Friendly Fill Ins, Week 88

Posted on January 12, 2018 by Feline Opines

Jasmine Here,
Welcome friends. I’m excited that I get to do the Friday Fill Ins this week. It’s been snowy and cold at our house. Thank goodness the humans provide wheat grass for us to nibble on and to add a bit of color in this white world.

As always, if you are a blogger, we encourage you to go to McGuffy’s Reader and join the Fill Ins blog hop or, feel free to do the fill ins in the comments of this blog. Have a purrrfect Friday (I love the weekends as the humans don’t have to go to that place they call “work” and they spend lots of time with us.)

Purrs & Head Bonks,
Jasmine (The Tribe of Five Diva)

Siamese cat with tiara

begging squirrel

1. I would like to ask the big fat squirrel who mooches off of us at the upstairs bird feeder why he has such an attitude if the bird seed is all gone? (Take a look at this photo, what an attitude!)

2 My favorite fast food restaurant is any place that serves pizza. All of the Tribe of Five love a nice lick of pizza sauce.

TuckerMusic

3. If I could go to any concert of someone still performing, it would be wherever David Teie is playing his Music for Cats The female human bought us some of his music and we loved it. You can read about us opining about it on our website . When we go to the place with white coats, they have nice cat music too. Music is good for kitties.

4. My Winter pastime is usually sitting at the window and checking out the creatures who come by looking for food because what happens outside our windows is like cable TV.

Walk Through the Web Wednesday 1/3

Posted on January 3, 2018 by Feline Opines

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Hello Friends,
This is my first web wander of 2018. I hope this new year finds you all healthy and happy. The Tribe of Five is spending our time curled up in our humans laps, in front of the fireplace or snuggled under a warm throw on the living room sofas.

Stay safe and warm! Purrs & Head Bonks,
Siamese cat with blue eyes

Netflix Employee’s Cats React to A Scene in “Stranger Things” – Hello Giggles

cats watching stranger things on netflix

Our humans often sit in front of the big black watching moving images. I know that they did watch this thing they call “Stranger Things” and I must say, I’m very happy that I missed this scene. And I am appalled and dismayed that these humans who work at Netflix forced their cats to watch this scary stuff!

93-Year old “Furry Godmother” Knits Blankets for Homeless Cats – People Pets

KNITTING

Two paws up for this amazing lady. She shows the world that there is always something you can do for felines, regardless of where you live or regardless of your age. Emma Eng knits blankets for the Seattle Humane in Bellevue, WA. She decided late in 2017 that she would knit blankets for homeless kittyies and by New Year’s Day she’d knitted over 40 blankets! Meowza, when that lady decides to do something she doesn’t mess around! So take note humans, you’re never too old to do something nice for animals!

Every Cat Deserves A Castle – Spokesman Review

catcastle

Not only is this a purrrfect project, the event was held in our own back yard (so to speak). The South Hill Library held an event last fall (how did my humans not hear about this??”!!) where families could come and build a castle for their felines (materials were provided). I must admit I do have my whiskers in a bit of a twist because the humans missed out on this but I am happy to report that I put my purrsonal assistant on the job and she came up with some instructions on the web so, if your humans haven’t built you a castle yet they can begin posthaste. You’re welcome.
10 Steps for building your own cardboard cat castle – Cardboard Cat Furniture DIY

What is a Cat Cafe? – Katzenworld

CatCafe

Those of you who follow my Wednesday wanderings know I love to report on cat cafe’s,. As I matter of fact, I’ve been bugging my purrsonal assistant to get off the exercise ball she uses as a desk chair and put together some sort of cat cafe guide on our website. Well wouldn’t you know, our Friends at Katzenworld did just that with a definitive article providing answers to every question you might have had about cat cafes. Once you’ve learned what they’re all about, you probably want to go to one. All you have to do is go to The Neighbor’s Cat Global Cat Cafe Resource which is the Tripadvisor for cat cafes. Now if we only had one near us!

