Hello there furiends!
It’s the day before Thanksgiving and I hope this post finds you all well and comfy and ready to eat some turkey! We’ve had enough snow in our neck of the woods to put us in the holiday spirit. Lily and Oliver and I have been arguing over the Thanksgiving greeting we wanted to share. The Human got tired of us meowing at each other and said we should put all the images up, although why Lily got one photo with her only didn’t make Oliver and I happy. The Human told us that we get a lot more blog time than Lily does-whatever!

Here are our greetings, hope you like them!

TSA finds cat in checked baggage 

PEOPLE!  Please check your luggage before you leave the house!

A sneaky feline tried to have a little Thanksgiving getaway — until he was discovered by TSA agents. The orange cat was discovered at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport on Tuesday morning after an agent spotted some orange hair poking out of the zipper of the suitcase.

The human who owned the suitcase told TSA he had no idea the cat was in the bag. The feline was discovered when the bag was x-rayed.

The human, who was visiting from out of town,  said the cat, named Smells, was owned by another family member. The New York Post followed up with the cats real humans who said Smells must have crawled in the relative’s bag while they were at work. No one knew Smells was gone until they received a phone call from the TSA and Smells’ owner’s fiancée got a cab and went to rescue the cat only to find Smells was chilling with the TSA folks and acting like he had not a care in the world.  

Again, I beg you, please check your and your relatives luggage this holiday season!

10 cat sleeping positions and what your cat’s favorite snoozing pose means, according to vets

The crescent

This is the most common sleeping position according to Zac Pilossoph, consulting veterinarian at Healthy Paws Pet Insurance. Some people also call this pose the Donut.

In this pose, we curl up in a ball, with our head bent toward our feet and our tail tucked in.

According to Pilossoph, your cat may sleep in the Crescent pose for two reasons:

1. We’re  conserving body heat.

2. We’re protecting our chest and tummy from predator attacks.

“This sleeping position was important for survival when they lived in the wild – and still is for wild cats,” Pilossoph says. Even though most domestic cats have never met a wolf or bear, they still have the instinct to protect themselves while they sleep.

the loaf

In the Loaf, we sleep with our body upright and our paws and tail tucked in. This creates a square shape, much like a loaf of banana bread fresh from the oven.  We use this sleeping position to conserve body heat. As winter approaches, you may catch us sleeping in these compact positions more often. 

The container

We felines love to sleep in containers of all shapes and sizes, from shoeboxes to mixing bowls to a tall boot. They may take on an almost liquid quality to “melt” into the shape of their chosen bed. 

Sometimes we seek out a hidden sleeping spot if we feel threatened — like when we’re wary of a strange-smelling visitor, or in the middle of a spat with a fellow feline. 

side sprawl

When we sleep in a side sprawl we lie on our side, legs out and belly half-exposed. This sleeping position usually means we feel relaxed and safe, although time of  year, temperature and time of day will also influence our sleeping positions.

belly up

The Belly Up position is exactly what you might imagine: we lie on our back, tummy fully bared. Our legs may be stretched out or flat at their sides. 

Sleeping belly up exposes our vital organs to the world. So, if you see us sleeping with our belly faced completely upward, you can take that as a sign we feel extremely comfortable around you, Pilossoph says. Warm temperatures may also cause us to sleep in the belly op position.

monorail

Sometimes we just drift off where we’re sitting and you’ll find us with our body resting on the perch and sometimes our legs dangling down the sides.

pretzel

And then there are times when we sleep with our head and limbs in every direction. It may even seem as if we’re about to tie ourselves in a knot. This position goes by the name Pretzel or Contortionist.

“Sleeping in strange positions makes it more difficult for potential predators to predict their next move. It also helps them to stay alert and aware of their surroundings,” Whoriskey says.

While you might find it impossible to sleep in a similar position, your cat may feel perfectly cozy. Generally, this sleeping position is harmless — as long as we can untangle ourselves when we wake up.

faceplant

In the face plant position we  rest our face flat on the ground, often with our paws covering our eyes. 

