The Human has tried to horn in on our blog on numerous occasions. We are happy to announce that she has a blog where she can opine to her hearts content.
The blog is on her KittyCounselor site and called, “Let’s Meow About It”
Happy Wednesday Furriends,
I would like to tell you that all sort of exciting things have been happening in our neck of the woods but that would be a lie. Things are fairly boring and the BIG D-I-E-T situation is still ongoing. The Human did get our upstairs deck ready for sunning so now all we need is some sun. She also got our pond and waterfall working and we like to watch the birds and animals that hang out down there. I like the pretty pink flowers that drop into the water but The Human doesn’t like them at all and grouses loudly when she’s down there cleaning them out with the net.
Oliver is still railing against the injustices of the D-I-E-T. As exhausting as it is for him to jump on the dryer to see if my kibble bowl has anything in it (He keeps forgetting that the bowls are removed when breakfast is done) he will make the leap. This morning he thought he’d be able to charm The Human out of a second serving-it didn’t work.
As for me, I am becoming quite a fan of my evening Cat TV. I am quite fond of the birdbath video.
I choose not to respond to Lily’s baseless and inflammatory accusations and suggest we move on to this week’s news.
There are many good humans in the world and this is the story of some in Istanbul, Turkey. The residents of a building heard a cat cry and notified the fire department. They came out but were unable to get the cat out of the 15-meter hole between two walls where he’d fallen.
The residents refused to give up. They stretched a plastic pipe between the walls but this didn’t entice the kitten to come out. Someone then decided to play a video from their phone that had the sound of cats meowing.
The little guy was drawn by the sounds of his people and climbed up through the plastic pipe they’d put there to get him out and got close enough for someone to grab him.
He was named Sütlaç, which means rice pudding in Turkish, and was adopted by one of the residents in the neighborhood. Sütlaç, received a clean bill of health from the vet.
Paws up to these creative and determined humans!
This guy is a true cat daddy. A man from Osaka, Japan sold his beloved 1989 Toyota Supra so he would be able to afford treatment for his cat, Silk.
SoraNews reported that Leiz listed the Supra on the Yahoo! Japan Auction page earlier this month. He knew that the going rate for a car with 168,000 km mileage and some cosmetic damage usually was around 1.35 million yen ($12,400 USD) He knew this but listed his car at twice the amount and noted the reason in the ad, he included the sentimental aspect of the car and that this was the exact amount he needed for his cat’s medical expenses.
Silk had been diagnosed with a potentially fatal viral disease, Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP), with rapid progress, and he needed immediate medical intervention. The buyer of the car was also a cat lover and said he would buy the car, restore it and keep it in a climate controlled garage until Leiz could afford to buy it back from him. The buyer added that when Leitz bought the car back it would be for the price he’d paid for it and not a penny more. Then he added an extra 100,000 yen ($920.00) for silks medical costs. I sent our Purrsonal Assistant on a merry chase through the internet to see how Silk is doing but she couldn’t find any information. If any of my readers know, please meow at us with an update. .
Well it was only a matter of time until we felines would be watching the famous T.S. Elliot story recently made for the screen. After watching this video, I’m not so sure I’m in any hurry to watch the movie. I think I’ll stick to my bathing bird videos!
These hoodies are from, Cat Person a cat care company dedicated to strengthening the bond between humans and their felines through their products. Now I admire any person or company that promotes the human/animal bond but when it comes to getting me into a hoodie (or any other clothes for that matter) , you can file that under “F” for Fat Chance!
The Human read about these devices and thought, “Oh, what a great idea for keeping track of cats when they’re lost!” Well, seems like purrhaps it’s not such a good idea after all.
The Apple Air Tag is designed as a tracking device for many different things. With the “Find My App” feature almost anything can be tracked . Of course it was only a matter of time until someone decided to try it on their cat. Here’s how it went:
First the size is a bit big for the average feline. The cat had a bit of a challenge getting to her food with the Air Tag on. The tracking also seemed to be a little off when following the cat. Add to this the fact that cats should be wearing safety collars and it seems like many Air Tags will end up somewhere on the ground. Apple has also noted that this device might not work so well for cats as cats move so much, making it more difficult for the AirTag to provide an exact location.
