Walk Through The Web Wednesday 1/22

Posted on January 22, 2020 by Feline Opines

Hello Furiends,
Greetings from the snowy, blowy Inland Northwest. The humans are slipping and sliding all over the roads in their metal machines. We felines, on the other hand are staying close to home and keeping cozy.

Oliver and I are expurrts at staying warm.

I have been working though. Seems as if I can’t leave our Purrsonal Assistant alone for a minute so I have to snoopervise her every move. I did demand an “Al extension” on the desk and that my bed be placed there. If I have to work, I’m going to be comfy!

I hope you are all safe and well and that this little sign in our office will resonate with you.

Cat lovers urged to nominate their furry friends in National Cat Awards 2020

Jeffree, last year’s overall winner. Photo: metro.uk.co

Bad news for us North American felines but great news for felines across the pond. It’s time for nominations for National Cat of the Year 2020 . Last year’s overall winner, Jeffree took the title for helping teenager Finn Hackeson, who has Asperger syndrome, cope with the death of his father.

Other categories include ‘Hero Cat’ for cats that have saved the day and ‘Most Caring Cat’ for pets that have positively impacted a person’s health or wellbeing.

The ‘Furr-ever Friends’ category is aimed at bringing in tales of friendship between children and cats.

The ‘Outstanding Rescue Cat’ is a special award for the most fabulous felines that have been adopted from animal charities. There is also a Purina “Better Together” award to celebrate the special bond between a feline and a human.

The award ceremony will be a star-studded event at London’s Savoy Hotel and is sponsored by PURINA.

So my UK moggie furiends, ,get your humans in gear and have them enter the contest.

CHONKY cats beware, there’s a new f eline fitness tracker in town!

The PurrSong Pendant is a tiny device that measures cat’s activity and our sleep. Who knew, a fitness tracker just for felines? The idea behind PurrSong is to get data about our regular routines and to keep track of any times we change those routines. Changes in behavior could indicate there is something wrong. We cats are sneaky in hiding when we don’t feel good and this little gadget might just give you humans a heads up and get us to the vet sooner. The information is sent to an app on the human’s smart phone and will alert to abnormal patterns. The device attaches to our collars. The PurrSong Pendant will be released later this year and will sell for about $100.00. You can watch a video about this cat fitness tracker here.

Eagle Scout’s service project benefits shelter cats.

Contributed photo Marek Jablonski stands in front of the cat playground he built as an Eagle Scout service project for the Marshalltown Animal Rescue League.

Marshalltown High School student Marek Jablonski took the little things to another level when he helped renovate the Marshalltown Animal Rescue League’s cat playpen as his Eagle Scout public service project. We felines know how important environment enrichment is for us and it’s even more important for shelter kitties.

Jablonski created a wall climbing feature that allows kitties to get to the very top of the wall. When Jablonski visited the shelter he saw three kittens sitting on one of the steps, staring out the window

Paws Up award by FelineOpines.net for humans who do amazing things for cats

We give Marek Jablonski a paws up award for this pawsome gift to the shelter.

Feline Social Club offer s sound healing for kitties

Sound-healer Santiago Rodriguez plays some pet sounds as the cats try to be cool about it. Long Beach Post News

Since opening in September 2019, Feline Good Social Club has been a haven for the cat-deprived. If you can’t have a kitty of your own, you can pay $15.00 for a hour for lunch, a break or just some feline time. The Feline Good Social Club’s slogan is “get giddy with a kitty” and encourages all it’s patrons to enjoy the feline company they provide. The organization is a nonprofit, everyone there is a volunteer and the funds received used for facility upkeep, cat food, kitty letter, etc.

The Feline Good Social Club plans events with feline friendly titles such as Cats & Mats Yoga, Paint & Purrs, a cat toy making craft event and a cat-themed movie night. Last weekend Sound Healing with Illuminate Life came in to allow felines and humans to enjoy an unusual meditation session. The event was such a success they are considering doing it on a monthly basis. You can visit The Feline Good Social Club (and meet the kitties available for adoption) at their website or follow them on Facebook.

Homele ss cats airlifted to new homes in Washington

I’ve reported on Wings of Rescue and The Jackson Galaxy Project before. These wonderful folks (and others) fly felines (and doggos too) to places where they will have a better chance of being adopted. These 118 cats were airlifted from shelters in Louisiana and Mississippi to Washington State where folks are looking for kitties to give a furever home. Paws up to these folks who work so hard to get kitties adopted, even if it means transporting them thousands of miles away.

The cats chosen to be flown out came from Jefferson Parish Animal Shelter, St. Charles Animal Shelter, and Oktibbeha Humane Society.

Wings of Rescue has flown over 41,000 pets to safety since 2012. The Jackson Galaxy Project’s mission statement is “To improve the lives of animals at risk by transforming
the places they live and helping the people who care for them” and working with Wings of Rescue is only one part of their mission.

Walk Through The Web Wednesday 1/15

Posted on January 15, 2020 by Feline Opines

siamese cat on a leash walking through a garden

Hello There Furiends,
My how time flies. It’s Wednesday already! It’s been a loooong week for our Female Human. We’ve had lots of snow and she’s been busy pushing all that white stuff off the driveway. We felines purrfer comfort so while she went out there at least four times per day, we kept ourselves warm and comfy and cheered her on. (We were with her in spirit).

This was pretty much The Female Human’s view sincer last Friday. Every time she got the driveway cleared that white stuff started falling. It’s been a long, consistent bad hair day for her. MOL

Oliver stands…..err….lounges in solidarity with The Female Human while he warms himself by the fire.

Lily posed in front of the snow-covered trees and I crawled into The Female Human’s lap each evening and gave her a therapeutic purr session.

We hope that wherever you are, you’re safe and warm! And now, on with the feline news of the week.

Brave Kitty!

We felines don’t always get the kudos we deserve which is why I’m bringing you the story of Max, the fearless cat. This kitty lives in southern California and ended up chasing of not 1, not 2 but 3 coyotes in his yard. And just so you know this isn’t some tall “tail” his humans got the whole dust up on their security camera..

Max’s humans heard the altercation and went out to chase the coyotes out of their yard and had no idea how much work Max had done fending them off until they watched the film from the security camera.

Poor old Max was just a whisker away from bring coyote dinner. Max’s outdoor days are now over bui his humans are talking about building him a catio.You’ve got to check out the security camera video!

A litterbox that keeps your tools handy and is easy to clean!

Tuft and Paw is an innovator in feline products and their latest kickstarter campaign illustrates this.

The Cove litterbox is simple, beautiful and has it’s own an integrated scoop, dustpan, and hand brush. It was created by designers, engineers, and cat behaviorists and made from recycled plastics that are completely toxin-free.

Double-walled, thick matte plastic looks and feels sturdy while a smooth interior is extremely easy to clean. Rubberized bottom firmly plants the box to the floor. Cove’s scoop is designed to sift faster and slide easily through coarse litter without much effort. The dustpan and handbrush allow for quick, easy tidying around the litter box. The litterbox can only be pre-ordered on their Kickstarter page at this time. Pre-order price is $99.00. Lining in a house with five felines, The Female Human isn’t sure that 5 Cove litterboxes are in our financial future but it does sound nice.