Guinness World Records Spends Day at Longest Running Pet Shelter – Laughing Squid

Guinness

Now here is a record to be proud of. The Battersea Dog & Cats Home has been in it’s current location since 1871. Meowza, these good folks have been finding furever homes for animals for more than 145 years, now that’s dedication! Since their beginning, they’ve cared for 3.1 million dogs and cats. Not only has this organization been critical in helping animals, they’ve shaped people’s attitudes toward homeless animals and influenced laws for animals in the UK and around the world. Two paws up to the Battersea Dog & Cats Home.

Friendly Friday Fill Ins #86

Posted on December 29, 2017 by Feline Opines

Hello Friends,
Lily here. I’m doing the Fill Ins this week. We’d love for you to participate. You can enter your blog info at MCguffy’s Readers and do the fill ins on your blog or, you can add your fill ins in the comment section of this blog post.

Here are this week’s fill ins:

1. On New Year’s Eve, I __________________.

2. One goal I have for 2018 is ________________________.
3. In 2017, I accomplished .

4. I in 2017.

Here are my answers:

cat with New Years hat and glasses

1. On New Years Eve, I will put on my festive headgear and then beg for treats from the humans. They rarely go out on New Year’s Eve but they always have a very tasty dinner and The Tribe of Five benefits from the female human’s cooking skills.

2. One Goal I have for 2018 is to continuing doing as little as possible. Doing as little as possible is the official full time career for every feline and I do not expect to retire any time soon.

cat in window

3. In 2017 I accomplished absolutely nothing (please refer to # 2). Felines are not purrticularily motivated to do things (except eat and sleep!)

2 siamese cats snuggled together
4. I plan to continue opining (along with my other four tribe mates) on all things feline because I believe the world needs more feline purrrspective. I wil of course, stick close to my cuddle buddy (and Alpha of the Tribe of Five, Tucker) in 2017!

Happy New Year, see you in 2018!
Purrs & Head Bonks,
design

Walk Through the Web Wednesday 12/20

Posted on December 20, 2017 by Feline Opines

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Hello Friends,
It’s time to highlight my favorite feline finds on the web. And to all our readers, the Tribe of Five wishes you a Meowry Catmas!

No Kitten Around; Museum Exhibit Celebrates ‘Divine Felines’ – npr.org

Egyptian Cat Statue

The Smithsonian Sackler Gallery of Asian Art has the purrfect exhibit for cat lovers called ‘Divine Felines’. The exhibit features cats, large and small from the land that honored felines the most – Egypt. The ancient Egyptians, enlightened as they were, watched the behavior of their felines, hunting, agility, protectiveness, etc. and they decided that these were all signs of divinity. There’s much to learn at this exhibit – not all of it good though. I found out the Egyptians bred us felines to be offered to other Egyptian gods and goddesses, which begs the question, if we were considered to be gods, why where we sacrificed to other gods? Ah well, it’s all too much for my feline brain but if you are interested in the history of the fabulous feline, check out this exhibit.

This Cat Named D-O-G Helps Train Pups To Be Service Dogs

black and white cat named D-O-G

My regular readers know how much I love stories about working cats and this is a great one. This cat named D-O-G (pronounced dee-Oh-jee) is a VIE (very important employee) at Support Dogs, Inc. in St. Louis. The dogs at this organization are trained to help people with disabilities and one important factor in this training is to train the canines to remain calm when faced with distractions. D-O-G’s job is to be a distraction as the humans train the canines to ignore the tail swatting and leash playing (check out the training video on the website).

D-O-G came from humble roots as a barn kitten who met the director of canine services a the organization when his future human stayed at a bed and breakfast. The director fell in love with D-O-G and asked if she could adopt him. The rest, as they say is history.