Happy Wednesday Furiends,
We had a nice week and enjoyed some warm weather. The Human got the waterfall going and we love to listen to the sound of the water when the windows are open. The Human also bought a bird feeder that sticks to the window so we can watch them eating. So far, no birdies but she only set it up yesterday. I’ll report more on that next week.
Until we get some real birds to watch, I have instructed The Human that I need my evening Cat TV to continue. As you can see, I’m enjoying my bedtime TV watching.
Now The Human has pointed out to me that being a couch potato is doing nothing to assist us in the progress of the D-I-E-T. But before she harps on me about my lazy ways, she needs to talk to Oliver.
As we suffer through this D-I-E-T nightmare, we thought we’d talk to Lily to see how she keeps herself so svelte. Lily says diet is critical for keeping excess weight off.
Well, that’s it for this week. I really do think we’re making some weight loss progress. Oliver is much livelier and The Human is still being very draconian about feeding. Hopefully we’ll be able to show you our new, thinner selves soon!
In the meantime, here are the feline focused news items I found in my web wanderings.
Humans, when you are told that we felines are territorial, please believe us. This video clip shot by Canadian police officers sat 4am is visual confirmation of this.
There was a coyote lurking around a parking lot which, evidently, this cat considered to be his territory. This was not a situation where a pack of coyotes tried to ambush the cat. It was one, scaredy coyote against a fearless feline. The officers observed the cat walking his perimeter later in the morning.
Be sure to view this fantastic cat’s greatest moment on video.
Of all the stories I’ve covered on working cats, this just could be my favorite. The bar cats of Ten Bells Tavern roam the “catio” of this pub and they love it.
The owner of Ten Bells Tavern, Meri Dahlke has been caring for the feral cats in the area ever since she opened. She said that cats have always been a part of the bar’s story. When Dahlke arrives at work, the cats recognize her and come running (probably because that’s when she puts out the kibble and gives them canned food too).
The staff of Ten Bells love the cats and look after them and some, including Dahlke have taken some of them home. All the cats are neutered and healthy.
The cats are beloved members of the business community and the pub. They even have their own hashtag #CatsofTenBells and some people come to Ten Bells, not for the drinks or pub grub, but to meet the felines. The cats at Ten Bells are registered as a “colony” with the City of Dallas. Dahlke has done fund raisers for several organizations and non-profits and has raised over $445,000.00 through her efforts. Feral Friends is one of the non-profits they support as well as Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue , the SPCA, the Dallas Zoo and others.
The bar will be celebrating their nine-year anniversary during the weekend of June 25-27 by hosting a fundraiser for Feral Friends.
“Thick Camp”?? Really?? This feline takes exception to that! Mind you, I am not against the fact that a room at Humane Fort Wayne has been temporarily turned into a weight loss boot camp for cats. It’s the name that offends me.
Humane Fort Wayne said the goal is not to get the cats skinny but to have the cats get used to timed feedings, moving around their environment and adding more activity to their routine. Okay, that makes sense. I’m less fond of the next quote, however.
“When free fed, or when provided a full bowl of food 24 hours a day, we see cats start to carry about 5-8 extra pounds of weight on their joints and organs. It can cause long-term and expensive health issues and most of this is avoidable by measuring portions and adding play to your cats’ day.” I am a bit weary about hearing about unhealthy fat cats, I get enough of that at home!
Humane Fort Wayne currently has a livestream of the thick cats which can be viewed on its YouTube page.
Oh my whiskers! This poor momma cat couldn’t find a place for her kittens to be safe so she used a bird’s nest! The people in the area had seen the momma and found one kitten but couldn’t find the others until they spotted the momma climbing up a tree. Not only did they find the kittens but they also found a tomcat who has bonded with the mother cat and who is serving as “dad” to the kittens.
Paws up to the good people at The Chiltern Branch of Cat’s Protection for caring for these cats. The mother cat, Oriole, the tomcat, Willet, and the kittens, Bran, Jay, and Lori, have all been given distinctly avian names to commemorate their former home.
Willet spent a few days at the vets as he was limping badly, but fortunately it was just an abscess, which quickly healed.” The folks at the shelter say, “he is a good ‘dad’ to the kittens, washing and playing with them—although he does get a bit annoyed when they mistake him for mum at feeding time!” They noted that it’s very unusual for a tomcat to stick around after kittens have been born.
The cats are now in the care of a foster and they say that “Willet behaves like a doting dad to the kittens, even grooming them. Oriole and Willet are clearly bonded and we would love to think we could rehome the mum and male cat together.”
