Oh Meowza!
The Tribe just received news that we received three Certificates of Excellence from the Cat Writer’s Association for our entries in the 2019 Communications Contest and we’re purring with excitement!
We are honored and thank CWA and the contest judges and we send a big CONCATULATIONS to all the other winners!
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The Tribe has joined Brian’s Thankful Thursday Blog Hop.
Alberto:
Happy Wednesday My Furiends,
Since The Female Human had an extra day to stay home with us we took full advantage of her presence. Whether she was watching the TV or trying to get a little yoga time in, we made sure to show her lots of love. There is always a bit of a kerfuffle when Oliver and I decide we want lap time at the same time (we are not small felines)
Lily has quite a different technique. She jumps up on the back of the sofa and than places herself strategically half on the sofa back and half on The Female Human’s shoulder.
In an effort to mitigate the leg, back and shoulder pain The Female Human is meowing about (I think she’s a bit of a hypochondriac) she does yoga to help. It’s a good thing she has The Tribe to help her with this endeavor.
As you can see, our Human would be in trouble if we weren’t around to take care of her. But, enough about us, it’s time to enjoy this week’s web wanderinbgs.,
All right humans, it’s time for you to up your catio game. I know The Female Human needs to pay attention to this as her idea of a catio is a pop-up thingy she puts on the front porch and upstairs deck.
This Cat Daddy in Georgia built what he calls, “Chateau de Chatons” (the kitten’s castle). This is definitely a castle, with a drinking fountain, scratching post, some cat furniture, a hammock and a ramp that connects to a “penthouse perch” that’s built into a tree. Meowza, those felines are living their best lives!
So all you humans take note, The Tribe gives this palatial outdoor kitty playpen the “Paws Up” award!
Now that The Feline Human is a certified cat behaviorist she is always reading stuff about what makes felines tick. This article speaks to the age old question…..”What is it about cats and boxes?”
Dr. Michelle Burch, DVM, a cat expert has some thoughts about this. She says that squares make felines feel secure and safe and that if you draw a square on the floor, your feline will come running. (The Female Human has not tried this yet, if any of your humans have, please meow about it in the comments)
Dr. Claudine Siever, DVM says in order to understand our fascination with squares you have to go back to our kittenhood. Kittens derive a sense of comfort and security from cuddling with their mother and siblings. As adult cats, boxes bring back that feeling of family love. These memories release happy hormone (like endorphin and oxytocin) and these reduce stress.
Squares also make a great hiding place where can pounce out and attack other cats in the house or our humans. It also provides a good place for us to hide when we’re a bit stressed or feeling needy.
Hmm, I wonder if The Tribe should get a great big box for our Human so she can hide in it when she’s stressed.
Now I am a feline not well versed in the world of human music. My tastes lean more toward David Teie’s Music for Cats. As a matter of fact, The Tribe did a review of the first album (with videos) if you want to hear our favorite mewsic.
Still, I have to give this Trey Anastasio two paws up for looking at the quarantine through his cat Joey’s eyes, because, as all my furiends know, seeing life from a feline point of view is the best way! Joey actually shows his purrrspective of his home in the video, a “cat’s eye view “ if you will. There is also a cameo appearance from the other cat in residence who has not been named.
Since you humans have been stuck at home, The Tribe has had “video church” for a while. Now I must say, if The Human’s Pastor had thought to invite a feline, we might have stuck around for the sermon.
Leo, the Canterbury Cathedral cat has made himself famous after brazenly disrupting a recording of morning prayers.
The video of morning prayers captured Leo sauntering into view and then disappearing under the robes of the Dean of Canterbury.
The Revd Dr Robert Willis maintained his composure and continued with his sermon despite Leo’s shenanigans.
This was the press release from the Canterbury Cathedral Spokesperson:
“He has been enjoying making our daily broadcasts since March and, whilst he would be happy to be in every one, we have tried to include the others to prevent them getting jealous.
