What is Max Doing?

What is Max doing?

a. Stalking a bird.
b. Having a staredown with the camera.
c. Showing irritation because he was awakened from his 14th nap of the day.
d. Laying low so as to avoid detection.

When Romie built the deck that leads out from the French doors, I asked him to build a bench with a hinged lid for storage and sitting, with a taller square area where I could sit a potted plant. He did so, and for a short time there was a plant sitting on a small square shelf. That is, until the cats decided to take it over for napping and as a way to get up on top of the pergola. Plants don't last too long when they're under constant attack by 10-15 pound kitties.

So, did you guess 'a' ? Max does get that look in his eye when he sees a bird within reach, and he hunkers down into pounce mode just in case the unsuspecting bird is about to have a bad day. But it's not a bird this time.

How about 'b' ? Cats are experts at staring down everything from a fluttering leaf to the humans that feed them. They're so good at it that sometimes I wonder if they're really just taking a nap with their eyes open. But Max isn't looking at the camera.

If you chose 'c', you don't know Max. He's the most laid back cat we have. He can fall asleep in an instant, and like most cats, he loves his naps, but he loves people more. Wake him up, and he'll run to you and beg to lay on your lap. That's his very favorite spot for napping.

So the correct answer is 'd'. Max is trying to hide from something, and I'm sure he thinks that no one can see him. Of course we can, and so can whatever he's hiding from. I don't know what happened between Max and Boo, but whenever Boo is in the general vicinity, Max turns tail and runs. Unless Boo has his route of escape blocked, which is the case here.

Max's strategy worked, because Boo never even saw him and sauntered on by, in search of other conquests. Once Boo was out of sight, Max curled up for another of his many daily naps.