Let’s hope mom and dad find a furever home together!
Okay, I get it. This is not a real video but still, I feel I must speak up for the feline population and say this faked video is sending the wrong message to humans. Cat’s do not do domestic labor nor do we find the suggestion that we do amusing! Watch the video and meow about what you think of this.
Happy Wednesday Furiends,
We are happy as we again have our Purrsonal Assistant under control and my Wednesday feature is happening on…..Wednesday!
We are still suffering through the dreaded D-I-E-T. Frankly, I don’t think Oliver has lost an ounce.
Now you may think that the D-I-E-T was the only topic of conversation this week but you would be wrong. We received a nice email from a human named Jayne who told us we’d been featured on the “top 18 list of most underrated cat bloggers” on the Cat Informer blog. You can read about us and the other 17 meowvelous cat blogs here. Thank you Cat Informer!
And now, let’s get to this weeks findings for best feline news on the web.
Laura Partain says the #1 essential in packing for a hike is her cat. After spending four to five months working with the formerly timid feline, she now has a trail blazer. Partain has two cats who hike with her and needless to say, they attract a lot of attention when they are hiking. They also sparked an idea.. She said, “I really want to help people see their cats in a different way and to get out of the mindset of ‘Oh, my cat would never do that.’ She wants people to look at their cat and say, ‘How can I help this cat to have a better life. How can I help enrich this cat’s life and train them?’ They’re actually really fun to train,” said Partain, who grew up training show goats. To that end, Partain created the Tennessee Cat Adventure Club, and so far she’s trained 14 new adventure cats.
She says it’s best if people train their cats themselves but she does offer training assistance as cat’s require some specialized training techniques. Dogs will learn things because they want to please you. Cats (and goats) are more transactional. (Who knew we fabulous felines had that in common with goats?) In other words, felines want to know what’s in it for them and what the pay offs (treats) are. This means food is always required for training sessions. Her two most important tips are, have treats handy and make sure you have a harness that fits your cat well.
Recently Partain has partnered with Tennessee State Parks to encourage pet owners to use a leash on the trail. She said leashes allow all animals, including cats, to get out and enjoy the beauty of Tennessee.
Meowza that hiking thing sounds like it might be fun!
If you’re a regular reader of my Wednesday web wanderings you know I love to feature stories about working cats. This story is a bit different than most as it’s not about a brewery, bookstore or bodega “hiring” a feline but about feral cats placed on the Chicago streets to deal with the problem this city, known as “the rattiest city in America” has had for years.
Since 2012, the Tree House Humane Society has placed over 1,000 feral cats onto Chicago streets.
The mere presence of the cats and their pheromones, are enough to keep the rats away.
I was a bit concerned about these felines being “tossed into the streets” but this isn’t the case at all. Cats are spayed or neutered “pre-employment” and “employers” are screened and required to provide food, water, shelter, and wellness to the cats who work for them. In most cases, these cats become beloved members of the family or team and some even have their own Instagram pages! If you live in Chicago and want to hire a feline, you can apply at Tree House’s website.
I only have one thing to say…..”Human, you need to step up your game!”
Twitter user @CinnamonBear9 shared photos of her meowvelous kitty bedroom with bed, bedspread that matches mom’s and dad’s, pictures on the walls, a rug, a miniature chair, some tiny yarn balls, and a mini scratching post. And the pièce de résistance? A wooden wall frame that holds a tablet (or “big screen TV to a cat) for endless hours of cat video watching on YouTube.
And how has the feline reacted to this pawsome bedroom? He naps in there and watches bird TV. Paws up for these creative humans for going above and beyond for their kitty!
Socrates is credited with saying “the unexamined life is not worth living.” For centuries, you humans have looked to philosophy as a way to contemplate and answer many of life’s biggest, toughest questions.
British philosopher John Gray opines that cats can often teach us much more about living the good life than philosophy ever could.
In his book, Feline Philosophy: Cats and the Meaning of Life, Gray examines the nature of our philosophical pursuits, and finds them wanting.
“In humans, discontent with their nature seems to be natural,” he writes. “With predictably tragic and farcical results, the human animal never ceases striving to be something that it is not.” He says cats make no such effort. Cats exist to serve their most immediate needs and keep themselves safe from danger.