“With over 20,000 visitors to the Deanery and its gardens each year – and over 1.5 million to the cathedral – he is used to being on show and, having been born in the Deanery and growing up here, he is very used to company and is a very friendly and happy little cat (if not the brightest of the four).
“He loves to socialise with the cathedral’s many pilgrims and visitors and takes his role as ambassador very seriously.
“In calmer times he finds a cosy place in the house or sunny spot in the gardens to sleep.”
Our in-house feline behavior expert had to admit she knows nothing about feng shui and the positive affect it can have on cats but Cynthia Chomos, a feng shui consultant and founder-designer at Seattle’s Catio Spaces understands.
First of all, for the unenlightened, feng shui is the Chinese art of placement, a design system that created harmonious living spaces based on “chi” energy. Cats add positive energy in homes and Chomos believes that acknowledging the feline’s primal preference for the outdoors by providing fresh air and the sights and sounds of the natural makes our quality of life better. The Female Human is all for The Tribe to live our best lives so here are a few tips from the article.
Find a welcoming power spot for your felines (and your humans) outside the direct path entering a room. Cats prefer a wall that provides support from behind and provides a commanding view of their territory. Choose and place cat furniture, high cat trees, low domes, shelters or boxes, along the wall based on your feline’s comfort zone. (Now The Female Human hasn’t figure out where our comfort zone is but she put a great cat tree in her office by the window and we have a pawsome view of the woods below us.
Another recommendation is a catio because they keep us safe. Even though I griped about our pop-up catio, I have to say it’s really nice and we love being outside.
Provide a Zen space to relax. Feng shui practitioners hold that chi energy is both yin (restful) and yang (stimulating). A home needs both for the right balance. Cats need a cozy bed or hammock in a quiet room or Zen space for a catnap away from disturbances such as loud noises, remodeling projects, vacuum cleaners or unfamiliar people.
Stimulate yang energy indoors. Stimulate yang energy for your cat with daily playtime and a shelf near a window that offers the warmth of the sun and birdwatching opportunities. You don’t have to know anything about feng shui to know that playtime with your felines is critical to our health, happiness and our bond with our humans.
Litter box placement is always critical, even if you’re not looking to “feng shui” your home for your feline. Keep the box away from places where doors may be slammed, loud noises happen or anywhere where we can be startled while using the litter box. Remember, if we have a bad experience with our litter box, we may just stop using it.
Finally, feng shui suggests that you consider water fountains in the house. There are many nifty kitty drinking fountains (feng shui says to put the fountain in the north or southeast are of the house away from the food bowl.
In general, if your home is harmonious and attractive to the humans and felines, life will be enhanced for everyone.
Happy Wednesday Furiends!
FINALLY the weather is warming up and the garden is starting to green up. The Female Human decided that Oliver, Lily and I should be able to take a stroll in the garden and that’s what happened. All three of us got to take a stroll. But it didn’t quite end the way The Female Human (or we) expected,
This was me before a very loud metal machine came by our yard and completely freaked me out. I tried to get out of the halter, twisted myself into a furry version of a pretzel and hissed and spit. The Female Human swooped me up (to the detriment of the skin on her arms) and got me inside.
As Oliver is the most mellow one in the Tribe, The Female Human figured that she could take him outside without any drama. As you may have observed by the facial expression, placement of the ears and his insistence on staying by the door, this outside experience was not welcome. I had already gone back inside and told him of the terrors that awaited him so he was having none of it.
Lily was next. As she had darted out the door twice during the “cats in the garden” exercise, The Female Human knew she was ready for an outdoor adventure. All was fine for a few minutes until Lily tried to do a Harry Houdini escape from the halter. Oliver and I watched the Kabuki theater from the window. The Human grabbed and grasped at Lily so she wouldn’t get away once she’d freed herself from the restrictions of the halter. Lily (also known as Princess Stabby Toes”) left her mark all over the Human’s arms. Lily was safely returned into the house. This also explains the lack of feline photos actually IN the garden MOL!