Whoriskey says felines may sleep like this for a few different reasons:

To keep our head and neck low to the ground, unseen by predators, to stay warm and to signal we want to be left alone. Sometime we cover our eyes if the light is too bright.

cuddle

We can cuddle with humans, hugging your arm or burrowing between your neck and the pillow. Lily sleeps on The Human’s arm cuddled against her side. We can even cuddle with each other and when Lily finally cuddled with me and Oliver after her cuddle buddy Tucker, crossed the Rainbow Bridge, it was a sign her grief was lessening.  

When we cuddle, it’s is a sign of trust and affection. It’s also a great way to share body heat and get cozy. 

One sleeping position yoou don’t want to see is a headpress

The Headpress position is when we firmly presses our head against a wall or solid furniture and fall asleep in this position. You won’t notice us rubbing our scent glands on anything — just sitting still with our face hidden. 

Unlike the other sleep positions on this list, headpressing almost always suggests a serious health concern. Most commonly, it happens as a sign of hepatic encephalopathy, a neurological condition caused by liver dysfunction. 

If you see us in the Headpress position, whether we’re awake or asleep, take us to the vet as soon as you can for an evaluation.

We felines have all kinds of sleeping positions and rarely stick to just one. If you ever see us sleeping in a position that concerns you, you can always take us for a check up at the vet.

Man Says His Rescue Cat, Garfield, May Have Saved His Life

A Massachusetts man credits his cat with saving his leg and likely his life.

Garfield, a 17-month-old rescue cat, was the hero for 69-year-old Thomas Williams. Garfield came to Williams from an abusive situation. Garfield received a second chance through his adoption and he soon returned the favor.

“He just kept sniffing my legs, and I said, ‘What’s he doing?'” Williams said. “And he got under my wheelchair, and he kept taking his paw, just poking at me.” Williams is an amputee and decided he’d call his visiting nurse. She came to see him and told him that animals can detect infection.

Williams’ doctor found a blood clot in his artery and there was an infection there as well.

“If I didn’t pay attention to what the cat was doing, I probably could have died,” he said. And credits  keeping his leg and his life because of Garfield.

“Like a guardian angel from heaven,” he said. “God put him in my life, and I’m glad he did.” And this cat says a big AMEN to that!

Photographer Captures Comedic Stray Cats on the Streets of Tokyo

Many photographers hit the streets in search of a perfect photo. But not Japanese photographer Masayuki Oki.

Oki scours his hometown of Tokyo and other cities for cats expressing themselves in unusual ways or posing in funny positions.

He fills his social media pages with his quirky and often hilarious photos that show cats fighting amount themselves, sitting in odd positions, and generally living up to their weird reputation.

“It was New Year’s Eve, 2013 when I began my interest in cat street photography,” Oki tells PetaPixel.

“When I was exhausted in a nearby park during a break in between work, I met the fateful cat ‘Busanyan-senpai’ in the middle of the road in the park. From the time I met him, the course of my life changed greatly.”

Oki was fascinated with Mr. Busanyan, who he describes as a gray-haired American shorthair cat with a bizarre appearance

“The more I look at him, the more things come to mind in my head, and the more I want to shoot. A passion was born in my heart. I’ve always liked cats, but I was unable to keep them due to my living environment, etc,” he explains.

“The next day, in 2014, during my work break, I picked up my camera and started taking pictures of cats.”

Since then Oki has taken his Canon 1DX III onto the streets to the delight of his nearly 300,000 followers on Instagram.

“I started taking photos and uploaded them to social media every day where I received exaggerated compliments from people all over the world,” says Oki.

According to The Oriental Economist, there are an estimated 1.1 million cats living in the Tokyo Metropolis, 60,000 of which are strays. This feline loves the fact that this man is trying to capture all of them in photos!