Photographer Captures the Mystical Beauty of Cat Eyes – My Modern Met

close up of cat eye

That article about the Smithsonian cat exhibit put me in an artsy kind of mood. In keeping with that mood, I found this very interesting article about a new visual purrspective on cat’s eyes. A Norwegian photographer named Tina uses a Canon macro lens to photograph the eyes of her felines in residence, Zelda, Zonic and Zorro. If you like the photos in this article and want more, check out more photos at Tina’s Instagram account and see another example of how utterly amazing we felines are.

An Unusual Trio – Lost At E Minor

2 golden retrievers and their feline buddy

This is a story of a purrfect trio named Watson, Kiko and Henry. Watson and Kiko are Golden Retrievers who love to pose for the camera and they also love cuddling with their best buddy Watson, who happens to be a feline. I have to say, the Tribe of Five doesn’t cuddle as much together as these three do! You can see more photos of these three amigos on their Instagram account.

Kitty Gingerbread House for Catmas – abcnews.com

Christmas gingerbread playhouse for cats
If you are a cat aficionado then you probably have heard of the felines Cole and Marmalade. Their humans decided that since a Christmas tree is out of the question (and if you’re a reader who doesn’t understand this I suggest you google “cats and Christmas trees” and watch a few videos) so they created a very cool Christmas Gingerbread house for their felines. They even have instructions so other inspired humans can do this for their felines.

Walk Through The Web Wednesday 12/13

Posted on December 13, 2017 by Feline Opines

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Hello Friends,
Alberto here. Every week my purrsonal assistant brings me the best of feline stories on the internet and I select my five favorites. This week is all about creative ways humans are working with shelters to help felines find furever homes and make the time the cats do spend in the shelter much better. Does your shelter do anything newsworthy for felines? I’d love to hear about it!
Purrs & Head Bonks,
Siamese cat with blue eyes

Cats in the Office Can be a Stress Reliever – The Virginia Pilot Online

Black and White Cat on a ladder in an art gallery I picked this story because it covers two of my favorite topics, cats with jobs and new, creative ways to help shelter kitties be adopted. The Law Offices of Waldo & Lyle, have three office cats, all rescues and all beloved by the staff and clients. The office administrator says this about the effect of the working legal felines, ““They bring joy and they brighten our day,” They all have different personalities and love people. Even Hilde, who hides during the day, wants to be around you when it’s quiet and calm.”

And then there’s the Harbor Gallery who has gallery cats (and sometimes a gallery dog). The gallery owner says, “They lay in the front windows and entice people in, I believe they make the gallery more home-like, friendly and warm.”

If your shelter hasn’t found creative ways to help shelter cats, purrrhaps you should suggest a working cat program.

Don’t Touch that cat: Humane Society program focuses on felines’ minds, not their cuddles – CBCnews

shelter worker plays with cat

Two paws up to the Winniepeg Humane Society for their new program that focus’ on felines mental well-being. Shelter cats get bored and even depressed or stressed. These shelter employees and volunteers are being trained to broaden the range of activities for the felines in their care. After working hard to enrich the environment and life of their shelter cats, the shelter director has noticed that the cats are now more engaged with visitors, sitting in the front of their cages and looking to be touched by visitors. Improving the mental health of the cats improves their physical well being. Watch the video and see how happy these shelter cats are with the new program.

This idea is excellent for the cats in your home too. Are you at work all day? What does your kitty have to play with while you’re gone? Are there window sills to sit in, places to climb and toys to distract? We felines only have two speeds, fast or stop so when we’re not “stopping” (aka sleeping) we want to have some fun.

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Even a 2-Year Old Human Can Make a Big Difference for Cats! – LoveMeow

2 year old boy fosters kittens

Dear humans, this is the way you train future adult humans to care for and about felines-start early! Sam is a two year-old boy who so far, has helped to foster 17 kittens. His mom brought the first group of fosters home from Cat House on The Kings. Sam doesn’t do his fostering alone, it’s a family affair. Sam is gentle with the kittens and is learning about the importance of fostering to help cats find furever families (My brother Oliver and I were fostered). Sam’s mom says, “Any time we get new babies, Sam looks at them and says, ‘Hi little boo boos, they are so cute, so precious’.”

