Dr. Susan Brody is a chiropractor practicing in Jerusalem who has over the last few years rescued and adopted 17 cats, who currently rule her thoroughly fenced-in yard and three-story house! Due to the dearth in pet awareness and veterinarians in her out-of-town neighborhood, she has become by default the local cat expert and advocate. However, she has a generous amount of revolving credit and a free ear at the best vet in town.
Learning in Order to Teach
Kishta was one of a pair of kittens, the only two who didn't scatter after her mother had been hit by a car next to the dumpster. Covered with tarry oil (we lived near a construction site at the time) and mewing pitifully, she and her orange tabby brother were an easy sell.
Her rescue story is typical, not worth another sentence. What is fascinating is her intelligence, which at age 2, even my skeptical husband acknowledges. Kishta watches everything: not everything that moves, but every process. For example, my husband's home-office is off limits to felines, much to their dismay. Everyone loves to sit on the printer and swipe the emerging copies, or chase the mouse prompt on the computer screen.) The door knob to this and every other room in the house is the lever type, suitable for the handicapped, standard equipment in homes here.
The first time my husband went through his door and shut it in Kishta's face, she looked at that door knob, and then at me, and then waited until I walked away. Within minutes, she had figured out how to jump and hang on the lever just right to open the door, but she waited until I left so that I wouldn't be there to stop her, I suppose. This is remarkable, as none of the other, more veteran cats had ever thought of such a thing. Not only that, but the other cats promptly learned her trick, not by watching us, but by watching her. They now open all unlocked doors at will, with one exception:
The storage room has an exceptionally heavy door, which requires teamwork. Kishta will jump on the handle and when the lever is at its lowest point, Ketsie will heave her body weight against the door to push it open. Their coordination is right out of the animated cartoons, amazing to watch. When I lock a door with a skeleton key and then set the key down, Kishta eyes it thoughtfully, but there are limitations to matter. . .
