Hello There Furiends!
Alberto here. I hope you are enjoying fall as much as we are. Fall is our (and The Human’s) favorite season. We’ve been all been hard at work, purrticularly Lily who never is late reminding The Human of our various treat times during the work day. She gets an A+ as our food coordinator.

I am was busy putting together a tutorial for felines on how to thoroughly enjoy a sun puddle (especially important during these cooler days).

I also have to schedule an “Al hug” in my busy work schedule.

Oliver is spending his work time searching for the best bed on the cat tree. Unfortunately, today he commandeered my bed!

That’s the past work week in our neck of the woods. How are things in your neck of the woods?

Cat’s hide-a-bed mishap named most unusual pet claim of the year

I have reported about this reward in the past and this year’s winner’s story bears  v covering in my newsfeed. Nationwide is presenting its 15th annual Hambone Award to New York City’s Giles the Cat, who was injured in a sleeper sofa incident.

According to Giles humans, Reid and Kaitlyn, the debacle started with a visit from Reid’s parents and a night spent on a hide-a-bed.

Reid noted that it was a regular practice to make sure Giles wasn’t under the couch when the sofa was open as he would always race under it. “

In an early morning rush to the airport, the family neglected to check for Giles before folding up the bed, according to Reid, who added: “When they put the couch away, they didn’t realize that he was under there and … the mechanism or whatever bopped him in the face pretty good.”

After rescuing Giles from his sofa prison, they rushed to the vet. Giles ended up with some stitches and hopefully, an aversion to hide-a-beds.  

The Hambone Award is given to bring awareness to the unique situations pets can cause and how pet insurance can help their owners manage the costs when an animal companion has a mishap, according to Nationwide. In addition to this award, Giles’ owners received a gift card and a donation made in the cat’s name to a pet charity of the family’s choice.

“Giles’ predicament shows just how easily an ordinary situation can become precarious for a pet,” Dr. Jules Benson, vice president of pet health and chief veterinary officer for Nationwide, said in a release. “We’re so glad that the quick actions of Giles’ family and their veterinary care team set him up for a speedy recovery.”

Nationwide reported that all of the nominated pets made full recoveries and their owners were reimbursed for the veterinary expenses covered by the company’s pet policies.

Austin man reunited with cat after Lyft driver drove off with animal still inside

A Northwest Austin man has been reunited with his cat after he the Lyft driver drove off with the cat still inside. The man had taken Lyft to take his cat to the vet. When they arrived at their destination, the man got out of the car to come to the other side of the vehicle and get his cat who was in her carrier on the floor. Before he reached the door, the Lyft driver took off and the poor man ran after him. He notified everyone he could , contacted Lyft, put up posters and everything he could think of to do to get his beloved cat, Tux back. After about 36 hours Tux was found without her carrier, hiding under some stairs.
Dear Lyft driver….I hiss in your general direction!

Philippine security guards adopt stray cats

A street cat named Conan found a new home and a job as a security guard. He now not only does his own job but motivates his human co-workers to do their job as well. Two paws up for working cats!!

Sailing family has a couple of rescue cats as ‘first mates’

I’ve reported on sailing felines before and am always fascinated when I come upon a new story. These two cats ended up traveling from Boston to the Bahamas on a 48-foot aluminum sailboat. Meowza!  In September 2021, the Weiss family made this trip with their two “boat” cats. The family was living on the sailboat when they decided to sail to the Bahamas. Alex and Joy set sail with their daughter Kinsley and their two rescue cats. Peter is a 13-year-old black domestic short-hair and Pumpkin is a 3-year-old orange Maine Coon.  

During the voyage, Peter and Pumpkin would often curl up beside or on a family member below deck. But they also enjoyed spending time on deck. “They slept in the sun and watched the sea birds.  But it wasn’t always smooth sailing for these felines like the time  Pumpkin insisted on being on deck even during rough weather. 

 The family arrived in the Bahamas in January 2022, and spent four months on the island. When they docked, the cats were a big hit. “They kind of served as ambassadors as we went everywhere. People would stop and start a conversation.’” Joy said.

The family spent four months in the Bahamas and described their trip with cats as a success. They now live in an East Boothbay home, but they do not expect to take any long sailing trips with their cats. “They both did really well sailing. They get along, but Peter is a little older and stiff, so he’s not as adept for long travels. So, I don’t think we will be taking another long trip with him,” Joy said.

Don’t be shocked if your cat glows in the dark — it’s normal: study says

Okay, this non-sciency cat has some reservations about this but then again, who am I to argue with human scientists? Evidently veterinary researchers have discovered that cats “glow” in the dark, according to a new study published in the journal Royal Society Open Science.

Evidently, we felines shine bright under UV light.

Scientists in Australia analyzed a museum’s collection of mammals to see how many glow in the dark with a UV light turned on. They also tested the glow to see if it was actually fluorescence and not a different phenomenon.

Lead author Kenny Travouillon, a paleontologist and acting curator of ornithology at Western Australian Museum, tested frozen and preserved mammal specimens. The findings were then sent to Curtin University in Perth for analysis under a range of UV lights.

They found that 125 species had the fluorescent properties that allow them to glow in the dark under a UV light, including the domestic species of cat (Felis catus).

“We report fluorescence for 125 mammal species, from half of all mammalian families and representing almost all clades in the mammalian phylogeny,” the scientists wrote.

Other mammals that were found to illuminate under UV lights include bats, platypus, koalas, polar bears, zebras, dolphins and humans.

While there are various forms of fluorescence, all include the absorption of light and a low-level emission, which often results in a glow.

 “Fluorescence was most common and most intense among nocturnal species and those with terrestrial, arboreal and fossorial habits, with more of their body being more fluorescent,” the authors wrote.

Photographs showed that 125 species — 54 nocturnal and 71 diurnal — glowed under some sort of UV light, and the most fluorescent animals were typically white or pale yellow in color.

“While the amount and location of fluorescence varied between species, all exhibited some form of apparent fluorescence. Areas of fluorescence included white and light fur, quills, whiskers, claws, teeth and some naked skin,” the scientists said.

 “It remains unclear if fluorescence has any specific biological role for mammals. It appears to be a ubiquitous property of unpigmented fur and skin but may function to make these areas appear brighter therefore enhance visual signaling, especially for nocturnal species,” study authors said.

And of course, The Human is now bent on purchasing a UV light to test this theory herself. We will publish her un-scientific results in an upcoming blog post.