Be sure and watch the video with the article and purrhaps Sam’s story will inspire some of you human parents out there to teach your kids about fostering.

Felines, Coffee Relieve Stress at Library – The Daily Tribune News

Cat_Cafe_053_1_copy

My readers know I love a good cat cafe story and this is one of the best!

Since the Christmas season can be a stressful time of year, the Bartow County Library System in Georgia is offering a way to relax and unwind while helping the shelter find furever homes for their felines.

The Cartersville Public Library partnered with the Etowah Valley Humane Society to host its first Pages & Paws Cat Cafe. The cafe took place from 1pm-5pm and was a great success (and coffee was donated by a local company). Now that is innovative thinking and I’ve always said there is a littter-ary side to every feline!

Does your local library and shelter partner for occasional cat cafe’s?

Finding Homes for Elderly Felines – The Riverdale Press

SusanWolfCat-4

Cats on Wheels was founded by New Yorker, Susan Wolfe who has been an active volunteer at the Manhattan Animal Care Center, playing with the cats, cleaning their kennels and writing short biographies about them. Her passion is to find loving homes for cats who’ve celebrated their eighth birthdays, the ones often passed over for adoption. She said, ““I realized when I was volunteering at the shelter, these incredibly wonderful, beautiful cats were at risk of being euthanized,” “It just became a mission for me to find a home for as many of them as I could.”

And this was why she co-founded Seniors 4 Seniors Cats on Wheels with fellow volunteer Brooke Smith. The organization offers prospective pet adopters rides to the center to and assisting them in finding a cat to adopt.

She also works to debunk the myths about older cats, especially the idea that they won’t be around long. Cats can live up to 20 years. Another belief is that health care costs of an older pet are prohibitive. All shelter cats receive thorough health exams from veterinarians.

Two paws up for the Seniors 4 Cats on Wheels program and the creative humans who go above and beyond to help these older kitties find furever homes!

What creative things does your shelter do to help felines? I’d love to hear about them and feature them in my Wednesday wanderings.

Walk Through The Web Wednesday 12/6

Posted on December 6, 2017 by Feline Opines

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Hello Friends, Furry, Feathered and Otherwise,

I’m back after my holiday hiatus. The humans went away and we had a very nice cat sitter. I must say, at least on behalf of The Tribe of Five that staying at home and having a nice cat sitter come in twice a day is soooo much better than being hauled away to some place to stay in a cage. If you have a great cat sitter, tell us about them. Two paws up for all cat sitters!

Now, let’s get to the items I found on my weekly wanderings through the web.

Purrs & Head Bonks,
AlHead

Alberto

Twitter Account Pairs Cat Pics with Metal Lyrics and it’s Purrfect – I Can Haz

Cheeseburger?

Sphynx cat with raised paw

No matter how floofy and sweet we felines look, if you look a little deeper, you’ll find many of us have an affinity with rock and roll and metal. The humans behind the Twitter Account, Black Metal Cats understands this very well. I admit I’m a little more rock and roll than I am metal. My theme song would be “Born to Be Wild” but every feline can enjoy a little darkness now and then.

The Cat Who Swims Like an Otter – I Heart Cats.com

Siamese cat swimming in pool

Adventure cats are the cat’s meow and I am purrrticularily interested in cats who swim. As you may know, the female human and i are planning on being kayak buddies. Unfortunately, it took us a while to find just the right life jacket (don’t I look handsome?) and then the skies were so filled with smoke from the forest fires that surrounded us that the air quality was not good for humans or animals. So, onward and upward and looking forward to next summer. Siamese cat in life jacket

But in the meantime, I want to learn from other fearless felines that like the water. Sasha is just such a feline. Sasha likes to take a swim in her pool and acts like it’s no big deal. if you don’t believe me, check out this video of her swimming. As much as I admire Shasha’s pool adventures, it’s still good to be safe. We live near big lakes and rivers and those conditions can be dangerous so I always recommend a life jacket (like the fashionable one I’m sporting)

Man’s Adopted Cat is His Favorite Climbing Partner – Bored Panda

black cat climbs mountains with her human

Now if you’re just catching your breath over the swimming feline Sasha, this one might just put you over the edge. Meet Millie and her human Craig Armstrong. Craig found a feline that shares his love of exploring, camping and climbing and the two have had some wonderful adventures. Craig says that “Ever since Millie climbed up onto my shoulder at the adoption center in Utah, I knew we’d make a good team.”