Spotify launches a pet playlist generator

I can’t say I’m all that excited about these choices, I’ll have to have a conversation with our Purrsonal Assistant who set it up. I have to say though, it’s about time a streaming company took some interest in feline mewsical preferences. The play list set up asks about your feline’s personality so I am hoping these tunes will suit me. Send your human over to set up your playlist.

Petcurean, a premium food manufacturer for cats and dogs is returning the “Uplift The Underdog – Cat Edition” program

Petcurean puts pets first and the purpose of this contest is to shine a light on the many cats who are overlooked for adoption because of health, weight, age or behavior or other issues, in other words, the feline “underdogs”. Rescue groups, shelters and cat adoption supporters from across North America are invited to purrticipate.

These entities will have until February 2^nd to submit the details of their most overlooked, but utterly adoptable cats. Of the cats nominated, 12 finalists will be selected – six Americans and six Canadians. These finalists will be announced on February 18, 2020, and supporters will be invited to learn about the finalists, do their part to help raise awareness, and vote for their favourite cats. The public voting period will last until February 24, 2020, at 6:00 pm P.S.T. The winner will be announced on February 25.

All 12 of the finalists’ shelters will receive a cat food donation of 2,000 meals to support the important work they’re doing to help animals in their communities. Petcurean will also pay the adoption fee for all 12 finalists, and if they are adopted, they will receive year’s supply of food to take to their new homes. The cat who receives the most votes in each category will receive a three-year supply of food from Petcurean.

Let’s get our shelters involved and help these kitties find furever homes!

Cat and bunny are best buddies

This odd couple in London is garnering world-wide fame for their relationship. A huge English bunny was recorded visiting his feline buddy. The cat’s human, Jessie Sayce recorded the bunny during his daily “hop over” to visit her cat. This has been happening since Leo was a kitten. She said, “”We thought it was really adorable, but didn’t think it would last, as Leo was getting bigger and thought he’d scare the rabbit,” she said. “This started 6 months ago, and they’re still super friendly!”

Their friendship has reached the point where the bunny has sneaked into the house via the cat door to look for Leo if he doesn’t find him outside. Sayce couldn’t figure out how the bunny was getting over the fence so she filmed him one day. She said he jumped on a chair to the top of the shed in her garden. She said they don’t always play, sometimes they just sit together and watch the world go by.

Walk Through The Web Wednesday 1/08

Posted on January 8, 2020 by Feline Opines

Hello there furiends,
Yes, I admit it, I took some time off and I quite enjoyed the rest (you know we felines need our rest!) But the proverbial party is over and it’s time to get back to work. I have a lot to cover since I’ve been slacking (and gave our Purrsonal assistant some time off). The Female Human is not a fan of early mornings and she and Oliver enjoyed hanging out and having a conversation over coffee (Oliver doesn’t drink coffee, he just likes the warmth of the cup).

I on the other hand, have been chomping at the bit to get back to work. The Female Human has an office that is for working and for doing crafts. I must say I love all the craft goodies on the shelf. I have no idea why she gets her whiskers in such a twist when I help myself to some craft supplies, sheesh, how selfish can you get?

“Hmm, let’s see what I can get into here. She really needs to tidy up these shelves.”
Alberto

The good thing about The Female Human having this craft/work situation is that she has a table rather than a desk and this table has an “Alberto extension”. This makes it much easier for me to snoopervise her while she works.

Well, it’s time for me to get to the feline news.

CHONK Statistics Revealed

For those of you who follow my Wednesday web wanderings, you know that our all time favorite Facebook group is This Cat is CHONKY. The humans and felines in this group are some of the greatest we’ve ever met (we’ll be writing more about why this is) but for now, here is only one example. A very mathematically motivated human in the group has created a Universal CHONK index so that the debate about whether your home is filled with CHONKS, SLONKS or FLOOFS can finally be steeled.

Ellis Mumford-Russell has taken on this herculean task and it has settled many debates in the CHONK community. We now have numerical and provable CHONK standards. If this is all a bit confusing to you I suggest you join the This Cat is CHONKY group and get to know the CHONKS AND the wonderful humans they live with and for heaven’s sake before you identify your felines as HEFTY CHONK, MEGA CHONK, etc. please refer to this index.

Universal Chonk Index Update

It is with great pleasure that I unveil the findings of our UCI survey. I charted the 54 data points, which you can see here.

(explanation of UCI here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/133018060894811/permalink/560333531496593/?hc_location=ufi)

A few things:
1. You’ll see cat names listed on the bottom. If people didn’t list cat names, I put the human’s name with an asterisk after
2. Remember, the smaller the number, the more chonky the cat

Most Chonky Cat = Matita w/UCI 1.17
Most Slonky Cat = Noel w/UCI 4.75
Average = 1.8657
Median = 1.7222
Mode = 1.7000

UPDATE: photos now included below for Matita and Noel so that we can see the scale of C H O N K –> S L O N K ??

Proposed Chonk Standards

Given that I presume that the sample group skews chonky, I propose the following standards:
this cat is C H O N K Y ≤ 1.7
this cat is A V E R A G E = 1.71-1.9
this cat is S L O N K Y ≥ 2

Diving further into the data, here are my suggested parameters for the following categories of cat:
some sort of snake cat ≥ 4
l o n g b o i ≥ 3
A fine boi = 1.71-2.9
He Chomnk = 1.6-1.7
A Heckin’ Chonker = 1.5-1.59
H E F T Y C H O N K = 1.4-1.49
M E G A C H O N K E R = 1.3-1.39
AW LAWD HE COMIN’ ≤ 1.29

Use these findings as you see fit.

View the data here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1UlWWRg6kLF1-MIT7om4WV-7TmsX-t1AAwuEX7DMy7OI/edit?usp=sharing

LuluPet’s AI Litterbox will analyze your feline’s “deposits” and check for health issues

LuluPet’s intelligent litter box not only detects littering frequency and litter weight but also the condition of the litter (normal, constipation, diarrhea, etc.). After judging litter conditions through the use of AI image restoration, it uses this data to notify the owner of the cat’s health.

If our Female Human had a dollar for every time she’s had to describe to the vet the appearance and texture of the poop of The Tribe of Five, she’d be a rich woman, And gathering this information accurately when you have a multi cat household and numerous cat boxes is like searching for the holy grail.

But take heart humans, LuLuPet has a litter box with “built-in stool and urine image recognition” to analyze our… deposits. And why have an AI litter box that does this? It’s for the health of your felines, of course. The Female Human paid purrrticular attention when she read that the LuLuPet device can be set to determine which poop is from which cat.

When the cat walks into the litter box, the information is sent to an app on the human’s phone. The company says that the litter box is Alexa- and Google Home-enabled. This offers more questions than answers. Whose voice does it respond to? If it’s the felines, do we have to learn special meows? If it’s the human, what is the voice command? The next feature has Oliver’s whiskers in a twist because the litter box can weigh your feline and determine whether the cat is too fat. That brings me to another question; will they be employing the CHONK data information noted in the article above?

Evidently this wonder litter box can also determine if the cat needs more food or water.

LuluPets joins many other smart litter boxes but most of those boxes focus on cleaning the box and not analyzing the cat’s health. And there’s even a built in camera although this causes me to wonder, can’t a cat get some privacy?! The thought of my human watching me “do my business” over her phone app is a bit off-putting and frankly, an invasion of my privacy. LuluPet says that these photos are uploaded to the LuluPet library and are used to compare the different “deposits” of the other felines.

