vs. dealing with their poop and constant desire to get outside. Plus the dog thing, which turns out is a bigger issue than I thought it would be.  I

guess I just imagined there would be a way to let Brownie go in and out for her business without letting the kittens go in and out. Science may one day accomplish this, but it hasn’t done so yet. So, for today, I am a poop scooper and doggie door mom.  I’ve had worse jobs. I’m gonna keep going.