The Female human poured herself a glass of wine and went out to enjoy the tranquility of the front porch sans felines.
Enough about us, let’s get to this Wednesday’s web wonders.
Well evidently barkies have been getting the lion’s share of pet stores and manufactures attention because cat owners are cheap. Last year spending per dog was $1381.00 per pet and per cat was $908.00. Fortunately, the retail world is hoping to get cat owners to spend more money on us fabulous felines and there is some good news on the horizon.
:An AlixPartners analysis of APPA’s data found that expenditures on vitamins, treats, toys, and grooming aids are all seeing significant growth among cat owners. But you human cat folks have to open your wallets a little wider. At the moment feline expenditures account for only about 7% of the $7 billion spent annually on pet treats. Cat treat makers are looking to make that percentage rise.
Now, because The Female Human was too cheap to buy a subscription to Forbes, I didn’t get to finish reading this one but I did have her find some more information on the pet industry for those of you who are interested.
I can tell you that The Tribe is tired of The Female Human buying our halters and life jackets and such in the dog section. It’s time for manufacturers to step up and for our humans to starty spending!
Bond Vet opened its first veterinary care facility in Brooklyn less than a year ago. Someday, it planned to ramp up a remote health offering to save pet owners time and money.
That schedule changed dramatically in March, after New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the state’s stay-at-home order in response to the rapidly spreading coronavirus. Bond Vet quickly set up a system using Google’s video technology to book 20-minute video consultations for $50, limiting clinic visits to emergencies and urgent care.
Bond vet says these video consultations are now increasing over 200% a month and that about half are resolved with the prescription of food or medicine.
Shane Kelly is the CEO of Destination Pet, a nationwide network of pet care services and he has a different take on video visits. He compares veterinarians to pediatricians, who rely heavily on in-person consultations.
“The patient can’t communicate, can’t speak, which puts certain limitations on primary care with telehealth,” said Kelly. Still, he says that the current pandemic is highlighting the importance of remote health and that “telehealth is definitely a growing part of the business all the way around.”
The Female Human says that if a video vet visit would be reasonable enough that more people would call the vet that would be a good thing. She also believes though, that having the vet be able to touch and observe us first-hand is the best health check-up and many times, the issues we’ve had have been diagnosed through blood work and scans. What do you all think about this?
Ah, I love it when you humans get creative about finding felines forever homes. The Nevada SPCA is hosting a virtual fee-waived cat adoption promotion beginning Monday, May 18 through Memorial Day, Monday, May 25. Community sponsor Findlay Toyota will be covering the adoption fees on all “certified pre-owned cats” adult cats aged 6 months and older, so that they may find loving new homes.
Potential adopters can visit the website at nevadaspca.org to view available cats. An email can be sent to info@nevadaspca.org with the name of the cat along with contact information.
All adult “certified pre-owned, fuel-efficient” cats 6 months and older will have their adoption fees waived during this time. All cats will come spayed or neutered, vaccinated, and microchipped. Once an adoption is finalized and a pick-up time appointment is scheduled, new adopters can come and pick up their new pet curbside.
This idea is working during the lockdown so maybe our local shelter wants to give it a try.
And here’s yet another clever idea to get kitties adopted during the lockdown. Carol’s Ferals, in Grand Rapid Michigan are using a dating model for their felines needing a home. Each cat has a purrsonality profile on “CHarmony” designed to bring cats together with a human that is their best match.
Since the humans can’t visit the cats yet they will “meet” them during a virtual adoption counseling session.
Bravo humans and keep up the creative work to help homeless kitties.
1. You love cats more than people : Of course you do, cats are far more loyal, loving, wise, entertaining, respectful and caring than humans.
2. You’re attracted to other cat lovers: Our Female Human would love to spend time with a cat lover much more than someone who is indifferent to felines or who, (gasp) dislikes cats.