Now don’t get me wrong, this thing could really be a help with cat health, but I’m having a bit of difficulty believing that it will be as effective as the company says it will be. But, time will tell. This smart litter box is slated to be sold on Amazon in March for $149.00.

Canyon Ranch Inspired Resort for Felines…Human send me right meow!

Cat’s Meow resort was founded by Kim Thomas who took her business acumen and love of cats and created her feline resort, Cat’s Meow. She refers to it as the Canyon Ranch for felines. She began her feline career with a pet sitter service and said that she noticed many of the cats she cared for were in need of grooming. She did her research, connected with the National Cat Groomer’s institute and became a master cat groomer.

She loved grooming felines, bet felt something was missing in the marketplace. She wanted to create a place where cats could enjoy luxurious, stress-free, happy cat boarding without the distraction and fear of dogs —- along with the latest in cat grooming. and Cat’s Meow Resort was born.

The spaces at Cat’s Meow are pawsome and very elegant and the grooming options are amazing. If you want to up your feline’s star quality, this is the place to stay. I would be tempted but traveling. If I didn’t find the idea of being stuffed in a carrier and traveling the 2682 miles from my home to the resort holds no interest for me! If any of my east coast feline furiends have a stay or a grooming session there, let me know.

Gus the Cat Entered in Australian Dog Swimming Race

. Gus also enjoys paddle-boarding, cycling and hiking. Photograph: Alec Smart

The Scotland Island dog swimming race has been held for 44 years in the Sydney area. This year an entrant nabbed Gus shook things up a bit as he is an 11-month old Tonkinese cat. Gus’ human, Glenn Druery had been training the feline in Middle Harbor. Gus enjoys other water sports like kayaking and paddle boarding.

The Tonkinese breed is a cross between Siamese and Burmese and is known for not being fearful of water. Still, Gus is nowhere near the size and strength of the dogs that compete in the 500 meter swim. Druery checked the rules and noted that a human can swim alongside the four legged contestants.

Needless to say, ther4 was controversy about Gus’ entering the race with many saying that it should be kept as a dog race, stating reasons such as, “it’s cruel to the cat, it’s dangerous to the cat and it will upset the dogs.”

Druery assured the sceptics that he’d be swimming alongside Gus and, if Gus ran into any trouble, he’d climb on Druery’s shoulders.

Druery’s black Border collie, Bob, swam in the race twice and finished third and was declared the overall winner in the 2015 race. Sadly, Bob passed away from cancer.

Gus came in first in his category and is now a feline Australian sensation.

Osaka Hotel Offers Rooms With A View….Of Cats

Each room has an observation window looking into the cat’s play area

There are hotels for cats and now there are hotels for cat lovers. Neko Hatago is a hotel where guests can watch 16 resident rescue cats chilling in the adjacent cat café Neko Yokujo through an observation window in each hotel room. The hotel opened in mid-December. It has a traditional Japanese aesthetic, with traditional wooden fixtures, tatami mats and a rainbow Mt Fuji mural presiding over the cat café. The hotel is more hostel than a luxury property. The rooms have individual bunks for one or two people with a separate shared bath facility. There is an observation window in each room that looks into the cats play area. The windows are designed so you can observe the cats but neither you nor the other human guests can see each other. There are radio controlled toys that you can use to play with the cats.

Rates run between 8500 Yen ($79.00 USD) to 11,500 Yen ($105.00 USD) and include a two-hour session in the cat café outside of regular hours. And, if you and one of the kitties connect you can adopt a new friend as all the cats are available for adoption.

How Dare You Call My Cat Geriatric! (The Female Human Opines)

Posted on December 31, 2019 by Feline Opines

Although I didn’t say the words out loud that‘s exactly what I thought all those years ago when my beloved Miss P was being examined by the vet. I struggled to paste a smile on my face as I gazed into the blue eyes of my sassy Lynx Point feline. Granted, she was 10 years old but she still looked like the sassy little kitten I’d first met. The kitten who began life as “Puddy” but let me know in no uncertain terms that she required a more dignified moniker and soon became known as Miss P.

Miss P was with me for nine more wonderful years and during that time I began to learn to not only accept the geriatric time of her life but to embrace and enjoy it. She’s been gone for five years now and I am happy to say every memory I have of her is a joyful one.

A year and a half ago my world was rocked when 17-year old Jasmine was diagnosed with kidney disease. I immediately went to the worst case scenario, my heart was broken and tears flowed so fast couldn’t concentrate on the lesson the vet tech was attempting to give me in administering subcutaneous fluids. Then, something the vet tech said permeated my fog of sorrow.

“Anita, we’ve had so many kitties live many good years with this diagnosis on sub-Q fluids.”

I grabbed a tissue, blew my nose and said hopefully, “Really?”

Their Senior Years Are Only A New Stage

That was the moment I turned the corner and began to embrace the reality of my cat’s senior days. I thought through Jasmine’s treatment and felt that no matter how hard it would be for me to give her the fluids, she deserved much better than being terrified by a vet trip every other day. I screwed up my courage and learned how to administer the fluids myself. We discussed what Jasmine needed and how to monitor her health. I left the vets that day with prescription food, sub-Q fluids and a hopeful heart.

It took a few weeks to get Jasmine stable. We made one more vet trip when she seemed to be in distress but we managed to get her back on track. I monitor her weight, give her fluids religiously (although she has some issues with this as seen in this short video) and make sure she’s hydrated and her diet is low in phosphates. Instead of bemoaning the fact that she’s a senior I take the time to create new rituals and fun times together. Now, while I give her fluids, she also gets an Inaba Churu Grain-Free Chicken lickable treat and despite her meows to the contrary, she enjoys the new addition to the treatment.

“I do not appreicate being poked with a needle!
Jasmine

It’s natural to want our felines to remain kittens forever but if we don’t embrace all their stages of life we miss so much. Tucker, Jasmines brother, Jasmine and I have developed routines and ways of living together over these 17 years that are a constant blessing to me. Yes, there are adjustments. Tucker can no longer come out on the deck with me and sit on the railing as his poor depth perception has made him more tentative in gauging how much space he has on that ledge. There is a 35 foot drop into the woods from that ledge that he already misjudged a number of years ago so now he and all the cats enjoy the great outdoors in their pop up catio.

Tucker, in his younger days, sunning on the ledge of the upstairs deck.

Jasmine went through a stressful time of bullying and, as a result, she now lives in the bedroom suite. I tried to reintegrate her into the rest of the house for several years but I finally had to respect her wishes to have her own space. Since the arrival of my “foster failures” Alberto and Oliver, she does have periodic visitors and enjoys bossing them around. I constantly look for other ways to enrich her environment as well.

Tucker’ has always been a rather “laid back” fellow which is only enhanced in his senior years. Still, there are things he does that delight and often amaze me. He likes to jump up on the stools at the kitchen counter and then hop up on the counter to “snoopervise” the goings on in the kitchen (he is a cat that lives to eat and this proclivity for eating seems to have been enhanced over the years). I would never dream of chasing him off the counter. If the old guy can make it up there, he deserves to stay there. Any visitors to my house have to deal with the fact that the counter is religiously cleaned with cat-friendly disinfectant and is often decorated by a rather large, cross-eyed feline. He has also been known to enjoy box sitting sessions and giving the “young ones” the occasional whacky paw when he deems them to be annoying. Tucker makes sure he never misses an opportunity to roll in some nip as well..

