# Cats?



## bluedogz (Oct 20, 2011)

Well, lots of people asked, "Is your stove a Cat or non-Cat?"  Took a while to figure out what they meant...

We have an ancient Siamese cat that basically lives in our side rec room shere the stove is.  Since this room sides on the garage, it gets colder than the rest of the house really fast.  The cat only visits the rest of the house to come find me to tell me the stove needs lit.

Once the stove is lit and cooking, the cat sleeps under it.  Yes, under it.  If we fish him out, he is actually hot to the touch.  Yes, I have convinced the Mrs. that we do NOT need to slide a kitty bed under there.  Yes, we have obtained a heated kitty bed and located it elsewhere.  No go.

Far from being "man's best friend", this cat is more like "man's weird reclusive roommate that poops in a box."

Does anyone else has such an animal?  Is this as weird as it seems?


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## begreen (Oct 20, 2011)

Siamese can be heat sponges. They were bred in a hot climate. Our cat soaks up the heat in front of the stove for about 30 minutes, then comes over to the sofa to cool off. Repeats the cycle about 30 minutes later.


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## Nater (Oct 20, 2011)

When the fire is going, our cats are not far away.  Two of them sleep as close as possible, almost touching the stove.  The other two usually stretch out on the carpet in front of the stove.


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## piejam (Oct 20, 2011)

Hello,

I have 5 cats all domestic short hairs(1 angora tortie) Dh and I would have to fight our way to the fireplace..They would camp out in front of our insert and remain there well after the fire died...My lil balls of purr would get so hot to the touch but they didn't care. They even know the sound of the insert door opening and come running!..


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## pastera (Oct 20, 2011)

Pellet stove sits on a black tile hearth - the cat sleeps directly in front where the blower hits her. I've clocked her fur at well over 100Â° with the IR gun where it is uncorfortable to pet her.

The dogs pass out about 4 feet from the wood insert and normally move before getting near auto-ignition temps.

Cat ignores the wood insert - dogs ignore the pellet stove - wife ingores everthing but the thermostat...


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## firefighterjake (Oct 24, 2011)

Most of our cats like to hang out somewhere near the stove . . . one of them practically lives under it . . . or at least to the side or back.


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## Highbeam (Oct 24, 2011)

Since this post is useless without pics.....

Our cat loves the stove, especially as other parts of the home cool down in the winter. Dang thing poops in a box and can really foul that room. I wish I stank that bad, such power.


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## ecocavalier02 (Oct 24, 2011)

dont get how you people like cats. lol. cant stand them. meow


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## HollowHill (Oct 24, 2011)

ecocavalier02 said:
			
		

> dont get how you people like cats. lol. cant stand them. meow



Obviously never been owned by one  ;-P


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## ecocavalier02 (Oct 24, 2011)

HollowHill said:
			
		

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 lol. we had them growing up and as i got older i really started hating them. lol.


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## Highbeam (Oct 24, 2011)

We like dogs too. Critters in general really.

The boxer shown is dead now but we have this goofy black pug dog that is a hoot.


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## n3pro (Oct 25, 2011)

Mine's a non-cat stove with a rollable cat


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## firefighterjake (Oct 25, 2011)

ecocavalier02 said:
			
		

> dont get how you people like cats. lol. cant stand them. meow




Depends on the personality . . . had one that acted more like a dog . . . loved hanging out on the hot tub . . . actually would play fetch with me and bury his toys when he was young . . . later in life would go for walks with me.


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## maverick06 (Oct 25, 2011)

I have measured our cat at about 119F... I really have to wonder at what temperature it truely gets unhealthy. Our cat stares into the glowing secondaries not sure what to make of them. It sits immediatly in front of the fireplace.... after we have the first few fires of the year you can notice that all of his wiskers are kinked at the end from the wiskers touching the glass! 

