Attack of the oven mittens

We thought it was so cute when Misha would attack the oven mittnes until we found out why...(poor Misha)

Everytime Jeff and I leave the house, my little Misha apparently goes into the kitchen to find and attack all the kitchen mittens in the house. Then she scatters them through out the house. One day I mentioned this bizzar behavior to a co-worker, she said that it's pretty typical of vet hospitals and clincs to take the "bad kitties" in the back room, once back there without most owners having a clue what is going on, the staff puts on oven mittens, so that they don't get injured while working with the kitty...this most have caused much stress for Misha...No doubt from her previous vet who wrote all over her file, "aggressive cat"...

I'm so glad that Misha's current vet, does all procedures in front of Jeff and I, they never ask to take her in the back room...

So if your vet asks to take your cat in the back room, please don't be shy about asking questions...

Aw, poor Misha! She's probably terrified of them.

Awwww... poor baby......

Poor little thing!

My vet prefers me to be present at all examinations. And if they need surgery, I insist on being the one to take my kitty in the back and put him/her into the cage myself. That way they get a goodbye kiss and a promise that "mommy will be back to get you tomorrow, now be good for the vet."

Poor Misha!

I never heard of using kitchen mittens!

Poor Misha! I hope she's ok!

Poor Misha!

I have to admit... one time when we took Mickey to the vet for a check-up, we brought in oven mitts. It's just he has ENORMOUS claws (we don't have a death-wish - we do not/can not clip them - we've never needed to as he doesn't destroy furniture or harm anyone) and he goes nuts when held. So we did it to be safe. Turns out they weren't needed. But I do understand why they're used.

While I know it sounds cruel to you, I don't think the vet is trying to harm your cat. It's just sad that it has such an effect on her, though.

you might be jumping to conclusions to quickly. She may just be playing, or she may have a symptom like Yayo where she likes to get frisky with the oven mits.

No I'm not "jumping to conclusions" here...Misha is terrified of oven mittnes, there is a diffrence between fear and play...perhaps I should have explain a bit more detail, of course I wouldn't want anyone harmed by my frightened kitty, I also don't want her scared needlessly...for those that perhaps are not aware, I will try to make a long story somewhat shorter, when I first adopted Misha, she did display some aggresssive behavior mostly with me, and never with the vet or their staff, but; for their protection, I mentioned to them about her aggressiveness, from then on, they treated her very diffrently they would not preform any procedure, in front of me, they would always take her in the back room, and this apparently has caused her stress..she does not "play" with the oven mittens, she attacks them...

I would also like to mention, that one of the vets that was there, was very kind to Misha and when she moved to a new clinic, I took Misha to see her and she has been there ever since, this vet never takes her in the back room, although Misha never bites, she does wrap her in a towel, which is fine, and I have noticed that Misha is slowly starting to trust going to the vets office again.

Once final note, I have heard some stories about Misha's formal vet, so all in all, I'm glad that she no longer goes there...

Poor Misha. She must have had a very traumatic experience and she can't tell you about it.

I only ever used gloves with Gussy once -- the night when my dad and I finally caught him and brought him in the house when he was a feral kitten. I was wearing my heaviest leather gloves, and he bit my finger through them like they were made of thin air. I was pretty much expecting to be bitten or scratched at some point during the exercise, as he was one scared little baby (maybe 6 weeks old at most at the time).

Thankfully, around here the cats know that oven mitts mean one of two things: either I'm going to change the toner cartridge in my printer (I'm a bit klutzy, and have been burned a time or two), or I'm taking a pizza out of the oven.

I'd be wondering if vets who use oven mitts are following all the safety standards and hygiene practices. Oven mitts can't be much good for keeping things sterile.

It sounds like you're not jumping to conclusions. And while it's sad in your case...it just needs to be remembered that not ALL vets are like that obviously.

Poor Misha.

Anna, although I'm sorry she feels the need, I'm glad she's able to get some of her frustration out and 'get even' with the oven mitts.