A little “nip” sprinkled on the counter will always get this old guy moving. Look at that happy face.

Granted, life and routines change over time but that doesn’t mean the changes are bad. Many are quite enjoyable. As you navigate the senior years of your cat, consider these five lessons for living with and loving geriatric felines that I’ve learned.

The Five Rules For Your Cats Geriatric Years

Plan financially for your cat’s senior years. As they age, cats will require more veterinary visits than they did as young felines. Think about getting pet insurance when they’re young or, start a savings plan for their medical needs. I have a line item in my budget for “Cat Medical”. Whatever I don’t use in a month, I put in savings as insurance.
Make sure you begin a habit of yearly wellness exams for your cats. Wellness exams help your vet identify and treat potential problems at their earliest stages.
Have a first class pet sitter. If I have to leave home, I need more than someone who will come in and feed twice a day. Both Tucker and Jasmine have medical needs that must be addressed and medications that need to be dispensed. My sitter needs to know what to look for if the cats are not feeling well and when to take them to the vet. I always make arrangements with my vet before I leave in case my cats need medical attention.
Just because they aren’t as active as they used to be doesn’t mean they don’t need environmental enrichment. Tucker enjoys box sitting and catnip is still a favorite.Jasmine has an assortment of toys and enjoys the occasional roll in the nip too.
Love them and enjoy them and be thankful for every day you have with them.

Charles Dickens said, “What greater gift than the love of a cat?” and if we can receive that love for 19, 20 or more years, what a wonderful gift that is.

Walk Through The Web Wednesday 12/18

Posted on December 18, 2019 by Feline Opines

Hello there furiends,
How is your week going? The Tribe of Five is getting in the holiday spirit and the weather humans are saying we’re going to have two days of holiday snow. I realize that today’s picture on Weather Kitty is a bit deceptive, what with the sunshine and green grass and all but you can see we have a winter storm warning.

Weather Kitty offers “meow prime” but evidently the staff is too cheap to get the paid version with our purrsonalized pictures!

On another note, we seem to have a disaster in the making at our house. This weekend The Female Human was boiling some eggs on the stovetop. She went to wash something in the sink and when she turned around, this is what she saw.

Evidently, the desperate yelling of the Female Human, “Oliver get down!” had no effect on the little heat seeking guy. Nope instead of obeying, he moved in closer.

Notice the bubbles in the water? That’s because there is a fire under that pan heating up the water. Still, Oliver doesn’t seem to be worried about setting his fur on fire.

Human still screaming (and filming) and Oliver is blase about the situation.

The yelling and removal of Oliver from the stovetop continued until The Female Human’s eggs were boiled. Oliver won the stand off and The Female Human hovered over the burner until she shut it off. All I can say is, it’s a good thing she rarely cooks!

“I have no idea why you are screaming at me. Can’t a cat get a little extra heat without making a big deal of it?”

Please do not give The Female Human a bad time. She always knew Oliver was a heat seeking feline but this stunt was a new one. He has been (gently) advised that waltzing across the counter to the stove top is not allowed and a very, very, very bad idea. Sigh, it’s a good thing I’m such a good cat and don’t give her any trouble..

As you can see it’s been a bit of a harrowing week in our neck of the woods but we are all safe and sound and The Female Human is quite the watchdog when the stovetop burners are on.

So let’s get started on this week’s wonderful feline web stories.

Working Cats Keep Levees Safe

Former feral cat works to keep the levees safe.

The Metro East Sanitary District in Granite City, IL hired dozens of new employees this year, all eager and hungry to take care of rodent problems. These working felines are keeping the rodent population down and saving the levee system.

The felines were “hired” six months ago from Metro East Humane Society’s Working Cat Program and their job description isn’t limited to rats, they patrol for moles, voles and other burrowing animals along the levee system. An MESD spokesperson says the cats are doing a fantastic job. The cats receive room and board and are saving MESD from high maintenance costs.

Prior to coming to MESD, the cats were spayed/neutered, vaccinated, micro-chipped and ear-tipped. In the past most feral cats were euthanized and now these felines not only get to live, they live their best life. Paws up to the good folks at The Metro East Sanitary District!

Paws on the Job – More working cats

Business owners in Addison County, Vt are adding felines to the workplace through the Paws on the Job program of Homeward Bound, Addison County’s Humane Society. Shelter feline coordinator Michelle Shubert spends time with the new feral cats at the shelter so that she can transition them into the working cats program.

The working cats in the program live and hunt outside and the business owners feed and care for them. A new category for office cats has also been created. Sadie, a calico works at the Gaines Insurance agency, Chedder works at the Middlebury Animal Hospital, and a local hardware store employs Grayson

Businesses wishing to hire a working cat are required to assign a “boss” or point person who is responsible for the feline employee. They must provide shelter, food, water and affection and attention. For a $35.00 hiring fee, the business receives a start-up package that includes a crate ,litter box, start up food and toys.

pays for a start-up care package that includes supplies such as a crate for the acclimation period of an outdoor cat, litter box for an indoor cat, startup food and toys. Let’s give a big round of applause for “Paws on the Job”.

Cats Steal the Show in These 12 Famous Feline Flicks

The holidays are near and my feline furiends (even the working ones) and their humans will have some extra time to relax and watch some flicks. When you’re planning your holiday movies, here are 12 of the greatest feline features ever made for you to watch. The list goes back all the way to 1958.

Molly, the amazing dog who rescues cats

Before you say it, yes of course I know this is a FELINE blog and dogs are normally verboten but this is a special case. This dog, Mollie, works with her human Colin Butcher, a former police detective in their agency that finds lost pets, with a specialty in finding felines. Mollied’s human learned quite a bit about finding lost pets when he was on the police force so this post-retirement job was purrfect for him.

Their agency, UK Pet Detectives took off when Molly started working with him. Molly is a rescue herself and has been trained to do feline scent recognition work. While Molly did her training her human brushed up on cat behavior and now they are an unstoppable team. They’ve recently released a book titled, Molly: The True Story of The Amazing Dog Who Rescues Cats

Tweet about dad who didn’t want a cat explains why cats own Twitter

A human named Ruby shared a tweet on December 11^th about her dad who was adamant about the fact that he didn’t want the responsibility of taking a cat as he’d already raised his kids. The tweet showed her dad showing his feline Lucas everything he bought the cat at the store. And Ruby’s dad now has two cats. In addition to obtaining feline approval of his purchases, Ruby’s dad also built a sandpit and paddling pool for them and holds an umbrella over them when it rains. The tweets are hilarious and heart warming and we want to remind you humans that real men love cats!

My regular readers will remember that I told you about one of the BEST cat groups on the planet, This cat is CHONKY. If you haven’t checked this group out yet you’re missing a lot. Wonderful CHONKY cats and fantastic humans. Well this feline, Kidden was a member and when Kidden’s human say a photo of this guy holding a friend’s CHONKY feline she felt compelled to comment on his cuteness.

The rest is an amazing love story. Chicago human begins to correspond with English human and English human sets off over the pond to meet female human. Thank goodness Kidden approves. So all you single cat people out there….start getting creative!