We also have the periodic melting where he struggles away from the fireplace and collapses on the floor a few feet from the fireplace to cool down a little... 

as best as we can tell, his whole function in life is to move food from upstairs to a box in the basement.... we have a wild animal we let live in our house and poop in the basement..... we get upset when he doesnt poop in the basement... its a rediculous concept.


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## Jack Straw (Oct 25, 2011)

I really love my cat and I think he may possibly like me, but I really don't know. :coolsmirk:


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## lukem (Oct 25, 2011)

My cat doesn't come in the house, but sleeps on any engine that has been ran recently...mower, blower, trimmer, saw, truck, van....whatever.  If you park it, 2 min later the cat is all over it.


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## Jack Straw (Oct 25, 2011)

lukem said:
			
		

> My cat doesn't come in the house, but sleeps on any engine that has been ran recently...mower, blower, trimmer, saw, truck, van....whatever.  If you park it, 2 min later the cat is all over it.




When my wife was young they had a cat that did the same thing.....until one winter day when she and her brothers and sisters watched her father start the car to go to work and well you can guess the rest......meee-ow!


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## lukem (Oct 25, 2011)

Jack Straw said:
			
		

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Been there done that.  

On the last (and final, ever) batch of kittens this spring I made a run to return a movie at the red box in town 5 miles away.  As I was backing up to leave I saw a kitten and thought "man, that looks just like our kitten...wait a second!"...it was riding somewhere in the frame or engine compartment.

Couple days later as I was backing out of the garage the F150 got the best of it.


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## Dix (Oct 25, 2011)

Highbeam said:
			
		

> We like dogs too. Critters in general really.
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> The boxer shown is dead now but we have this goofy black pug dog that is a hoot.



HB, is that the pup, she passed?


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## begreen (Oct 26, 2011)

Our cat is a basket case. If there is an empty basket in the house he will find it. And my wife collects baskets. This is his latest find.


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## snowleopard (Oct 26, 2011)

The cat that found us last summer is the consumate professional cat.  She burns no bridges, pays great attention to all that goes on around her, studied each person/dog in the house and figured out how to forge a relationship with that individual on his or her terms.  Even the dog who hates cats has tolerated the cat joining her for a nap on her dog bed.  Learned quickly to stay off the kitchen counters.  I'm guessing she's about 8 months old, but has that early maturity that comes from living by one's wits at a young age.  She's a killing machine when it comes to wiping out the shrews and voles around the house, and  I've learned not to wriggle my toes under the covers when she's on the bed.  

She keeps her distance from the stove when it's hot, sprawls on the floor, but not too close.  Climbed in there today to check out the firebox when I was cleaning the stove this morning.   Since it's now early winter here, she has taken to this wood stove lifestyle, and seems appreciative of the little she asks for: food, shelter, safety, some attention.  She's not obnoxious about demanding it--just appreciates a good chin scratch when offered.  Respects my preference that she goes outside so I don't have to manage a litter box, and has protocols for asking to go out.  I could not have ended up with a better cat if I'd put in an order at Cats-R-Us.  

Her quirk?  She has a smitten-kitten crush on my daughter's green fleece bathrobe.  When she sees it, she greets it joyously.  If it's laying on a bed, she snuggles up to it, kneads it, purrs so loudly she rattles, and makes sucky little nursing noises.  This independent, savvy-smart, dressed-for-success little cat is reduced to this besotted idiot kitten in the presence of this bathrobe.  She has a blankie.


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## firefighterjake (Oct 26, 2011)

BeGreen said:
			
		

> Our cat is a basket case. If there is an empty basket in the house he will find it. And my wife collects baskets. This is his latest find.



Love this photo.


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## babzog (Oct 26, 2011)

ecocavalier02 said:
			
		

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I was like that, but with dogs.  I don't hate them, but I definitely think the best dogs are other people's dogs - after a pat and a toss or two of the ball, they go home.