The female human was very pleased to see the precautions Craig takes with Millie but thankfully, she has not suggested that we add mountain climbing to our summer adventures! You can follow Craig and Millie’s adventures on their Instagram account.

Max the Banned Cat Meets with Macalester President – Star Tribune

Max the orange tabby

Dear Humans, this is a cautionary tale for you, never, EVER underestimate the power of felines and social media. Max, the Orange Tabby first came to fame when he began sneaking into the library at Macalester College. Now what can be so bad about a cat with litter-ary aspirations? Evidently quite a bit according to the librarian , who maxposter banned him from the building and even went so far as to create a wanted poster for the door.

Max’s plight created a stir on campus. There were cartoons about Max, a student created a library card for Max and there were #FreeMax comments all over campus. When social media picked up the story more people joined the Max bandwagon and an international hue and cry was raised for Max the Library Cat.

Things reached the point where the college President arranged a meeting with Max. You can see the video on the page with the story. The sit down was not a great success, with the college President complaining that a cat is more famous than he is. The rest of the meeting was interesting. You must watch the video. Suffice to say, Max had the upper paw! Sheesh, what’s a cat have to do to keep a job?

KitTea Cat Cafe Offers Caturday Cartoons and bottomless Cereal Bar -KitTea Cat Cafe

KitTea

If you follow me Wednesday wanderings you know I love to report on Cat Cafe’s, especially the ones opening up all over this nation. If you think a cat cafe is just a place to see or interact with cats you’ve got another think coming. Take the Kit Tea Cat Cafe for Front+Sign+How+We+Work+-+2017 instance, they do lots of neat things there and, aside from their special events, they even make it easy for visitors to understand what the cat cafe experience is. Check out their easy to understand graphic for visitors.

You can book any regular visit online and even book the special events like the yoga nights, Happy Meowr, Mewvie Nights, The Caturday Morning Cartoons and more. Follow the Kit Tea Cat Cafe on Instagram.

This Caturday Morning event really intrigues me. Here is how they advertise it:

Have mew heard about our Caturday Morning Cartoons event? Come in your best jammies and curl up like a cat (with a cat) to watch an hour of nostalgic 90’s/80’s cartoons and commercial clips on our big screen – surrounded by 10+ sanctuary kitties. A cereal bar filled with sugary sweet cereals will also be available to make it the ultimate Caturday morning!

Includes:
Bottomless cereal bar (assortment of sugary childhood favorites)
A morning of streaming cartoons in our Cat Lounge

The female human said if we lived close to San Francisco she’d be there! Great job Kit Tea Cat Cafe! See you at the breakfast bowl.

Walk Through The Web 11/29

Posted on November 29, 2017 by Feline Opines

siamese cat on a leash walking through a garden

Hello Friends, Furry, Feathered and Otherwise,
Alberto here. Please forgive me for missing my Wednesday Walk last week. The humans were off somewhere celebrating this thing they call “Thanksgiving”. We had a great cat sitter so all was well at our house but truth be told, I’m a bit miffed that they didn’t bring us any of this “turkey” they keep talking about. Sometimes humans can be so selfish.

But I digress. Here are my feline findings on the web this week.

Enjoy!
Siamese cat with blue eyes

Catty Shack-A Sanctuary For Feral Felines – RiverBender.com

catty shack feral cat shelter

There are many kind humans who feed and care for feral cats. Sarah Shipton is one of those kind humans and when some of her feral friends were found dead or disappeared she decided that these felines needed a safe place. She took out a loan and built a sanctuary for the feral felines in her area.