Walk Through The Web Wednesday 12/11

Posted on December 11, 2019 by Feline Opines

Happy Wednesday Furiends,
How is everything in your neck of the woods? Nothing much new to report but we did have a sprinkling of snow here in the valley. The ski area is getting enough to open all the trails and that’s a good thing. The Female Human purrfers a “light sprinkling” but I keep telling her snow shoveling is a good workout (and it’s quite amewsing to sit on the window sill and watch her). We kinda’ liked the white stuff we saw out of the window this morning, puts us in a festive mood.

The Female Human purchased a new kitchen rug without our consent. What hubris! I immediately went into the kitchen to see if I would be willing to give it a paws up. I must say I like it much better than the old one.

Even though I am the official snooperviser in the house, Oliver had to get into the act too. He is the living, breathing example of a copycat.

I do have one question for you. I have had this “cardboard sofa” since I was a kitten. It’s my favorite thing to hang out in when I’m chillin’ and keeping an eye on the goings on in the house. The Female Human thinks I should have a bigger one and frankly, it is getting a bit difficult to squeeze my large (but lean and athletic) frame into this one. If any of you know of a larger version of this cardboard sofa, please meow at us and let us know.

It is getting a bit tight in my little cardboard sofa.

That’s enough about The Tribe of Five. Let’s get on with the latest feline news. Be sure and read to the end as I’ve added a new feature, “Alberto’s Weekly Feline Web Star” and who knows, some of you might end up in my Wednesday blog feature one of these days.

The age old battle, cats vs Christmas trees

My readers are well aware of the fact that this feline despises cat stereotypes but I must say, this is one stereotype that is not only true but hilarious. In our defense, if you humans insist on setting up something in the house that looks like a festive feline fun house you shouldn’t be surprised if it is the object of our shenanigans.

Two-day fair hosts thousands of cats in Moscow

Mewoza this was quite an event. Two days and 2,000 cats from 12 countries! I was purrticularily interested when I read in another article that one of the events was cat dancing. This caused me to set my purrsonal assistant on a quest to find out about this. Sadly, she failed to find any info about the cat dancing at the event but she reminded me I did do a report about the Moscow Cat Theater in a previous Wednesday feature. Evidently those Russian cats are quite accomplished. She found information about Russian dancing cats and about the Savitsky Cats, The Savitsky Cats are a family from the Ukraine that consists of mother Svitlana, daughter Marina, son Misha, and their 10 felines. Here’s a little clip when the Savitsky Cats were on America’s Got Talent (which is confusing to me if they are Russian cats-oh well).

Cats with jobs: Collierville Feline hires herself as a greeter

Cinnamon greets staff and visitors at the Collierville shelter

Cinnamon, a “semi-feral” cat resides in the outdoor area behind the shelter. In addition to her job description of “mouse removal” she decided that she needed to expand her business repertoire and has a new job as shelter greeter. It appears Cinnamon wasn’t getting enough human interaction and greeting filled that need.

Now lest you worry about the TNR feral cats who reside at the shelter, have no fear. They are well taken care of. They have small, warm houses to live in and special fan cooled areas for the summer.

The shelter will always try to help these kitties adapt to indoor life but for some, the “wild and free” lifestyle is more to their liking. The shelter staff says that Cinnamon has been there long enough to be accustomed to their routines. She’ll greet anyone who will let her, but never tries to get inside the building. I think Cinnamon has a pretty nice gig, a nice outside area to roam in and a job with room and board and benefits. Paws up to the good folks at the Collierville shelter for thinking outside the box!

New homes in Japan are designed with felines in mind

There is so much The Tribe loves about this house but this is The Female Human’s favorite thing. a litter box near the human toilet, with a cover to lock away smells, and a sunken design so stray litter can be easily swept back into the box.

Oh my whiskers, I’m telling The Female Human we must move to Japan posthaste. She’s not so keen on the idea so we’re trying to see if there are any innovative architechts furmiliar with these plans here in the good old US of A.

Felissimo is famous cat related brand in Japan that produces fantastical feline products has just won a gold medal with this concept. They collaborated with Wada Kosan, a company that develops rental condominiums in Kobe, Japan. The new cat homes took two years to develop with the input from professional architechts and cat owning Felissimo Cat club members.

These designs are purrfection and even the outside is a hat tip to felines as the building exteriors are designed to look like calico cat fur. Tenants in these luxury rentals will receive a 5,000 yen ($46.05) coupon every month for Felissimo products. Someone send me to Japan!

Stowaway cat was found at a British port after surviving a 12-day journey on a cargo ship from Israel.

Izzy, the stowaway cat from Israel is looking for a home in her new country.

The tortoiseshell cat, thought to be about a year old, was discovered in a container which arrived at Southampton in April. Following a four-month quarantine stay, she has been named Izzy and is being cared for at the Cats Protection Newbury Adoption Centre, in Thatcham, Berkshire, which is hoping to find her a new home.

The shelter says, “Izzy is quite a shy cat, and we think she must have been a street cat in Israel – used to being around people, but not being handled.” They said they’ll never know her full story, but it’s most likely she snuck into the container looking for food or somewhere cosy to sleep, and ended up getting locked in.

It’s quite remarkable that she survived for so long without food or water in what must have been very uncomfortable conditions. Izzy is described as “An independent girl, and she’d suit a home where she can have plenty of outdoor space. It may be that she’ll prefer to spend most of her time outdoors at first, but once she gets settled, she may well begin to come inside the home.”

As Izzy has been through a lot, the shelter would love to see her go to a home with a patient human who can give her the stable home she needs after such a turbulent few months.

Paws crossed that Izzy finds the purrfect home!

Alberto’s Weekly Feline web star

Hey furiends, I’m excited about this new feature I’m adding. I will be showcasing felines that I know (some of my feline blogging furiends) and felines furiends I meet in the many cat groups I belong to. This week I’m introducing you to my furiend Bear Cat. He and his pawtner in crime, Ellie Mae are fellow feline bloggers and they’re always good for some shenanigans. I think this photo of Bear Cat says it all. Go visit them at Momma Kat and Her Bear Cat.

Walk Through The Web Wednesday 11/20

Posted on November 20, 2019 by Feline Opines

Hello There Furiends,
How are things in your neck of the woods? To be honest, it’s been a bit boring here. The Female Human is always meowing about keeping things tidy but when dinner time comes things don’t look so tidy. Tucker is afraid he’ll miss an eating opportunity, Lily doesn’t want to fight for her food with Oliver (who normally sits on the rug howling like a banshee) and I need to be up there to snoopervise.

I mentioned that Oliver likes to sit on the floor and wait for his meals, which is why this sight that welcomed our Human the other morning had her quite purr-plexed. It took her a while to figure out what Ollie was doing up there. I’m going to post the photos and see if you can figure out why he’s there and the first one to respond with the right answer in the comments will win one each of our Felines Opine books. (Hint, you might get a clue from the dinner photo). Happy guessing!

The first to guess correctly why Oliver is in this position in this unusual place wins both of 9ur books!

This was what The Female Human saw in the morning. Needles to say she wasn’t thrilled with the sight.

Instead of responding to “Oliver, what are you doing up there?!” Oliver just cuddled up closer to the side of the counter. What in the world is Oliver doing??

