Hello and welcome to The Compost Bin. I'm Compostwoman and I live with my family in rural Herefordshire. We have nearly four acres of garden and woodland, all managed organically and to Permaculture principles, which we share with Chickens, Cats and assorted wildlife. We also grow a lot of our own food, run courses in all sorts of things and make a lot of compost!

I am a Master Composter and have spent more than a decade as a volunteer Community Compost adviser with Garden Organic and my local Council.
I'm a self employed Environmental Educator so I run workshops and events where I talk about compost, veg growing, chicken keeping, cooking, preserving and sustainable living. I also run crafts workshops and Forest School/outdoor play sessions in our wood.

We try to live a more self sufficient lifestyle here, as best we can, while still having a comfortable life and lots of fun.


To learn more about us click on the About Compostwoman tab and remember to click on the photos to make them full size!


Wednesday 4 February 2009

Plastic bags can be very bad for your health!

Poor Tom Kitten!

He somehow managed to get a plastic sports bag string wrapped around his leg today .

he was playing in the dining room and then Compostman saw him shoot by as if his tail was on fire, run back again and then run past, and out through the cat flap trailing a bag.

He had somehow got tangled up with this...a sports bag given out free on a stand at a county show last summer, which is used to put wet swimming stuff in...




Compostman and I were very worried, as Tom had disappeared outside trailing this string and bag behind him....

So we wrapped up and went outside to try to find poor Tommy.





I eventually found the bag, it had come off as Tom ran under the door of a shed. (I had my camera with me as it has a picture of Tom on it, to show anyone who might pass on our road)

But Tom was not inside...

We look around some more, searched the Woodland as best we could and then finally came inside for a (belated) breakfast.

Worrying about Tom.

He eventually came in, a couple of hours later, cold, scared and very spooked.



He has hidden under the table for most of the rest of the day. Can you see his fluffed up tail?

Poor Tom! being chased by a big white flappy rustly thing that follows you everywhere NO MATTER how fast you run away...not nice at all.

16 comments:

  1. Ah, cats and plastic bags. Bet it doesn't teach him anything. (But "poor Tom" for the duration of the fluffy tail!)

    My two boys are terrible, they'll climb into any bag if it's open. Or cupboard. Or drawer...

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  2. Plastic bags...the bane of modern life! Hope he's okay now, I hate to see a spooked cat, although the fluffed up tail always looks very stylish!! I have a cat who's tail is permanently like that, it's lovely.

    Sue xx

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  3. My grand childrens cat loves bags of any description. I went over the other week and took my big lakeland shopper with me. I left it on the floor at the side of the chair, had it not been for the tip of a fluffy black tail hanging out donny would have had an unexpceted ride in a car!!!!

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  4. Poor Tom Kitten, they are just like children, we have to be on watch all the time. I hope he gets lots of cuddles - why am I saying that, I know he will, Margaret

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  5. Poor Tom.. what a terrible way to start the day.

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  6. One of my cats, whilst trying to get to the takeaway curry leftovers, put his head through the handle of a plastic bag. Pandemonium ensued with a frantic cat running round the house, followed by a plastic bag billowing out behind him like a windsock, which was full of tin foil trays. There was leftover biriany everywhere and consequently, he's terrified of plastic bags.

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  7. Oh bless Tom Kitten! I'm so glad you found him and that his leg is ok. I would have been worried sick, just like you ... they can bolt for the hills when something like this happens, can't they. Our little one, Leo got badly scared once when he was very young and ran away for two days - OH was out walking the lanes at 1am looking for him! All ended well though!

    Lots of hugs and special dinner for Tom tonight??!

    Willow xx

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  8. ahhh he needs lots of stroking and petting and to be carried around. That is what my Mum would have done if it had happened to her cat. I think she gets treated better than my Father

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  9. Oh you ARE a lovely lot of friends!

    Tom Kitten ( well really he is nearly Tom Cat!) says a huge thank you...

    he spent most of the day hiding under the dining table on a chair, but after cuddles and strokes and petting and some choice titbits from the two legs' dinner plates (!) mainly involving Marmite toast titbits ( his favourite, made especially for him....)

    He is much recovered...

    But we will remove any dangerous bags from the floor level , just in case..

    Honestly! now Compostgirl is 8, I thought we had got beyond this kind of thing!

    Margaret, you are quite right, they ARE just like children!...about toddler age I think....

    I find it reassuring to know that he is not unusual....and your cats do the same silly stuff....

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  10. Poor, poor Tom... and that fluffy stressed tail!! Bet it was very frightening for him. You can see the attraction of that bag to a curious cat though... all that rustling and string to chase around, unfortunately it went slightly wrong then it stayed attached to him..... Hope Tom will learn a lesson.... but knowing cats it will soon be forgotten when the next crinkly bag just happens to need investigating!! But with all that lovely tlc you administered and marmite tidbits Tom must have enjoyed a delightful recovery from the nasty shock!! Please send him lots of lovely cuddles, scratches around the ears and a tickle on the tum from me xxx
    Love Jane xxxx

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  11. Poor Tom! Lots of cuddles and hugs to him.... cat proofing looks like its on the agenda. Hope he is okay now.

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  12. Glad that Tom was ok in the end. I bet the bag has been chopped into little pieces.

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  13. Oh no! Traumatised Tom! Poor kitten. He is an astonishingly beautiful kitten too, I have to say. He looks cosy and very, very relieved that his ordeal is over in that photo.

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  14. Hello docwitch and Vetnurse! welcome to my blog.

    Vetnurse, yes indeed ! I chopped it up myself...salvaging the string for knot tieing practice...

    docwitch, he IS a beautiful cat! he has the most amazing soft fluffy fur!

    he says thanks for the compliment :-) he has been sitting on our laps while we all watch Harry Potter on DVD (its another snow day here so Compostgirl is off school....)

    Jane, Lialz, hello :-)

    Tom is obviously still quite scared and upset and I think the snow has not helped! Tabitha seems to like it but Tom doesn't....

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  15. ALL cats mental health not helped AT ALL by Compostgirl "accidentally" shutting the cat flap so they couldn't get outside all yesterday and this morning, she shut it ( against ALL rules) and then forgot to tell us or open it herself...

    ...we had no idea...the cats had no access to litter trays OR the outside world.

    result..cat poo every where this am, a VERY cross Compostman and Compostwoman, a VERY chastised Compostgirl and 4 VERY upset cats ( they couldn't help what they did, they had no choice in the matter as they were trapped inside with no litter trays)

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  16. Oh dear, cat poo in the litter tray is bad enough... I hope the smell has by now abated and that the cats have recovered from their confinement.

    BTW, am so glad to find out that it's not just our boys who like marmite on toast :)

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