Songkran with an Indoor Cat: What Actually Worked

Every April I used to dread Songkran, because Pao, our nine-year-old British Shorthair, hates getting wet more than anything. This year we planned ahead, and most of it worked.

First, we kept him indoors from the 13th to the 16th. The balcony door stayed shut and the windows facing the street were closed. A cat who is spooked by water pistols will hide under the bed for hours, so we set up a cardboard box with a towel inside, in the quietest bedroom.

Second, we shopped only early in the morning, before the water fights got going.

Third, we put a small tag with our phone number on his collar, in case a door was left open during a party downstairs.

Pao spent most of the holiday asleep in his box. Next year I will set up the box a week earlier so he gets used to it.