Update on Ember and the glittery platform shoes

[wnylib]

I removed the glitter, put on the shoes. Ember followed my every step, slinking warily.

And then I discovered why. There was a very faint whooshing sound from the right shoe. So faint that it was hardly detectable by human ears. But cat hearing is superior to ours.

I checked the shoe. There was a tiny gap, about 2 millimeters, between the platform and the cushioned strip on top of it where the foot goes. Every time I took a step, the pressure from the foot pushed a little air through the gap. Could not return the shoes after removing the glitter. So I plugged up the gap with invisible glue. It stopped the air leak.

Poor Ember. She thought the shoe was alive with that sound so similar to a feline hiss. She still does not quite trust the quiet shoe. Maybe she thinks that the shoe monster is just sleeping.

[niyad]

1. One very smart, very observant kitteh! My thought had been that the shoe

had some scent that she did not like.

[wnylib]

3. Nothing gets past Ember without her notice.

All cats have better hearing than humans have. But Ember's hearing is exceptionally good, even for a cat. It is better than any other cat that I've had.

I live in a multi story apartment building on an upper floor. Ember detects when someone gets on the elevator on the ground floor and perks up in an alert posture. She is hyper vigilant with her hearing. She recognizes the sounds of the various footsteps of my neighbors when she hears them walking in the hall. For footsteps that she knows, she only perks up her ears. For ones that she doesn't know, she goes to the door to sniff under it and looks at me as if to ask, "Is it ok?"

She is my watch cat.

[niyad]

4. From personal experience, that hyperacusis can be exhausting.

[wnylib]

5. It is. Many times I am petting her and she is purring contentedly

until she hears a sound that makes her sit up straight, on alert for a few seconds before she settles down for more petting.

She had a very rough, scary early kittenhood in the home that I got her from. I think that's the reason for her hyper vigilance. She was 9 weeks old when I got her and is 7 years old now. But the impression from her early weeks of life is embedded in her.

[niyad]

6. So. . .hyyperacusis AND PTSD. Sweet, wonderful girl.

[wnylib]

7. She really is very sweet and adorable.

She is empathetic, too. Shows concern for me if I seem to be not feeling well or if I accidentally get hurt. At 7, she has mellowed from the hyperactivity she had as a kitten. But she is still playful and enjoys playing pranks on me, like ambushing when I least expect it.

[niyad]

8. My little guy knows if I am upset or angry, and wants to cuddle close. We are

so blessed to share our lives with these amazing beings.

[wnylib]

9. Yes we are.

[Laffy Kat]

2. Poor kitteh. nt