3. You’re obsessed with social media cats and cat videos: Well DUH, you’re reading a blog written by a cat aren’t you?
4. Your cat is not your pet. Your cat is your furry child: Of course we are. A true cal lover never allows the words, “It’s just a cat” to pass their lips!
5. You talk about your cat a lot: That depends on our definition of “a lot”.
6. You include your cat in most social media posts: Who wouldn’t want to feature their delightful, adorable feline companions in most (if not all) of their social media posts?
7. You love all things “cat”: If you ever meet The Female Human in purrson, you would know this is true, cat sweaters, purses, scarves, coffee mugs and the list goes on. Come to think of it, it’s time for a bit of a clean out at home.
8. You are smart! Of course you are, you love the superior species!
Happy Wednesday Furiends,
Just when we were doing the happy dance and getting ready for The Female Human to get the catio out, our beautiful weather took a turn and now we’re back in the 40 degree area. Sigh. We did manage to get a shot of the view downstairs from the living room window when the sun was out. We’re keeping our paws crossed that catio weather and sun puddles will make their appeaance soon!
In other breaking news, The Female Human actually caught Oliver and Lily snuggling! Mind you this only happened once but it sure made her happy. Lily misses her buddy Tucker so we’re hoping this wasn’t just a fluke.
This stay at home thingy has definitely affected my waistline. The Female Human is working at that place she calls her “business” and therefore failing in her duty to mind my kibble consumption during the day (not to mention my plastic chewing). Sigh, I hope my life jacket still fits this summer!
Finally, we must take a moment to commend The Female Human. She is finally accomplishing something she’s wanted to do for years and just received her diploma (with “Distinction” she insisted I note) for her Feline Behavior and Psychology course. She’s always been a bit of a “know it all” when it comes to cats and now she’s really full of it…..cat behavior and psychology knowledge that is. She is now working on a course to become a Pet Bereavement Counselor.
Okay, enough about us, let’s take a look at what I found on my web wanderings.
As I’ve noted before, The Female Human and her sister founded and operate a lost pet group in our community. She’s always meowing about the fact that people immediately think “stray” and not lost when they encounter an unfamiliar feline. This makes it hard for the folks who are desperate to find their lost feline. This article from Jack Hagerman from the Pasadena Humane Society & SPCA has some great tips to help you find your missing feline.
In order to help movie theaters that have been shut down an independent movie theater owner came up with a brilliant plan and created the Quarantine Cat Film Festival. This cat video festival will be live streamed on Friday, June 29, 2020. A portion of the monies raised from ticket sales will go to benefit local independent movie theaters. It’s expected that over 100 movie theaters will be involved.
We say “Paws Up” to Brian Mendelssohn, founder of Row House Cinema and his wife (who made the brilliant suggestion to have a cat film festival).
The Female Human sent in our very own film “Bring Me My Catpuccino” starring Oliver!
The Feline Human has been heard to say often that “If there is a room full of cat lovers and one non-cat person in the group, the cat will make a beeline for the non-cat person.” She’s got it right and this cat decides he wants to get up close and personal with this lady who is clearly not a cat fan.
Tiktok user John Gonzalez captured this momentous moment on video.
The Tribe is a bit put off by the lady’s expression of horror.
You know how much I love it when people come up with creative ideas to help animals find a furever home and this lady’s idea is pawsome! Mary Alloy, owner of Just Pizza & Wing Co. in Amherst,NY came up with a purrfect way to help her local shelter, Niagara County SPCA.
Since February she’s put over 5,000 flyers with adoptable pets on her pizza boxes and so far over 25 dogs and cats have been adopted. She also rewards the clients who adopt with a $50.00 gift certificate for her pizzeria.
Kartika is not a regular cat. The four year old Bengal has quite a taste for adventure and satisfies it as she travels the outback with her human, Lou Meyers. Kartika has spent most of her life traveling across Australia. When she was a kitten she learned quickly that when the leash and harness came out, fun times were ahead.
