A few months ago I got my cats The Feathered Flyer in the deluxe package with 5 different attachments. It came with one already attached. It was 2 black-tipped chicken feathers and a pink downy feather. It wasn't long before the delicate downy feather broke. But the 2 chicken feathers took an awful lot of abuse.

Somehow it became a nightly ritual that before I was allowed to go to bed, I had to swing the fishing pole. Djoser would wait, bright-eyed, on his perch by the bed and Amber would eagerly walk beside me as I approached the bed. Then the bird would fly.

The boys would perform the most amazing acrobatics (are there any Cat Olympics?) trying to snag the bird. The pole is bent trying to get the bird loose to fly again and the feathers quickly became bedraggled. But they love it.

Sheba usually sits on her cardboard scratcher watching the action. Occasionally I would swing it her way and she would make a pass at it. But she has never shown the interest that the boys do.

One morning I was waking up with my first cup of coffee when I heard a rather strangled mreow like Sheba does when she has her mouth full of prey. So I go to check on her and find her dragging the flyer with her mouth full of feathers! I have often come home to find the Flyer in the middle of the floor but assumed it was the boys playing with it. Now I know it is Sheba. Dragging it on the floor , it has a tail, and she loves anything with a tail like my necklaces or a drawstring, etc.

A couple days ago one of the feathers broke off and today the other one broke. The shafts had a lot of teeth marks and bends and the feathery parts were mangled. So I gave the poor things a decent burial.

The new attachment is a violet section of boa and Sheba loves it. She got a death grip on it and was busy killing it. I finally managed to get it to try out on the boys. they played for awhile but weren't as interested. It is too soft. The chicken feathers would make a swishing sound as they flew, like a real bird. Maybe I will have to get another flyer with chicken feathers just for the boys.

Copyright © Catherine Jo Sadler
October 24, 2000