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## fossil (Oct 26, 2011)

snowleopard said:
			
		

> ...Her quirk?  She has a smitten-kitten crush on my daughter's green fleece bathrobe.  When she sees it, she greets it joyously.  If it's laying on a bed, she snuggles up to it, kneads it, purrs so loudly she rattles, and makes sucky little nursing noises.  This independent, savvy-smart, dressed-for-success little cat is reduced to this besotted idiot kitten in the presence of this bathrobe.  She has a blankie.



Perhaps her mother was green.   :roll:


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## Highbeam (Oct 26, 2011)

Doing The Dixie Eyed Hustle said:
			
		

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Yes, the pup boxer was the runt of my BIL's purebreed litter. She had teensy weensy kidneys that couldn't keep up, scar tissue built up making them even smaller and as the dog got bigger she overwhelmed the organs and began to go toxic. Vet gave her 2-5 years and she didn't make it to 2. Sucks. I hate putting dogs down. She was a lap boxer too. Don't be sad for us though, we have a new pug that's fantastic.


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## begreen (Oct 26, 2011)

firefighterjake said:
			
		

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Thanks, he's a really sweet little guy with a purr motor that sounds like truck.


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## Dix (Oct 27, 2011)

babzog said:
			
		

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You have obviously not met my dog. 

 ;-P


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## dswitham (Oct 27, 2011)

Our cats are happiest when we leave the top half of the doors off the jeep.


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## Dix (Oct 27, 2011)

dswitham said:
			
		

> Our cats are happiest when we leave the top half of the doors off the jeep.



That's great, love it.


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## wkpoor (Oct 27, 2011)

I noticed most of those pics where the pet is only a few inches from the stove its a soap stone stove. Garanteed they wouldn't be that close to a steel stove unless it was about to go out. If I stand near mine for just a few secs it will burn my pant leg.


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## Dix (Oct 27, 2011)

wkpoor said:
			
		

> I noticed most of those pics where the pet is only a few inches from the stove its a soap stone stove. Garanteed they wouldn't be that close to a steel stove unless it was about to go out. If I stand near mine for just a few secs it will burn my pant leg.



Burned Murphy's butt one night, up against the glass. A loud yelp from a little dog  %-P


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## fishingpol (Oct 27, 2011)

Here is one of ours.  Soaking in the BTU's last winter.


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## Dix (Oct 27, 2011)

fishingpol said:
			
		

> Here is one of ours.  Soaking in the BTU's last winter.



I'd make that a Christmas card.


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## Thistle (Oct 27, 2011)

Fuzzball,Thomas & Sylvester May 2011

(they really havent changed much since then)  ;-)  Once cooler weather hits,they spend more time huddled together on a sofa or the floor.Late Spring til early Fall they like to each grab a fav chair or window sill when they're not prowling the house.


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## Mrs. Krabappel (Oct 27, 2011)

if only they would sweep the chimney


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## fossil (Oct 27, 2011)

That's what Ferrets are for.


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## tickbitty (Oct 27, 2011)

LOL at the cats on the roof!

We have not had a cat since the woodstove.  Last one woulda loved it though. I sure with they would invent a cat that didn't need to eliminate in the box.  (my sister tried one of those things to get your cat to go in the toilet but no-go!)
The last little guy was indoor/outdoor and was hit by a car in his prime.  Haven't decided if we can get another considering that.  The rate at which the dogs go in/out/in/out means it would be awful hard to keep a cat from ever going outside. The last one ripped the weatherstripping from under the doors to go out, or got up in the boxspring and clawed it at night to go out, so keeping him in all the time was not an option.  If only he had smartened up about the road.


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## woodmiser (Oct 27, 2011)

Had some kitties two years ago...


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## tickbitty (Oct 27, 2011)

Oh!  GIMME!


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## BrotherBart (Oct 27, 2011)

~*~Kathleen~*~ said:
			
		

> if only they would sweep the chimney



Michelle the woodpile panther that "found" me exactly like snow's did three and a half years ago would show up on the roof every once and a while for the first year or so. Never made it to the second story. Just the garage.