While you folks are trying to work out what in the world my crazy brother is up to, I’ll share my newsworthy finds in this week’s web wanderings.

Man plays piano for his rescue cats

This musician has 19 rescue cats, and they all love their piano-playing human more than anything. But there’s also a wonderful story behind the music. .

About 10 years ago, Sarper Duman, a 28-year-old pianist and music teacher ,suffering from deep depression attempted suicide. After spending an extended time in recovery he was in a park one day and a cat crawled up to him. He wanted to help this cat because he had needed so much help himself. That first rescue cat turned into 19 cats.

Duman began posting videos of his music loving felines and his Instagram followers went from 300 to 55,000 overnight. Today over a million people enjoy his videos. But, as you can imagine, 19 cats require a lot of food, litter and vet visits. Duman decided to set up a Patreon page for his followers to help earn some support from his videos. Duman expands his love of animals to strays around his home and his office and sometimes, people who know of his work, abandon sick and wounded cats at his house or work.

“Thanks to you and your endless support,” he says, “I have been able to help these poor animals to get the necessary medical treatment.”

If you want to watch Sarper’s videos, check out his Instagram page – and if you want to help him look after his cats, you can become a patron here.

Bonnie & Clyde rule the roost at Atlanta store

Okay humans this one is going o be a bit confusing. Bonnie and Clyde are cats, not humans. The Atlanta they’re talking about is not in Georgia, ,it’s in Texas-who knew?

Now that I’ve gotten all that straightened out I can tell you about these cats with jobs (and you know how much I love stories about cats with jobs)’

Customers at Atlanta Athletics are always greeted by the two felines employed there. Their job consists of stretching out on the floor awaiting belly rubs and customer service.

Clyde, the white cat, runs to greet customers as soon as he hears the front door opening. Bonnie, the black cat is slightly pickier as she likes some customers, others, not so much. Both cats agree that they love the Fed Ex, box delivering guy. I was unable to find out what salary these felines earn but based on their appearance, whatever it is it’s plenty to keep them healthy and happy. Working cats rock!

A cat’s journey from Portland to Santa Fe

Our Female Human runs a social media lost pet group for our area. She works hard to keep people who are looking for their lost felines optimistic and says that when humans see a cat they think stray before they ever think lost. This is why she ( and I ) love stories like this.

After five years of being gone from home, a beautiful black cat named Sasha, appeared in Santa Fe. This is exciting enough but when you realize that Sasha’s former home is in Portland, Oregon! After roaming the city streets of Santa Fe Sasha was picked up and taken to the animal shelter.

Shasha’s microchip revealed that his owner was Viktor Usov, who reported the cat missing years ago. (Note to you humans, microchipping is important!)

The shelter’s public relations officer, Murad Kirdar was astonished the cat made an almost 1400 mile journey. “Cats are notorious for jumping U-Hauls, trains and cars. Somehow it hitched a ride and ended up here,” Kirdar says. “How he managed to survive to get here is the million dollar question. I can tell you he hasn’t missed a meal.”

Thanks to the generosity of American Airlines, Kirdar and Sasha flew to return Sasha to his home and human in Portland. Kirdar says he has bonded with Sasha, and plans to keep in touch.

Minneapolis Airport therapy cat Stitches is the new favorite feline of the internet

Here’s another pawsome feline occupation. Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport is one of only two in the nation to employ a therapy cat. The other airport is Denver and I reported on that feline in one of my Walk Through The Web Wednesday features.

Stitches, has proven to be a calming influence in the hectic atmosphere of this large airport. It isn’t only the travelers who enjoy the 11-year old Stitches, it’s the airport employees as well.

Stitches knows quite a bit about stress as she was rescued after hurricane Hugo. “She’s wonderful. I’ve never seen such a calm collected cat,” pilot Andrew Dean said.

MSP Airport has had a therapy program for four years, with 96 dogs. Stitches is the very first cat.

“We knew going into it that people would really love Stitches, what we didn’t know is we would get media attention from around the world and that she would become this sensation,” MSP Foundation director of travelers’ assistance Laura Sartain said.

Way to go Stitches! Let’s get more felines in airports.

Man converts coolers to winter housing for feral cats

A wonderful man in Ogden, Utah turns old coolers into warm, insulated spaces for feral cats to take refuge in the winter. This DIY project only takes about five minutes and you can see how easy it is by watching the video.

He uses a 6 inch drill bit to drill through the cooler, then add some pipe insulation to pad it. You put straw on the inside and the project is finished.

These cat coolers are brilliant and in climates like the Inland Northwest where we live, they are a blessing for feral kitties.

We give our paws up award to this kind-hearted human, Philip Rogich. If you want to see how easy these cat coolers are to make, watch the video.

Walk Through The Web Wednesday 11/13

Posted on November 13, 2019 by Feline Opines

Hello Furiends,
It’s been an eventful week in our neck of the woods. It appears that my reporting on Quilty, the escapist cat (and purrhaps the reporting from various major news organizations) has created quite a stir. I recently learned that instead of being rewarded for his clever behavior, Quilty has been thrown in solitary confinement at the shelter where he lives.

Cats are protesting in the streets and the situation is getting tense.

Cats all over the country are uniting in their quest to see Quilty freed.

I contacted some esteemed feline friends to ask them their opinion about this miscarriage of justice (note, any resemblance to members of Feline Opines staff is purely coincidental).

Yo Dude, this solitary confinement stuff is bogus. Someone needs to get that guy out of the shelter!

I say there old chap, back in WWII that feline would have received a medal for his fabulous escape talents. Cheerio my little feline Houdini. .

So uh, like you know, I don’t really get into all that negativity stuff but I would say poor Quilty got a bad rap. ya’ know?

So I was hangin’ with some of my homies and they said, “Duuuuude, did you hear about that cat that got solitary for letting other cats into the lobby of the shelter?” And I was like, Woah, that’s messed up!”

What cat? What shelter? Were there treats involved? Why won’t anyone tell me what’s going on? Hello! Hello! Where is everybody?

Okay, perhaps some of these public figures made a little more sense than others. The point is, all my furiends and followers in Texas, PLEASE help get this little guy out of the shelter and into a furever home (one with locks on the doors preferably!)

Enough about Quilty, lets move on to this weeks feline finds in my web wanderings.

Hero cat saves baby

Gatubela, a hero cat and purrhaps a European relative of Lily,

All hail the hero cat Gatubela who saved a toddler from falling down the stairs. It was all caught on a security camera as the feline distracts a baby and keeps him from falling down a fight of a dozen steps. Gatubela sat on the sofa watching the baby until the little boy headed toward the stairs. The kitty ran to the rescue and latched onto the toddler. We say, “Way to go Gatubela!” and give this feline a paws up award. Oh, and by the way, we’re wondering if Gatubela is related to our very own Lily.

https://nypost.com/2019/11/07/hero-cat-leaps-into-action-to-save-baby-from-falling-down-stairs/

Japanese loungewear truly is the cat’s pajamas

Felissimo, Japan’s leading cat-themed lifestyle brand has created the purrrfect loungewear for humans to show their feline side. The outfit in the picture is the Siamese version but they also have a black cat version (although why anyone would prefer the black cat over the Siamese is a mystery to me, especially as the cost is 4,500 yen (US$42). That makes it’ 200 yen more expensive than the Siamese version. I’ve been told that’s because the black cat outfit is mid-calf and the Siamese outfit is knee length If you’re worried that your feet might get chilly in this ensemble, have no fear, there are kitty themed socks to match.