Despite the fact that Bengals are known for having an affinity for water Kartika is no water lover which could be because there is little of it in the outback.
A Bengal cat is perfect for the adventure life because Bengals are very active, have strong personalities and like to explore (get into things). Bengals require lots of care and exercise.
We finally got our Purrsonal Assistant motivated enough for us to purrticipate in the Friendly Fill-Ins. This is a wonderful blog hop hosted by 15andmeowing and Four-Legged Furballs. If you don’t want to join the blog hop you can always meow about your answers in the comment section.. Here are the questions:
1. I just finished _______________________________
2. I am hoping to start ______________________________.
3. _________ is my idea of success.
4. When I can’t sleep, I _________.
And here are my answers:
1. I just finished a “fetch” training with The Female Human
2. I am hoping to start spending some time outside when the weather warms up and extend the “paw of friendship” to our neighborhood squirrel.
3. Hauling my rotund little self on top of the dryer to get to the kibble is my idea of success.
4. When I can’t sleep I……Oh forget it, I never have a problem sleeping, I’m a cat!
Hello there furiends.
I have taught my Human to fetch and it occurred to me the other day as I was running her through her paces that I should purrhaps share this information with my feline furiends.
First, it is a cat’s duty to swat every toy they receive under the refrigerator, sofa, the bed and any other place that is hard to get to. Once you have reduced the number of toys in your toy box, you begin phase two of the feline toy procedure.
Stand in front of the object where much of your toy treasure is stashed. Either give a sad meow or make a lackluster attempt to stick your paw underneath. The human will notice and take pity on you and, if you have trained them properly, they will go and find a long object to stick under the piece of furniture to retrieve your toys.
When the human has finished (and make sure they do a thorough job), the floor should look something like this.
Normally, your human will survey their work and feel quite good about themselves for retrieving your toys. You must then let the human know you are not impressed, nor is their effort anything special., but something felines expect.
I hope this little primer on human training has helped you. Remember, this activity serves three purposes:
Happy Wednesday Furiends,
I hope you are all well and looking forward to life becoming more normal again. We would have had an excellent photo for you but The Female Human couldn’t get herself together enough to get the shot so I’m reduced to only sharing the story with you. Still, I think you’ll find our weekly local report very a-moosing.
Last night, The Female Human walked out of our next door neighbor’s house and noticed that the neighbors across the street were on their porch yelling at her and waving their arms. These are fairly new neighbors so she doesn’t know them and didn’t want to appear as if she was judging them so she smiled and continued to stroll down the driveway. The words finally became a bit clearer and she heard “MOOSE! MOOSE! MOOSE!” Thinking that they surely would not be so rude as to be referring to her appearance, she saw them gesturing to her right and turned her head to take a look. There less than the social distancing six feet recommended was a very large young moose, standing next to the cars in the driveway.
The Female Human has lived in Northern Idaho long enough to know that you never mess with a moose. They are extremely large, fairly bad tempered and have no problem charging anything. As she looked at the moose she could tell he was getting annoyed with the neighbors yelling and arm waving. He snorted a few times and, before he could head in her direction she hightailed it over to our house and ran inside. Yes, this would have been a fantastic photo op but she didn’t take the time to get her phone out of her pocket and shoot the picture. Sigh. Due to her failure to capture the moment, I am reduced to using a video and a link to an article in Sandpoint Magazine called, Urban Moose-The Good Life In The City, to show how these beasts have no boundaries and believe they own the forests and the city streets here!
.So now you know why these kitties enjoy sitting in the window and watching our local wildlife walk by!
Well that’s enough moose talk, now on to the feline news from around the web.
I’ve always thought of my wild cousins as great, big fear inducing felines. Imagine my surprise when I heard about these little guys!
These two live in the Porfell Wildlife Park and Sanctuary in Cornwall, England and are Rusty Spotted Cats, the worlds smallest cat breed.