Now when I am on the roof she lays in the edge of the woods with that "What are you? Nuts?" look.


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## firefighterjake (Oct 27, 2011)

wkpoor said:
			
		

> I noticed most of those pics where the pet is only a few inches from the stove its a soap stone stove. Garanteed they wouldn't be that close to a steel stove unless it was about to go out. If I stand near mine for just a few secs it will burn my pant leg.



I have one Manx with spina bifida that will snuggle up pretty close to my Jotul Oslo which is cast iron . . . granted it's usually in the rear or side though and not right underneath or right in front.


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## firefighterjake (Oct 27, 2011)

woodmiser said:
			
		

> Had some kitties two years ago...



Adorable . . . are those bengals or some other breed?


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## firefighterjake (Oct 27, 2011)

Here's some photos of my newest addition . . . having him around has really been good for me.


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## woodmiser (Oct 27, 2011)

What a cutie!

Yes Bengals.


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## firefighterjake (Oct 27, 2011)

woodmiser said:
			
		

> What a cutie!
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> Yes Bengals.



Another member has two bengals . . . they look like a very cool breed of cat.


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## Milton Findley (Oct 31, 2011)

I have recently acquired a Westie puppy, figuring that a little dog with that much energy would get me off my butt and moving around.  I did not know the half of it.  Fangy little creature.   :vampire:


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## snowleopard (Nov 27, 2011)

Cat finally went to the vet today, since the dog needed to get a lump checked out.  First real ride in a car (had a harness and leash on her, no carrier) at -20F with the dog in the car as well.  DS was scheduled to help with this, flaked out at the last minute and I was too short on time to push the issue.  Headed down the access road trying to figure out what I would do if the two of them decided to get into a fight and muttering annoyance w/DS.  

She came up negative for a microchip (yay!) and positive for appearing to have been spayed (yay! again).   Got her shots (four of them, since the vet accidentally tried to re-give her shot #2).  At the third, she took the vet's finger in her mouth, didn't bite, but gave a bit of a squeeze to express her opinion.  Fourth shot, she yowled, tried to get away, and did the same thing to my finger.  She has strong jaws and sharp teeth, and could have done great damage, but did not.   After she was done, she lay on the floor with the dog, who licked her a few swipes in sympathy. (Lo how the mighty cat-hater has fallen.)  I took her blankie with her, and she appreciated that.  

Dog needs surgery to get the lump out.   Cat took a little better to the car ride on the way home.  She has been very quiet this evening, several trips outside, and the rest of the time on the couch by the stove, or licking and biting at her legs where she got shots.  Feels different now.  Like the adoption got finalized.  Relief.  

And the vet visits?  All that money was just taking up space in my bank account anyway.    

Scheduled spay, neuter, euthanasia, and inoculations for DS, in that order.


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## Mt Ski Bum (Nov 27, 2011)

Here's mine:


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## BrotherBart (Nov 27, 2011)

snowleopard said:
			
		

> Cat finally went to the vet today, since the dog needed to get a lump checked out.



Weird as it sounds cats travel better in the carrier in the car. They appear to feel safer in the smaller space. Glad she is part of the family.

Since she had been spayed then that means she already had a round of shots. She sould be immunized up to her eyeballs now. Same thing happened with Michell.


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## snowleopard (Nov 27, 2011)

I figured the carrier would be a better choice, but the price difference was about $45, and I didn't anticipate that she would become much of a traveler.  OTOH, I didn't anticipate making that run alone at -20 with a dog in the car.    I suppose it would be good to have on hand in the event of an emergency. 

Good point about the immunizations.  I saw a friend's kitten die of feline distemper and her cat left disabled, so did not want to risk that.  

