We used to
play hide and seek in the dark in our backyard.
(I humoured them.)
After
running up the garden one of the humans would leap into a bush somewhere out of
sight behind the shed. I’d then try to
sneak up on the ‘hider’ without being seen; fairly easy for a night-time camouflaged
cat in stealth mode.
If the
hider saw me coming they’d leap out at me, which meant it was my turn to race
away (my tail inflated to full scare mode), and hide.
If I successfully
snuck-up, I’d get a fur rub and we’d start all over again.
Our
backyard was big, but even so there were not an infinite number of places to
hide a human adult.
I, on the
other hand, could climb trees, or dive under the shed (which, built by F,
rested on piles so that cats and foxes could get underneath to hunt out
rodents), as well as lurking in small ground-hugging bushes.
The final
objective of this chase about the garden was for the humans to beat the cat back to
the house. The humans had to make the
first move towards the house - it wouldn’t have been fair if I didn’t give the
poor old things a head start – and then the race was on.
Goodness knows what the neighbours would have thought if they’d looked out their upstairs windows and spotted my middle-aged humans diving, commando style, under bushes in the darkness, and running flat chat down the garden like they were being chased by a spiky cat. (They wouldn’t actually have seen me of course, being camo-cat in stealth-mode.)
 |
| Coming ready or not.... |
 |
| Hiding |
 |
| Not Hiding |
 |
| Hiding |
 |
| Good hiding place (usually its upside down on a rack) |
 |
| I win again (beehive vantage point - they don't hide here) |
The game
had an indoors version, involving bits of furniture and the stairs, but never
lasted as long indoors. Try to imagine a
human attempting to squeeze themselves behind the coffee table. That was a good one actually, because they
could be peering round the edges trying to spot me coming and all the while I
was standing on top of it watching them.
The
apartment here is even more limited and F complains about the effect of the tile
floor on her (aging) knees, but we manage the occasional game ‘sneaking up‘ by
employing the circular system of doorways.
It becomes
just a question of who doubles back first.
Our old game in the garden sometimes ended with lying on our backs on the lawn watching the bats. They were probably enjoying all the insects we stirred up. We have bats here but haven't seen them for a while - can it get too hot for bats?
Hari OM
ReplyDeleteTigger, I had such fun just reading about your hide and seek games - clearly you landed on all four paws by adopting these two hyoomons!!! Am glad that F is taking her entertainment responsbilities seriously and continuing to keep you occupied in this manner. As for too hot for bats? Maybe... hugs and wags, YAM-aunty xxx (Who is also gobsmacked by the size of the rhubarb your male pawrent is attempting to hide behind; makes our efforts look very poor - though it does taste brilliant!)
That's F not hiding in the rhubarb. She says the cultivar is Stockbridge Arrow.
DeleteHari OM
DeleteOOppsss silly me - just assumed F was the photographer... humble apols. Yxx
Neither ladylike nor elegant our F - I'll see if I can find a pic of her in the old green boiler suit that is her trade mark garment (like my fur coat - kind of built in) - easy mistake to make. She's probably delighted. In her 20's she got sold a curiously cheap bus ticket one day and upon questioning it, the bus driver confessed to thinking she was a teenage boy.
DeleteTigger, I loved your game description - it reminded me of our beloved Taffy. He used to love playing in the garden. He would hide and then leap out at an unsuspecting human who would jump in fright resulting in Taffy racing away with his tail in full scare-mode!
ReplyDeleteGood game aye? If you leap out at humans it is best to grab them from behind; that really makes them jump.
ReplyDelete