Aren't cats supposed to be good at this?

I've had about 8 different cats in my lifetime.Not all mine,more like family pets,but 3 of them were mine alone.

My first one lady,Sammi,is extremely elegant and aloof.Like a cat version of a female Hitchcock character.Lulubell,my 7 month old spitfire,is more of a clumsy,clutsy Laurel and Hardy type of character.Sparky,who I only had for 4 months,until I moved out of my previous apartment,was a very lovable Care Bears-type cat,who was always up for a cuddle.

But even though the they all were extremely different characters,they all had one thing in common: they ate cleanly.By that I mean,they were typical cats that always look clean and pristine after they've eaten,because they meticulously clean themselves afterwards.

That brings me to Maya.The new addition to the family.Sparky lives with a new family now,and Sammi and Lulubell live with my Mom,since I felt it would be too hard on them to move now,because they both love my Mom WAY more than they do me.

Anyway,that means Maya is a kitten on her own.No older,wiser cat to teach her the ways of her ancestors.And I have to tell you,it shows.She is starting to get better at balancing herself on small spaces and climbing everywhere,because she is exploring the apartment a bit more (not that there's much to explore,but still).

But the one thing she sucks at,is cleaning herself after eating.She goes completely berserk when she gets her food.She climbs inside the bowl and will ride it like a pony until the bowl is completely devoid of food.Afterwards,she walks away from the food-area,looking all satisfied and happy with herself,like the fact that she ate all her food was like hunting a wild animal.She believes she is a master at 'catching' her food.It doesn't matter to her that the food really only lies there.

Well,the pictures could be after any meal,but these were specifically from last night.After every meal,a big piece of catfood is stuck to her nose,and it will stay there,no matter how much she licks,because like some kind of dumb-dumb,she can't seem to feel that there's a big chunk of food stuck there,and I am usually the one who has to take it off,and clean her up.My boyfriend won't,because he thinks it looks 'cute'.

Here's hoping her grooming skills will improve with age.