Although this feline would argue that Gray makes us sound a bit shallow, I do have to agree.
Gray points out that cats aren’t philosophical about death. Cats refuse to quietly surrender to death from a predator. They’ll fight to the very, very end to protect themselves or their kittens if they’re female cats. So they have a strong love of life when they’re healthy, and when they’re sickening, they tend to crawl to some quiet, shadowy place where they, in a sense, they aim to die.
Gray says you humans shouldn’t try to be cats but maybe you should overthink a little less. I think that’s good advice!
Here’s another great working cat story. This Onway, N.H. cat, named for a type of cloud is taking his place above the clouds in his new home at the Mount Washington Observatory.
Nimbus was chosen from four candidates at the Conway Area Humane Society. His sociable attitude as well as his large repertoire or meows, chatters and purrs won him the job.
Nimbus’ predecessor, Marty crossed the Rainbow Bridge in late 2020. The observatory employees said it was a long search as the new hire would have big paws to fill.
MWO Summit Operations Manager Rebecca Scholand said. “The summit cat is such a special part of our living environment on the summit, making it feel much more like a home on our weeklong shifts.”
Nimbus, we say “concatulations” on your new home and new career!
Hey there furiends,
It was a sad day today when we learned that our dear furiend Bear Cat crossed the Rainbow Bridge.
Please keep his human, Momma Kat in your prayers. We’re praying that Tucker and Jasmine were there to greet him and show him all the amazing kitty places in Heaven💕
You can send your condolences to https://www.mommakatandherbearcat.com
.
Hello Furiends,
If you read my earlier post, you know about the debacle at FelineOpines this week and the shoddy job performance of our Purrsonal Assistant. We did hold a board meeting regarding the potential dismissal of The Human. I called the meeting to order however purrticipation was half-hearted to say the least.
Once the sun puddles faded and Oliver and Lily joined me in the office, we had a lively discussion about the repercussions about firing our Purrsonal Assistant. They both reminded me that The Human had duties beyond the blog such as morning wet food, keeping water bowls filled and litter boxes empty, kibble (even though the amount has been greatly decreased due to the dreaded D-I-E-T. ) They also mentioned the evening Cat TV sessions. After ruminating on this information, I made the decision that rather than a dismissal, a good rebuking would be in order. As this is my blog segment and, as a Siamese, my voice was the loudest, I would give the verbal chastisement. The Human was appropriately repentant and began working on my Wednesday feature immediately.
The life of blogging cats is not easy and the three of us were exhausted after this encounter. I believe this short video of Oliver immediately after we adjourned speaks for the three of us (literally speaks, you can hear Oliver snoring!)
So let’s go to the newsworthy feline stuff for this week and paws crossed that the Purrsonal Assistant took our scolding to heart and we’ll be on time next week!
This formerly shy, semi-feral feline outshined all the other national contestants in the third annual National High Five Day contest. The contest was created by Jackson Galaxy, well-known as a cat behavior expert who hosts the Animal Planet show “My Cat From Hell” and Is part of a program from The Jackson Galaxy Project to help shelter cats become more adoptable. In addition to bragging rights for Matilda and the Whis-purr Rescue Inc, the rescue was awarded a $5,000.00 grant as well as personal cat behavior training from Jackson Galaxy.
The cats have been learning to do “behaviors”—not to be confused with “tricks”—such as ringing bells, spinning around, playing a piano, “nose touches,” and sitting up, in addition to “high-fiving” with an outstretched paw.
Galaxy selected the top 25 high-five finalists for the public to vote on from April 8 to 14. Whis-purr Rescue staff and supporters pushed to get out the vote for their local girl. Matilda’s clever bell-ringing high-five won 4,997 votes. .
The initiative aims to save the lives of shelter and rescue cats by increasing their adoption opportunities. Shelter staff and volunteers are taught how to implement Galaxy’s positive reinforcement training for cats and includes “a signature move—teaching them to high-five.”
This cat says “Paws Up” to Jackson Galaxy’s program and any program that helps shelter kitties find furever homes. Click here too see all the finalists.
Jimmy the cat was found in Nashville, dragging his rear legs and tail. He was in rough shape with spasms, road rash that became infected and a swollen bladder.
Rachael Resk was called to the rescue as she has had much experience rehabbing injured cats. She began to work with Jimmy, first gently manipulating his legs to see how much he could take. Soon he could stand for a few seconds at a time.
