Hello There Furiends!
I hope things are nice and springy in your neck of the woods. It is lovely and spring is definitely springing in our neck of the woods but The Human is having some issues with this. She has watery eyes and a runny nose every day and calls this strange condition “allergies”. With humans being so fearful about everything these days she said she feels like wearing a sign around her neck that says “It’s only seasonal allergies” when she goes out. She says these allergy thingys are because of these notices she gets almost every day.

I must say that this feline is a bit flummoxed as to how a text alert can make a human’s eyes water and nose run!

Oliver and I are still suffering through the dreaded D-I-E-T. The Human is not only reducing our kibble to near starvation levels, she’s also trying to make us exercise. Oh the pain and humiliation! I believe The Human is secretly feeding skinny Lily but so far I’ve not been able to catch her in the act.

As for Oliver and I, we purrfer to be couch (or bed) potatoes) and now Oliver has joined me in our evening “cat TV” watching sessions.

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Now that Oliver has horned in to my TV time, I find I have to burrow under the bed covers just to get some alone time.

The Human gushed this week when she came home and saw this sight.

Well, enough about us, let’s get to this week’s web news.

Feline CKD sees new treatment possibility

As many of you know, our Angel Jasmine suffered from kidney disease in her last few years of life. We have many furiends who have this disease as well and the news that there may be a promising treatment for this makes me want to jump up and yell “WHOOPEE!”

The article I found said that  a novel cell-derived molecular therapy might offer a promising approach to treating chronic kidney disease (CKD) in cats.

Piedmont Animal Health and The Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM) is currently evaluating the intrarenal injection of a recombinant human chemokine (CXCL-12) to treat feline kidney fibrosis. (Phew, that was a “sciency” mouthful!)

Preclinical studies have so far indicated that the therapy has the ability to restore normal kidney structure in cats with clinically induced fibrosis. These studies have also provided evidence as to how the treatment acts to address changes in the kidney that can be associated with CKD damage.

And, a subsequent clinical pilot study demonstrates the feasibility of administering CXCL-12 with no obvious side effects over a nine-month study period.

CKD is a progressive and debilitating condition common in older cats. There are currently no available treatments for the reversal of its effects. The Human gave Jasmine sub-Q fluids every other day and Scruffy Paws Kidney Vitalize chews as well as a kidney diet. These things helped keep her kidney numbers safe but did not cure the disease.

Imagine how happy the human was to read,  “These preclinical and clinical study findings suggest our first collaboration could make a big difference in the lives of cat owners and their beloved pets,” says Piedmont’s chief scientific officer, Doug Hepler, PhD. “Anyone who has had a cat with chronic kidney disease knows how heartbreaking it is to watch their decline and be able to do very little about it. Our goal is to change that story to a much more positive one.”

What wonderful news this is and we are purraying that this new therapy would work to treat early kidney disease for all our furiends! For those of you who are interested in the study, you can read it here.

Pedigree cats seized in raid find new home

Oh my whiskers, I’ve heard of raids on human’s homes but normally the police find contraband….not cats!

The Thai police made a drug raid on a home and in addition to drugs they found… felines. They decided to auction the six cats (five Scottish Folds and one Bengal) and thankfully the auction winner was Nutch Prasopsin, who runs a Facebook page followed by 3 million cat lovers. Those cat lovers helped her raise the 100,000 bahts ($3186.00) winning bid for the kitties.

“I was very excited. I had very much hoped that the cats would end up in my care. I’ve been following their status since the very first day,” she told reporters.

The auction was held after a 30-day window expired for the owner, who remains at large, to come forward and claim the cats and prove they were not purchased with drug money. The confiscated cats will share their new home with Nutch’s 20 other cats.

The regional narcotics control board said the cats had suffered an ordeal and it was important they be auctioned off as a group.

“They were living together so they would be familiar with each other,” she said. “If we separate them, this may cause them stress or have psychological effects.”

The money generated at the auction will be held by police as a seized asset. I sure hope they take that asset and donate it to help kitties in Thailand!

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The Kitty Convict Project

The Female Human and her sister have run a local lost and found pet page in our community for a number of years and when it comes to cats, if I’ve heard them say it once, I’ve heard them say it 100 times, “Think Lost, Not Stray!”

The innovative idea of the orange collar is to identify an indoor cat who is found outside as an “escapee”.  The Kitty Convict folks say, “it brands your indoor cat as a convict… it signals to the people of the world that your cat belongs inside.”

The Kitty Convict Project says in the US more than 7 million pets go missing every year. Of those, 26 percent of missing dogs and less than 5 percent of lost cats are reported and returned home.

The good folks at Dr. Elsey’s (makers of one of the the world’s best solution for felines with “litter box issues”, Cat Attract, are promoting the Kitty Convict orange collar program. They want to see your indoor cat posing in his or her orange collar! Share it on Instagram using #orangeinside™ for a chance to win a one-year supply of Dr. Elsey’s Ultra cat litter.

Where do you get such a collar? This is the one that Kitty Convicts recommends.  We have instructed The Human to order us 3 collars post-haste and will be modeling them for you in the future. But you don’t have to be fancy. Any reflective orange collar will identify you as a “Kitty Convict Project” kitty and get you home sooner!

How to tell if the cat you’ve found is a stray or someone’s pet

While we’re on the topic of lost cats, the Berkshire Humane Society published an excellent article about how to tell strays kitties from lost kitties.

We don’t want to shame all you well meaning folks who pick up cats you see outside and shuffle them to the shelter but we do want to remind you that many of these felines have homes. Now, if they were all Convict Kitty Project purrticipants with orange collars, it would be so much easier!

If you see a cat that  you might think is a stray without an orange collar, here are some signs that the cat is just visiting and has a home to return to:

 The cat confidently roams around in the middle of the day

The cat appears clean and healthy

The cat does not search for food

If these apply, the cat likely belongs to someone. However, you should always try to confirm this. You can post flyers or take a photo and post to your local social media lost pet finder organization. Another thing to do is to make a paper collar (about ¾” wide) and close it with tape. Write a message on the collar like,  “Am I yours? Please call (your name & phone number).” This will show the owner that someone is concerned.

Many local veterinarians and animal shelters will scan cats for a microchip, free of charge. If the cat is microchipped with current registration, an owner can be contacted immediately.

If the cat is hiding, scared, looks dirty or disheveled, is hungry or appears in any way to be injured or distressed, do not wait to get help.

If your cat doesn’t come home, don’t wait. Begin looking for them immediately. Post flyers, post photos and information on social media, search on foot and call local veterinary hospitals, animal control officers and rescue groups.

San Marcos, TX couple makes board game with internet cats

CATastrophe: A Game of 9 Lives will be available for preorder via the crowdfunding website Kickstarter on May 4th, 2021.

CATastrophe is a 2-6 player family board game as unpredictable as cats themselves. It features iconic cats from around the world such as Cole and Marmalade, Molly Happiness, Hosico and many more. Backers of the Kickstarter program have a chance to get their own felines featured in the game. There is also a tribute to Lil Bub, who passed away in 2019.

The game’s goal is to be top cat and has enough strategy and luck to make it fun. Each player starts with nine lives. The last cat standing is the winner.

The CATastrophe team includes cat illustrator Jenny Parks (Star Trek Cats book, Marvel National Cat Day Covers) and board game illustrator Jacqui Davis (Ex Libris, Euphoria).

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m sending The Human over to the Kickstater site to see what it will take to get us featured in the game!