The spaying has me a bit concerned on one level.  Someone cared enough to have that done, bespeaking responsible pet custodianship.  However, they did not have flyers up, an ad in the paper or CL, or a notice at the animal shelter.  I'm not sure how I'd respond at this point if someone knocked on the door and said, "You have our cat."  I went to several neighbors and asked if they'd lost a cat, but no-one came knocking on our door and asked us if we'd seen her.

Side note: came downstairs this morning to find a fire in the stove, kitchen clean, and dishwasher loaded and run.  Cancelling son's spay/neuter/euthanasia appt.


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## snowleopard (Nov 27, 2011)

Mt Ski Bum said:
			
		

> Here's mine:


Master of all he surveys.


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## BrotherBart (Nov 27, 2011)

Yeah I expected somebody to show up for a good while. 

It was a year before I figured out why she ran away from wherever home was. We walk in the woods most every day. One day as we were nearing the road I heard the sounds of some little kids playing. The usual cacophony of little kid chatter and laughter. Her eyes got as big as saucers and she did a 180 and ran flat out back into the woods. Not any other time before or since has she done other than follow me or come toward me.

I am convinced she came from somewhere with little kids that played too rough with her.


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## 'bert (Nov 27, 2011)

I will play too, here is a few of the cat (Smoky) that hangs out around our house:

Working out with the Wii Fit

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-jUO9TsUBjFw/TtKHX9Fg7UI/AAAAAAAAAIo/yfH46u8NKVo/h120/IMGP6140.JPG 

Playing a bit of battleship with my youngest

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-nhhohFFBha4/TtKHvCXhZVI/AAAAAAAAAI4/-ejCmrSzyyk/h120/IMGP6026.JPG 

Checking out the boxes after Christmas last year

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7GnAEGa3xWE/TtKHqSFTw9I/AAAAAAAAAIw/Qd2CkQeDUPI/h120/IMGP6075.JPG 

Taking a break...

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-vvUy8GPAeOE/TtKHxijn1FI/AAAAAAAAAJA/yr6jZoIwOoo/h120/IMGP6317.JPG 

Watching the boys play hockey out on the driveway

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-indhjCTg15c/TtKH4nTNupI/AAAAAAAAAJI/FHR7E16ocFA/h120/IMGP6476.JPG 

relaxing after a long day...

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-pc2nWfwjPlo/TtKIALspkJI/AAAAAAAAAJQ/0lT70wXnKGQ/h120/IMGP6510.JPG


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## begreen (Nov 27, 2011)

Our cat is a basket case. If there is a basket or box around he will find it. I tried this product a couple weeks ago and he immediately adopted the box He was especially contented because it was close to the stove.


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## Mt Ski Bum (Nov 28, 2011)

BeGreen said:
			
		

> Our cat is a basket case. If there is a basket or box around he will find it. I tried this product a couple weeks ago and he immediately adopted the box He was especially contented because it was close to the stove.



:lol: My cat would love that box... it combines two of the things she likes most: boxes & heat! She'll lay right up against the heat registers at my parent's house just soaking up the heat... also, if there is a box in sight, she's almost instantly jumping in it... even if it is already full of stuff...


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## firefighterjake (Nov 28, 2011)

SnowLeopard . . . made my day with the "Canceling son's spay/neuter/euthanasia appointment" comment.

'Bert . . . great pics.

BeGreen . . . my cat Theodore Roosevelt who went MIA had a thing for baskets and boxes . . . if there was an empty one he would be in it . . . all we could figure is that it reminded him of when he was a kitten since my wife said the house she got him from kept all the kittens in a laundry basket.


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## begreen (Nov 29, 2011)

Mt Ski Bum said:
			
		

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We've left the box there for him. The product was not so hot, but he loves that box, especially when the stove is running.


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## JV_Thimble (Dec 1, 2011)

He likes the heat and he's nippliferous. Not sure of the spelling on that word, but everyone understand when I point at him and use the word. â˜º

His name is Iggy, P. Iggy, or Mr. Big. They all suit him well.


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