Kitten on a Leash, Update

I'm sure you've all been wondering how Gussie's leash training is going, but being too polite to ask, you're waiting for me to bring it up. Well, reader, what can I say? It's a complete disaster. There's been no significant improvement since his initial spazzy response. We went outside once and the poor animal was so scared he wouldn't put a paw across the threshold for days.

Strangely, he is pretty bold off leash. Just in the past few days I've had to extract him from the apartment across the hall occupied by two nice Tibetan men. They were gracious about the fact that Gus was sprawled out on their living room rug making arrangements with the movers. My next door neighbor was not quite as happy to have him walking through every room in his apartment, measuring the closets.

I was so sure Gus would grow to like the leash, if for no other reason than to soak up all the attention I knew he would get. He's an extrovert, a cat of the people and needs to mingle for his mental health. Unlike his insanely adorable and introverted sister whose favorite spot is under the bed, jammed between dusty storage boxes. But once that harness is on, Gus falls into the grips of St. Vitus' dance for an audience only he can see.

I've not totally given up, but I'm getting close. This thing that's supposed to be pleasurable is kinda torture for us both, possibly worse than a loony kitty bouncing off the walls and me, leaving behind a trail of broken pottery and bloody claw marks. Hmmm. Maybe a few more tries ...