She tried walking him on the treadmill and he was successful, going at 0.5 mph, using a chute to help Jimmy learn to catch himself and continue walking. When he could walk 10 feet, she wanted more for him.so she took him to Canine Physical Rehab for water therapy.
And Jimmy responded well to the water therapy and now can walk at home, go up the stairs and lift his tail partially.
Though Jimmy is making progress, his road to recovery isn’t done yet. He can walk but sometimes falls. He also doesn’t have full control of his bladder. Resk will also soon be seeing a neurosurgeon to see if Jimmy has nerve impingement. If he does, he may need surgery.
To help with the cost of his ongoing care, Resk started a GoFundMe. She’s been able to raise a little over $6,000 out of her $10,000 goal.
Even if Jimmy isn’t completely healed yet, Resk is thrilled with his progress.
“It’s not just his limbs and his tail that have come alive. As he began to and seek more freedom here in the house or out with people, out with the other cats he himself came alive,” said Resk. “He’s filled with joy, he’ll purr, he’ll meow, he’ll play. It’s extremely heartwarming.”
Once Jimmy Is recovered fully, the goal is to get him a furever home. Anyone who is interested in adopting Jimmy can email Resk at rachaelresk@yahoo.com.
Woo Hoo Jimmy, you found the purrfect human to help you!
Sometimes you humans really make me shake my head. A cat was seen at the Trumbull county commissioner’s office and was the cause of informal complaints and now, a union grievance.
The cat, Betty, belongs to Commissioner Niki Frenchko and was brought to work several times. Well, evidently Mrs. (Dawn) Gedeon got her whiskers in a twist about the feline worker and filed a grievance with her union stating that the cat caused a health and safety violation in the office, claiming allergies.
The cat’s human said Betty lightened the mood in the office and that no one had spoken to her to say the cat’s presence was a problem for them.
The humans are still hissing at each other and no solution has been reached yet. This feline has two questions, is all this time spent filing grievances and arguing a good use of tax payer funds and, is the office dog friendly? If so, there is a good case for species discrimination!
Okay, you humans know we felines love boxes and that they calm us. A 2014, study carried out at the University of Utrecht found that shelter cats provided with boxes to hide in recovered more quickly and adapted to their new environments more easily than their box-less counterparts.
Now, a citizen science project led by Gabriella Smith from Columbia University, New York, has found that this behavior is so ingrained in cats that they are even drawn to sit in square shapes created by optical illusions.
The researchers asked cat owners to set up different shapes on their living room floors to see if the cats were compelled to sit in them. Some made squares out of tape on the floor, others set up an optical illusion known as the Kanizsa square – an arrangement of four Pac-Man-like shapes positioned to look as if they are forming the four corners of a square. They then had the owners record their cats’ behaviour over six days.
The trial is limited by the small sample they used but the findings leave no doubt that we felines can be susceptible to optical illusions.
But humans, if you’re not into optical illusions, just get us a box and we will use it as our calm space.
Yes, you read that right, car modeling, not cat modeling, And car modeling is extremely competitive. You have to be young and beautiful, intriguing to watch with a winning personality, and female, or course,
Mao Mao has all these traits and then some. This 2-year old British Shorthair from China is proof that felines with the right talents and determination can make a good living.
Now it helps if you have a good human agent. Mao Mao’s human, Zheng, although never thinking his cat could make a living as a car model still felt it was worth a try and set her on a car at a car show
Mao Mao drew a crowd and the social media she garnered for the car manufacturer was what resulted in her official entry into car modeling.
And how much does car modeling pay a feline? She works three to four jobs a month (Zheng doesn’t want to tire her) and she makes up to $1,550 (10,000 yuan) for an appearance. Now I’m no math whiz but even with only three gigs a month, she’s bringing in $4650.00 per month. Meowza, that’s a whole lot of kibble and cat toys! She does have a designer for her modeling costumes so there is that overhead to consider.
Hello Dear Furiends,
I am sitting here in utter disbelief. Our Purrsonal Assistant informed us this morning that she forgot yesterday was Wednesday, hence no Walk Through The Web Wednesday feature. To say we have our whiskers in a twist would be an understatement!
While she furiously prepares to get my Wednesday feature published today, Thursday, Oliver, Lily and I are holding a board meeting to decide if she needs to be replaced.
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