These two tiny felines are rusty-spotted cats, the world’s smallest cat breed. The rusty-spotted cat grows to be just 35 cm (not quite 14 inches)- 48 cm (not quite 19 inches) in length. It is believed that these cats are only 2 of around 40 in captivity in the world.
In the wild, these tiny kitties are found in Asia. You can learn more about our little friends here.
This klepto kitty made the BBC news with his penchant for stealing one purrticular type of item.
His human, Vikki Maddocks reports that to date Elmo has lifted 14 gloves from the neighbors in the past year. Also interesting to note is that he normally brings one glove home and then goes later to retrieve it’s match.
Elmo drops his treasure at Maddock’s feet and meows proudly.
Why gardening gloves? Trudi Atkinson, a cat behaviorist says it’s possible that Elmo’s mother taught him to hunt using replacement items if real prey was not available. If Elmo’s human reinforced this behavior by petting him or reacting in a positive manner to his “gifts” he would be motivated to continue his thievery.
Evidently this gardening glove stealing is a thing in England. Last year a female cat named Bella received media attention for her glove napping.
Who says you need skype, text or phone calls during isolation? Sam Cramer has found a much better way to communicate with her neighbors, Cat Mail.
It all started one day when Cramer’s cat Bella wandered into the house with a new collar. Cramer was confused because Bella had never worn a collar. Her first thought was that this wasn’t Bella but she said, “I check out the cat and, yes, it has the same scraggly ears and, yes, it has a bad attitude so it’s definitely my cat.”
Then she noticed a glass bottle with a cork stopper attached to the collar with a hand written note inside. The note was a message from her next door neighbors telling her that Bella had been visiting them for a few weeks
Cramer wrote a note apologizing for Bella if she’d been cranky and apologized for Bella’s intrusion.
The neighbor’s responding “cat mail” assured her that Bella was “no bother.”
The 15-year old daughter of the neighbor wanted to make sure Bella was not a stray and figured the cat mail might be a good way to find out if she had a home.
“I just thought it would be a good way to know if she had a home and a name and now it’s turned into a daily thing,” she said. “We’re always really excited to see her at the door.”
As the lonely days of the pandemic drag on, all parties cherish the tiny notes Bella brings.
These neighbors have decided that cat mail will continue long after their quarantine is over.
Portland’s ‘Owl Kitty’ has appeared in some of the greatest movies ever made. Her human, Tibo Charroppin says her work has been watched more than 50 million times on her Instagram page. The most amazing thing is that Owl Kitty has accomplished all this without ever leaving Portland.
Owl Kitty is her stage name. Her real name is Lizzy who was adopted from a local shelter. Charroppin said she’s been acting like a diva ever since she was a kitten and she was a natural to become a star. She’s appeared in scenes from many major motion pictures such as Star Wars and The Matrix.
How has this feline diva managed to become a star? Her human is a full time video editor so he has all the skills needed to insert Owl Kitty in the middle of famous scenes. The Human’s partner, Olivia Boone is the social media manager for a major non-profit organization so she had the skills to get Owl Kitty properly launched on the web.
Charroppin also does “behind the scenes” videos to document the process of filming Owl Kitty and those are as popular as the furry diva’s movie shorts. And if you have an aspiring feline actor in your house, Charroppin also offers tutorials to teach you the process.
If you would like to view more of Owl Kitty’s films, visit her Instagram account.
This Thai temple cat’s refusal to be ignored during the five-hour-long New Year’s prayers was a true test of the patience of this monk. The video of this monk gently trying to move the cat away took Thailand by storm and now is reaching around the world.
After he tried numerous times to move the cat off his lap because the cat was kneading his shoulder and blocking his view of his prayer book, the monk finally realized that resistance would be futile and petted the feline.
Thailand has many cats that roam freely around the temples and they are called, you guessed it, temple cats. It is reported that all the temple cats are fat due to the love and good care they receive.
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