She installed a cat proof fence, insulated shack full of kitty toys and a safe place for the felines to sleep and stay out of the cold, a lawn dragon and a porch where humans can enjoy the kitty cavorting and lots more. The Catty Shack is a 501c3″ no-kill animal shelter in Hamel, IL and the bulk of the contributions they receive are used for testing, spaying and neutering and food.

If there was an award for human rescuer of the year, I’d give it to Sarah Shipton. Two paws up for Catty Shack!

Awsome 4th Grader Collecting Blankets for Shelter Cats – CactusHugs.com

Kendalls Pawsitively Purrfet kitty supply deive

While we’re on the subject of humans doing great things for felines, here’s another example. This mini-human named Kendall Keyes (who is only 9 years old) was concerned when she learned that the Palm Springs Animal Shelter needed warm fleece baby blankets for their adoptable kittens and cats. She sprang into action and with the help of her mom and school counselor, Kendalls Pawsitively Purrfect Kitten Supply Drive was born.

So you see humans, you don’t have to big, old or famous to do something fantastic for the felines at your shelter!

How Police Solved a Mail Bomb Case With Cat Hair – Above The Law

yellow tabby cat sleuth

Our female human is a writer and happens to be writing a mystery that centers around animal forensics. I for one, thought she was a bit crazy until I stumbled upon this article. A woman accused of sending letter bombs to Texas Governor Abbott and former President Obama was recently arrested and indictes and some of the key pieces of evidence in the case…cat hairs!

Evidently the Feds found cat hairs stuck under the address label on the letter and voila, the rest is history. So now I guess I owe our female human an apology, especially since I have it on good authority that there are two characters in the book that are exactly like Oliver and yours truly!

Dog and Cat Besties Hike the Colorado Wilderness Together – Matador Network

dog and cat in sleeping bag

Those of you who follow my Wednesday wanderings know how much I love stores about adventure cats (being an aspiring adventure cat myself). I’ve featured many but this story is about an adventure cat and his canine buddy.

Henry, the dog and Baloo, the cat were both adopted from shelters and now that they have each other, their humans take them camping. These two have some amazing adventures and you can follow them on their Instagram account. Hmm, maybe I should speak to the humans about adopting an adventure buddy for me.

Oscar Is A Cat Of The World But He Doesn’t Like Flying – Newstimes

gray tabby in cat carrier on plane

Even world-famous media cats and adventure cats have their limit. Oscar, as his human desciribes him, is a “cat of the world” but there is one area of modern life that Oscar does not like and that is flying. Note his less then enthusiastic expression in his carrier.

After you read all that the human had to go through before and during the trip and Oscar’s response, you’ll want to think twice about taking your feline on a flight, even if they are the most adventuresome of cats.

Walk Through The Web Wednesday 11/15

Posted on November 15, 2017 by Feline Opines

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Hello Friends,
Alberto here with my Wednesday wandering through the web. I hope you enjoy the feline finds!
Purrs & Head Bonks,
Siamese cat with blue eyes

Cat Whisperer Firefighter – itv.com

fire fighter rescues cat on roof

Once again, our friends across the “pond” prove that they are ahead of the curve when it comes to moggie care. The Shropshire Fire and rescue and the RSPCA were called to a house for assistance for a feline named Tinkerbell who’d been stuck on a roof for two days.

A firefighter named Andy (but also referred to as “the cat whisperer” climbed the ladder to the roof, spoke to the frightened feline and she walked right into the carrier he put out for her. The entire rescue took about 45 minutes.

Does your town have a cat whisperer? I think every town needs one!

Cat Cosplay – @Cat_Cosplay on Twitter/Instagram and Facebook

Dap-purr Steampunk Cat @CatCosplayInc

What is this madness the humans call “cosplay”? I had my purrsonal assistant look up the definition of this strange practice. It is “the practice of dressing up as a character from a movie, book, or video game, especially one from the Japanese genres of manga and anime.” Okay humans, dress up like anything you like but do you really have to bring felines into this wacky ritual?