Potato, this cat’s unique eyes have made him an internet celebrity

You humans do a lot of meowing about how being different is a good thing but some of you don’t really believe that when it comes to felines. Potato the cat, with his big green and black eyes bears quite a resemblance to Puss in Boots from the movie Shrek. As soon as his human adopted him she began posting his photos on Instagram and the rest, as they say, is history.

Potato today, at five years old, is a bona fide internet celebrity. We love Potato’s looks, what do you say?

Join Purina’s Feastivity celebration this Christmas

2019 Ornament. This year’s ornament celebrates all the extra little ways we give—and give back. brighten your tree and gift one to a someone you care about. We hope it helps you fill the holidays with love.

Feastivities is how the good folks at Fancy Feast celebrate the holidays. Each year they offer a unique, crafted ornament to brighten your tree. They partner with Adopt-A-Pet.com so all the proceeds go to helping pets find their forever homes. Over the years, the Feastivity program has raised over $230,000.00 Meowza, that’s a merry furever home for lots of felines!

Forget those humans pretending to be cats, THIS is the movie you want to see!

“The Cat Rescuers,” movie, introduces a handful of remarkable Brooklynites who have dedicated time, money, and an enormous amount of emotional fortitude to trapping, neutering, and returning — or adopting out — feral city cats. They devote their days and nights to rescuing abandoned or homeless kittens and cats.

The movie tells the story of each rescuer, you see how they trap and care for stray cats. They bring cats and kittens into their homes if they need to recouperate from medical issues.

This rescue group (and the movie) were born out of the passion a man and his wife had for cat rescue. There are an an estimated 500,000 street cats in New York City and that fact laubnched the idea of this movie to educate people about TNR. ,

Watch “The Cat Rescuers” trailer and be sure to learn more about Second Chance Animal Rescue .. The Tribe of Five would love to see this movie shown all over the country.

Walk Through The Web Wednesday 10/30

Posted on October 30, 2019 by Feline Opines

Hello Furiends,
Oh my whiskers, it’s Wednesday again! It’s also a day away from that holiday that you humans love so much, I like to call it “Howl-oween”. This holiday has been a bit of a problem for me as The Female Human felt it would be funny to dress me up. There was the dinosaur costume debacle and then the sushi costume…don’t even make me go there.

Human, i suggest you close our bedroom door tonight when you go to bed! -Alberto

Oliver and I decided that we would take this Howl-oween thing into our own paws and last year we debuted our fur-raising movie, “You Never Walk Alone”. Since we didn’t get around to making a new film, we’ll share this one with you again. Get out the popcorn and please, this is just too scary for kittens! Enjoy the film and I hope you enjoy this week’s web wanderings.

S

Denver’s newest hotel restaurant is the cat lady-themed pizzeria we didn’t know we needed

Gattara, the new restaurant at the Warwick hotel in Denver, is named for the Italian word for “cat lady.” Here, a mural in the restaurant by Miguel Cruz. (Josie Sexton, The Denver Post)

Gattara translates roughly from Italian to “cat lady,” as in the crazy variety. And Gattara’s menu, under longtime Colorado chef Thomas Newsted, focuses on wood-fired Neapolitan pizzas and other Italian fare. Just be sure when you go, you get a “kitty bag” because we felines love to lick the top of pizzas.

The 16 most ridiculous cat Halloween costumes

Okay, I’ve already given you my opinion on this Howl-oween stuff for felines.The fact that any self respecting cat would allow themselves to be stuffed into one of these ridiculous outfits boggles my mind. Humans, STOP THE MADNESS!

Miss Manners: They’re staying in the cats’ room but they’re rude to the cats

As we covered many topics about felines and etiquette and we did have a chapter on guests, in our book “Felines Opine on Etiquette, What Humans Need to Know About Guests, Cat Sitting and Furniture, we thought this letter to Miss Manners was very timely. We hope you find it helpful as it is the desire of The Tribe of Five to help you humans avoid awkward situations.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: We have a small house, and family and friends are always welcome. We also have six cats, and their care and comfort are important.

We have to keep our cats separate so they don’t fight (everyone is spayed/neutered; they just don’t get along), so two cats live in what used to be our guest room.

We explain this to our overnight guests, several of whom are allergic to cats and/or don’t like cats, and they still insist everything will be fine. They then refuse to let the cats in the room during the day, while the distressed cats howl and claw the door. Frankly, I don’t care if the cats take their jewelry, but I do care if the cats choke on it.

There are also simple things that must be done when living with cats, like making sure indoor cats don’t run out the door, keeping toilet lids down, and keeping breakable things out of their reach. It seems our guests simply don’t care, and don’t comply.

I don’t see why this is all so hard to understand. The cats need care and consideration; they are not disposable furry houseplants.

To be fair, we stay with these pet-less folks when visiting them, so we can’t ask them not to stay with us. I’ve even tried putting Post-it notes around the house, reminding guests to keep doors and toilet lids closed, etc., which was considered rude. How do we handle this situation politely so there are no hurt feelings?

GENTLE READER: Well, it is too late for the cats, who have already been rudely locked out of their rooms and probably have something to say about it.

Miss Manners does have a certain sympathy for guests who do not wish to be woken up by persistent fur balls looking for fun — or having their belongings gone through in their absence.

However, you must be more forceful in setting the rules when you issue invitations.

“You are so kind to say that you don’t mind cohabitating with the cats, but I am worried that keeping them safe is proving bothersome to you. I understand if you need to find another place to stay and of course, I am happy to do likewise when we visit you.”

Rescue cat returns the favor, alerts sleeping owner to apartment fire

Five years ago in Ithaca. NY Danielle Schafer rescued a kitten off the side of the road. Last week the cat, named Kitty returned the favor. Kitty used all her 12-pound weight to jump on her human’s chest to wake her up, alerting her to the flames in the apartment. Schafer rushed to the kitchen and saw the fire. She ran back to her bedroom to get Kitty and take the feline and herself to safety.

The smoke was so thick and Kitty was nowhere to be seen. Finally, Schafer was forced to get to safety. Once outside, she helped the family who lived in the apartment above her escape the worsening flames. The parents dropped their two small children, clad only in diapers, into the outstretched arms of Schafer and a neighbor.

By the time the flames were extinguished, 12 people had escaped to safety. Schafer’s only thought was to get back into the building and save the cat who had saved her. She screamed and cried as she searched and one of the firefighters assured her that they had gone through her apartment and there was no cat in her bedroom.

She crawled through bushes, looked under cars calling, “Kitty, Kitty!”

In the midst of her frenzied search, she heard a firefighter yelling for her. She asked, “Is my cat dead?” “No,” the firefighter said. “Look.” In his arms, was a small gray cat. “It was like a movie,” Schafer said of the moment she was reunited with Kitty.

And where was Kitty all that time? The story was amazing. Kitty had hunkered down and made a cocoon in the pillows of the bed to protect herself against the raging fire’s thick black smoke. The small cat, stayed there for over seven hours until the persistent firefighter found her.

Kitty was treated for smoke inhalation and corneal abrasions at Cornell’s Companion Animal Hospital, where she stayed for several days.

