Our little Smurf has been with us now for a month, went from a handful of cat to more than quite a handful, from clumsy, sleepy baby to gangly, raucous kid, from 1 pound to almost 3 pounds! By now he’s an expert sailor, we have to keep him back as he’s getting a bit too adventurous for our taste One handful at 8 weeks… Continue reading »
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2024
28
Sep
2024
22
Sep
New ceiling lights in salon, kitchen and aft cabin!
When we inspected our Pitufa before the purchase, I thought the ugly ceiling lights would be the first things we’d toss. Somehow there were always more important jobs on the to-do list though. Now, only 16 years later, we’ve finally got round to replacing them
2024
21
Sep
Foto gallery: Smurfy’s a natural-born sailor!
After having our kitten just two weeks aboard we left Port Vila and sailed up to Malekula. We were worried that he’d be scared and seasick, but he had a good time!
2024
14
Sep
A cat tree up the companionway!
Pitufa’s steep ladder with 6 wide-apart rungs down our 160 cm high companionway is an insurmountable obstacle for a kitten. Impossible to climb up and potentially lethal when trying to jump down (despite a mount of cushions on the wooden floorboards). We therefore went out to buy material for a cat tree–not so easy in Port Vila. At first we couldn’t find a tube with… Continue reading »
2024
14
Sep
Ship’s kittens need boundaries
That’s true for every kitten, but especially aboard, where understanding a few words in human language and actually obeying them can potentially save a few of a cat’s nine lives… We use the standard German word “NEIN” to tell him that something’s completely forbidden and taboo, which is handy as it’s not a word we use in any other context (when talking to each other… Continue reading »
2024
05
Sep
2024
05
Sep
Smurfy, the ship’s cat!
Last week we took a little bundle of joy (and fleas) back home to Pitufa and he’s transformed our lives already! A boat’s just a big playground for a cat full of ropes and lines and other toys and he’s exploring his new world curiously, but cautiously. He marvels at the sea, other boats and you can feel that the whole world’s a big miracle… Continue reading »