After my stringent warning to the humans about NEVER attempting to stuff me in a costume again and, after so many of my feline friends chimed in regarding my “no costume” rule I was dismayed to see so many cats in costumes! I cannot wrap my kitty head around this and would love to hear from any “cosplay kitties” as to why you enjoy this (at least you look like you’re enjoying yourself in the photos).

This Man and His Cats Recreate Scenes From Famous Movies – Good Housekeeping

man and black cat share a string of spaghetti

Aaaaand, yet another human who thinks it’s a great idea to dress up his cats (at least most of these are photoshopped to save the poor felines the indignity and trauma of costumes).

Now this human (who clearly has too much time on his hands) loves films so much, he’s dragged his poor kitties into his passion and recreates his favorite scenes from films.

Good grief humans, can’t you go through a day without humiliating your felines??!! I long for the days in Egypt when we cats were revered like gods.

SNAP CAT – CATS AND BUNNIES LOOKS EXACTLY THE SAME – Storytrender

siamese kitten and look alike bunny

Now I’ve had many folks see my photo and say things like, “Oh, he looks just like my Siamese cat!” but I’ve never heard anyone say I resemble a rabbit. But animal photographer Mark Taylor, from the UK decided to photograph look-alike felines and bunnies and I must say, I think he nailed it! Purrrruse the photos and see if you can find a bunny that resembles your feline visage.

Salt Lake’s first cat cafe – The Salt Lake Tribune

Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune) Melissa Davis, left and Jackie Rogers play and pet cats at Tinker’s Cat Cafe.

I am a fan of cat cafes and am always excited to hear about new ones. And I’m purring with delight to know that the trend is getting closer to our Idaho home! Tinkers Cat Cafe sounds like a wonderful place and it, as most of the cat cafes we’ve featured, was inspired by the feline cafes in Japan.

The cafe has a cat side and a food side with delicious food and drinks brought in from local establishments . The Cafe owner says they carry the best bagels in town from Ditta Cafe, cool cat-shaped cookies from Les Madelines and they also offer vegan and gluten-free options. The goal is to keep the humans and the cats happy.

All the cats are available for adoption. There are no kittens there as kittens adopt quickly. Two paws up for Tinkers Cat Cafe. I’d love to hear from any of my readers who’ve visited a cat cafe, drop me a line and tell me about your experience.

Tucker Opines on Halloween

Posted on November 3, 2017 by Feline Opines

Hello There Friends,
So this week the humans celebrated this thing called Halloween. The Tribe of Five would like to go on record as saying that there is absolutely nothing for felines to celebrate on Halloween! And why do I say this, well, allow me to explain.

First, the humans have been known to attempt to shove members of The Tribe of Five into ridiculous devices of torture that they refer to as “costumes”. They know better than to try that with this Alpha but they did attempt it with Alberto last year. (You may recall his blog about The Great Halloween Indignity) I am happy to report that this was the human’s first and last attempt to dress any of the Tribe of Five for this event.

Still, not all cats have been able to avoid these indignities, I was horrified to see photos of felines strapped into these items of torture all over the internet (see samples above). Just take a look at their faces and tell me that they’re enjoying themselves!

Now, if you are a kitty who’s managed to escape the whole costume thing there are other things about this Halloween that I find disturbing. For instance, the male and female humans leave five days a week to a place they call “the business”. Now since they own this “business” I can only assume that they have total control over what happens there. And this is why I got my whiskers in a twist when I saw this photo. Evidently they allow other humans to bring their canines to this “business”. I am highly insulted that they have not invited the Tribe of Five to work there (not that we felines actually work, we are far better at snoopervising.) Just let me say the humans have a lot of explaining to do!