Kitty and her human are doing well. Ah, I love a happy ending.

Poppy, Bella top list as most popular cat names.

“Nor arm, nor face, nor any other part. What’s in a name? That which we call a rose, By any other name would smell as sweet.”
William Shakespeare

A pet insurance firm marked National Cat Day by releasing its annual list of the most popular cat names of the year.

John Lewis Pet Insurance, which offers insurance policies for cats, dogs and other pets, said the most popular cat name among surveyed customers in 2019 was Poppy. Rounding out the top 10 were Bella, Molly, Tilly, Daisy, Lola, Millie, Rosie, Luna and Lily. The first traditionally masculine name on the list, Charlie, came in at No. 11. The name Smudge made its first appearance on the annual list this year, coming in at 21st in popularity.

Our Lily is quite pleased to have made this list. The Tribe of Five have never met a feline named Poppy. We’d love to hear from the Poppies out there.

Walk Through the Web Wednesday 10/23

Posted on October 23, 2019 by Feline Opines

Hello There Furiends,
I hope your week is going well. Things are good in our neck of the woods. Now that it’s fall and the temperatures are cooler (and The Female Human is stingy with the heat when she’s not home) The Tribe is getting back into “cuddle” mode. This is fine unless Oliver, the space hog shows up. No matter where I am he has to intrude and hog most of the space.

“Seriously Oliver? I was here first. Can you move forward a bit?!” -Alberto

When he’s done bugging me, Oliver will wander over to bug Tucker. Tucker does not put up with any guff so Oliver’s “snuggle time” is considerably shorter with Tucker.

Lily is Tucker’s official cuddle buddy and she’s the only one he’ll let get this closes to him.

And after he’s done bugging everyone Oliver heads over for some love from our human, Oliver is a dork.

Human: “Who’s a good kitty?” Oliver: “I am. I am!”

It’s always a little wacky at our house,. I think this sign says it all about our Human.

I hope things are all good in your neck of the woods (even if they’re wacky or you have a space hog like Olliver) and that you enjoy this week’s web wanderings.

Hero cats save italian couple

Perhaps calling the cats heroes is a bit of a stretch but their grateful humans believe they are. Claudio Piana and his wife Sabrina Pellegrini were sleeping in their home in Campo Ligure as torrential rains pummeled the area. Claudio said, “My wife got up because Simba and Mose, our cats, were making a noise and woke us up. She realized they were playing with a piece of plaster which had just fallen off the ceiling. Then we saw cracks opening in the walls.”

There had already been tragedies from this torrential downpour, a taxi driver was killed and dozens of people were evacuated from their homes. Rivers have overflowed, bridges have been washed away and this all created landslides. The couple were unaware that their home was damaged until the cats woke them up and tipped them off. They managed to get to their car but were trapped in a river of flowing mud. Their house collapsed and they lost everything in the landslide – except their felines who are safe with their humans. Note to humans, if we wake you up in the middle of the night you may want to see what we’re up to, it could save your life!

dear humans, please check your luggage!

Nick and Voirrey Coole were perplexed when they were pulled aside by airport security and asked if they knew what was seen when one of their carry-on bags was scanned. The couple was on their way to New York for a birthday celebration and were stumped by the question They had no idea what the security person was talking about.

The scanner found a cat, the couple’s black cat Candy, who had burrowed her way into the bag which was fairly empty so that the couple could put their New York purchases in it.

Everyone had a good laugh and Candy’s human grandpa came and picked her up so her humans could continue their trip. Again I say, humans PLEASE check your suitcases before you head to the airport!

MAN AFRAID OF HEIGHTS AND NOT FOND OF CATS IS A FELINE HERO

Last weekend was the fourth day of gusty winds, rain and sleet in Grand Traverse County, Michigan. It was a terrible time for a tabby named Milo to be stuck 80 feet up in a pine tree. Milo’s humans could not coax, scare or demand that he come down and they were at their wits end. Milo’s cries could be heard through the closed doors and instead of coming down, he climbed higher and higher in the tree as he hung on for dear life in the wind tossed branches.

Milo’s humans called the fire department, animal control and every tree service in the area with no luck. They finally resorted to Facebook to ask for help and the post describing Milo’s 4-day plight tugged at the soft heart of Matthew Leddy and he decided he would do something he never thought he’d ever do. Matthew Leddy doesn’t like heights and he’s not that fond of cats.

He consulted with a friend who had done cat rescues . His friend told him to bring a backpack that he could zip the cat in for protection for himself and the cat. He contacted Milo’s family and the rescue was arranged.

It took a few tries to get Milo in the bag but he finally managed to get him zipped in (all except his tail). After a tense descent, Milo was reunited with his happy family and Matthew was thrilled to see how happy they (and the cat) were.

Milo is back at home, dry, safe, happy and we hope thankful! You can watch a video of MIlo’s rescue here.

THE ISTANBUL INTERNATIONAL CAT BEAUTY CONTEST

There is an International Cat Beauty Contest and I didn’t know about it? I have my whiskers in quite a twist about this. There are 200 cats taking part in the pageant being held Oct. 21-Nov. 3 and none of them are me. Despite the Female Human’s reluctance to go to the time and expense to fly me to the Istanbul Fair Center in Turkey, I found out that since I don’t have a pedigree or breed, I don’t qualify, so I won’t be attending.. Hmph!

I do grudgingly acknowledge the beauty and majesty of the Van breeds that will be competing. Van cats are fairly large, they have white coats and often have a ruddy color on their heads or hind quarters. Their eyes are either blue or amber or, they have one of each – Meowza!

Van cats are believed to be one of the oldest cat breed in the world and are often referred to as Turkish Vans.

Beautiful though they may be, I still think I could give those fancy felines a run for their money. All I have to do is enter in the “Cattus Fabulosa” category (that’s Latin for fabulous feline!”)

CAT MAKE UP ARTIST IS AN ACTUAL JOB

Before and after Church. Photo: Paramount

Church (or to be more accurate, the cats who play Church) the handsome Maine Coon in the 2019 movie Pet Sematary has his own makeup artist. I was surprised as I thought humans made the changes they needed with technology but that’s not so.

Groomer Tanya Graham and trainers Melissa Millett and Kirk Jarrett talked to The Cut about the cat makeover process. Here are some interesting tidbits. There are multiple cats in the movie. It took them almost two months of training to get them comfortable with the makeup process. The makeup used was digestible and safe for felines. The ingredients are approved by American Humane but the content of those ingredients is a trade secret.

The cat makeup artist did disclose some information however. For instance, egg whites and Cherry Knoll chalk block was used to make the fur look matted and then leaves, dry grass and light dirt was stuck on the top of that mixture. Fake blood was syrup with organic food coloring. The trainer and makeup artist said at no time did the cats look stressed and they enjoyed snacks and playing with toys while their makeup was done.

Makeup took about 10 minutes per cat. The cats were very pam-purred. They had their own trailers and bathing areas.

There were two “lead” cats out of the five feline cast members, Leo and Tonic. Tonic was 10 months old when he started training for his role. Leo is the older guy, much calmer and quiet and loves to interact with humans. He does a high five, catches treats like a dog and is very confident. He enjoys meet and greets and is usually the one who does the premiers.

Hmmmmm, I wonder if I should get The Female Human busy on checking out the possibilities of a Hollywood career for me.