The wrath of the cats

Last year I was cautious about putting up Christmas decorations in my apartment for fear Griffin and Loki would destroy them. So I did a test run, and when they passed that, I finished lightly decorating. And they did great, leaving the garland alone and doing little more than chewing a bit on some tree branches.

So I wasn't worried about decorations this year. The cats are a year older (and thus, calmer, better-behaved and more mature, right?), so I figured if I put up the same level of minimal decorations, they shouldn't be a problem. I excitedly decorated Friday, putting up garland along with my tree with lights and an angel on top. (I skipped the ornaments again, figuring they might attract unneeded cat attention.) Thursday night, they woke me up multiple times as they were pawing at the tree, knocking off the angel and tipping over the whole thing. And yet, I hoped it was a short phase they would get over.

Saturday evening, I was out watching Mizzou sports for a while. When I returned, I was met by disaster. The tree was on its side, lying across the cat bowls. The branches were smashed to one side. The lights were partly pulled off. I even found a bulb pulled out of its socket, which they had carried down the hallway and pushed under the closet door. (See a picture of the sad site — after the tree was placed upright again — above.)

How did the cats regress so much in the past year? Is this the end of the Christmas tree, or can I salvage it (and save it from the wrath of the cats)?