And, as if the indignity of knowing your very own humans are secretly spending time with other humans’ canines isn’t enough to send us into a tail spin, then there is the torture we go through every night of this Halloween. Now anyone with half a brain knows that the doorbell is not the feline’s friend. (Note to guests, you can find more about doorbells and other rules you should know here.) And it’s not just one “ringy dingy” or even two “ringy dingys”, it’s the constant torture of this despicable doorbell thing causing us to run and hide every few minutes. Poor Oliver only got as far as the dinner take out bag before the hordes of costumed candy thieves arrived.

All night it’s the same hellish routine, get settled on your favorite spot on the sofa, then the demon doorbell rings, run and hide only to start the routine all over again in a few moments. I don’t know what you humans find so entrancing about wearing stupid clothes and putting stuff on your face so you can hijack candy from your neighbors (and I might add that teaching this horrible practice to little children is beyond the pale!)

The Tribe of Five took a poll and we all decided we’re boycotting this Halloween thing next year and are considering drastic measures to keep the humans from opening the front door. I mean just look at what Halloween did to Al this year!

So my fellow felines, unite against this anti-kitty holiday and join us in our boycott of this disgusting celebration next year. Felines Unite!!

Purrs & Head Bonks,
Tucker

Walk Through The Web Wednesday 11/01

Posted on November 1, 2017 by Feline Opines

Hi There Folks,

Alberto here bringing you my Wednesday mewsings from around the web. I hope you enjoy this week’s picks.

Purrs & Head Bonks,

Feral Cats From California Get Work, New Lives In Colorado-The Denver Post

The feral cat population in California is exploding (estimates are 3 million). The weather is warm and food is fairly plentiful but feral cats don’t have great lives and don’t live very long either. Many California feral cats are euthanized but these kitties, if spayed/neutered can thrive if they’re given jobs as rodent control. And there are some dedicated folks in Colorado and at the Kitty Bungalow Charm School for Wayward Cats, a feral cat rescue are doing. So far they’ve made three trips from California to Colorado in the “Meowgic School Bus” giving felines a ride to their new work locations in barns, homes and businesses in Salida, Golden and Fort Collins Colorado. What a wonderful way to give feral kitties a home and a purrrrrpose in life!

Cats at Weddings – Pinterest

I have previously reported on weddings that included beloved felines or cat-themed weddings. Little did I know you could search “cats at weddings” and find such a treasure trove of photos. So humans, fear not. You can find all kinds of ideas to include your beloved kitty in your future wedding preparations.

The Real Felines of New York – I Can Haz Cheeseburger?

I will never understand why you humans are so interested in “housewives” from so many cities. I guess Jim Tews felt the same way so he started a page that features kitties from around the city. Not only are the photos great but you can really get a glimpse into the life of the kitties in the Big Apple, for instance, there’s Scout from Astoria who has suffered under the city’s regulations, “I went to culinary school. I tried to open my own pastry shop, but I quickly found out I was up against a bureaucracy that was beyond my comprehension, and pretty intolerant. I had everything in place, but the health inspector shut us down as soon as he realized my staff was all cats.”

Rescued Feral Kitten Named D.O.G. Helps Train Support Dogs – Little Things

This story combines two things I love, cat adoption and working cats. Support Dogs Inc, in St. Louis recently added a feline member to the team. He’s a former feral kitten named D.O. G (pronounced “dee-OH-gee”) who has become one of the best training tools they have. He trains the dogs to sit still, not to get up or react to him (and not to bark). D.O.G. is purrfectly fit for the job because he’s fearless and he stands up to all the dogs no matter their size. Way to go D.O.G and thanks to Support Dogs Inc for giving this feline a home and a job!

True Heroes, Men Who Save Cats From Trees – BBC News

There are some mighty tall trees in Washington state, but Washington felines, take heart because you have Sean Sears and Tom Otto from Canopy Cat Rescue. I say two paws up for these great humans! (You can see them in action by clicking on the link to the video below).

http://www.bbc.com/news/av/embed/p05ll77q/41824821