Unwelcome Home
Ick.
We arrived home from our 3 weeks away a bit ago and ugh, I’m glad I didn’t know what awaited or I might not have put in the 8 hours of driving to get here!
The first thing that hit me was the smell. We turned our air down to 85 degrees when we left and so the whole house smelled like a combo of cigarette smoke and stale something-else. You know what it smelled like? A cheap motel.
If that wasn’t enough to make me turn around and walk out, then I noticed the hair. Cat hair EVERYWHERE. All over the house, in huge clumps and small piles and it was just floating all over the air. I guess turning the air down probably initiated a shed because my cats don’t ordinarily shed - ever!
Then I noticed my bedroom door was open. Our bedroom door is NEVER open, we keep it closed specifically to keep our pets out (and also because it’s trashed and a general collection point for a lot of junk around the house). As if that wasn’t mortifying enough, then we realized a cat had, at some point, peed on our bed.
Comforter in the wash, the next sweep of the house revealed random piles of hairballs and smeared poop or hairball remnants - I don’t know which.
And then the highlight - cat pee on my couch cushions.
I’m tired, I’m hotter than hell and I just want to go take a shower and go to bed but instead I’m frantically running around vacuuming and the kids are running around trying to find all three cats to “Make sure they are ok” (and I’m thinking “Who the hell cares?!?!?”) and I’m hoping the air kicks on and cools the house in record time and it isn’t- at all. The vacuum is literally full of cat hair, the Spotbot is done cleaning up the couch, the husband wiped down the floor, the A/C is slowly doing its job. And it still smells like stale motel room in here.
So what’s a girl to do? Blog! I’ve done all I can do here, folks. Somehow I don’t feel so bad about the Nasty Hotel Experience anymore! At least I didn’t have to call it “home”!
Anyone want to come over for a dinner party?!?!
edited later to add: Oh goodie! Now I see that my cats all have fleas! Which means of course that my house is probably infested. I’m clueless about what to do about this because my cats are all on Frontline, my dogs are too! Looks like it’s off to the vet tomorrow morning. Wow, pets are freakin’ awesome.
August 3rd, 2007 at 9:04 pm
Geez Noodle! That freakin sucks!!!! I would have freaked the hell out walking into that. I think you need a stiff drink and a hot bath, or maybe a cold one? Hugs Love ya
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August 3rd, 2007 at 9:40 pm
Cat pee is the WORST!!!! Sorry you had to come home to this. Wash everything in Borax and do your carpets too…again, what a nightmare!
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August 3rd, 2007 at 11:25 pm
Oh Nicki! What a way to end your vacation. Reality bites!
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August 4th, 2007 at 1:23 am
Ah, what memories you have brought back for me. Welcome to the reason my cat is now on anti-depressants. But, hers was an on-going, progressive issue whereas yours I would guess is just an “I’m po’d, what were they thinking leaving us alone” issue. I highly recommend getting something like Simple Solution to use in the areas affected - it changes the enzyme so that the odor is completely changed and gone. Washing is great, but cats have a habit of finding that scent again even if you can’t smell it, and you hate to have them continue the behavior because of a lingering scent. Ugh - how sad is it that I know so much about having a cat pee on your bed and couch? My claim to fame I guess… I hope they bounce out of it - and welcome home!
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