Walk Through The Web Wednesday 4/01

siamese cat on a leash walking through a garden

Hello Furiends,
Well, it’s been quite a week here in Northern Idaho! Sick kitties, torrential rain, sunshine, snow and then yesterday we felt the rock and roll of a 6.5 earthquake that happened a little over 400 miles from us. I learned that I do NOT like earthquakes and I’m still a bit freaked out. And then there’s this COVID-19 thingy. To say you humans are on edge would be the understatement of the century! And what’s with the hoarding??!! Sheesh you humans should be more like us felines, eat only what you need, share your toys, get enough rest, find a sun puddle when you can and just relax!


Well enough about us, let’s check in on the latest feline news on the internet.

Social Distancing But Still Making New Feline Friends

Sometimes the old fashioned methods of communication are the best. A lady in

A woman in England had admired her neighbor’s black and white cat for a while but she had never met or spoken to the cat’s humans. As she has been home much  more she saw the cat in the window more often as well.  It’s amazing what you humans will think up when you are forced to be creative. The lady [put a note in her window asking his name.

Much to her delight, the neighbor responded with a sign that said he was called Walter.

And then a “paper in the window” conversation ensued. The woman posted pictures about the cat and poster in the window conversation and then had to put a note in her window for Walter’s humans saying, “Walter is now Twitter famous… sorry.” Little did she know that Walter already had an Instagram account which his humans noted in their return window message.

Ah you humans, you make this feline smile.

Human, I’m Bored – Enrichment Activities for Your Cat

“Human, if you’re going to be home this much, you need to come up with some fun ideas for The Tribe.”
-Oliver

With so much time on your hands and considering the fact that you humans have been invading our space too much lately, it’s time for you to get creative and do some things to enrich our environment.

There are some great ideas in this article. One of the most obvious ways to keep us entertained is to get some good catnip and let us have at it. The Tribe loves it best when The Female Human puts down some newspaper and sprinkles some local grown catnip on it. We roll around, nibble at the catnip and have a great time. This is also an entertaining thing for you humans to watch too.

Sound motivates us and something as simple as a paper bag can bring us hours of enjoyment (well, if not  hours, as long as it takes us to demolish the bag).

We love to watch stuff and, if you don’t have a nice view of the woods and wildlife like we do, there are a number of cat-focused videos you can stream on your TV.

There are other great ideas in this article, so check them out, You can keep your cat in residence from becoming cranky with too much time on his paws and too many humans in the house for too many hours!

Mr. Sherman, Little Tokyo’s 23-year-old feline ‘mayor,’ keeps purring along

Mr. Sherman, an American tabby often called the feline “mayor” of Little Tokyo, spends his day guarding his owner’s boutique.
(Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)

Liz Ito, a Los Angeles artist, met this Tabby when she was 11 years old and, as an adult she still sees him regularly. Mr Sherman (the cat)  was  adopted by Kiyoko Kimball, owner of Ashiya, a women’s boutique and he spends his days greeting customers.

 At his advanced age, Sherman suffers from hyperthyroidism and kidney disease but he is well taken care of.  He rises early, takes medication for his condition, which makes him more active around 11:30 a.m., and naps after lunch. He lets it be known that he does not care for leftovers.

“Everything has to be fresh,” says Kiyoko Kimball, the caregiver who adopted him more than 16 years ago and spends $1,000 monthly on his food, prescriptions and fluid therapy. “He’s retired. I give him Social Security money. And you know, he thinks he’s a person. We communicate every day.”

Artist Imagines What Creatures Would Look Like If They Had Cat Faces

This falls under the heading, “what happens when humans have too much time on their hands? The creator of the Koty Vezde (Cats are Everywhere) Instagram page sees cats, well, everywhere. 29-year-old Galina Bugaevskaya from Moscow photoshops cat faces on various animals and since we all need a little entertainment, I recommend you visit this account and enjoy theses photos. .

Real (sort of) Tree Cat Tree

I’ve often wondered why you humans call our cat scratcher thingys “trees” when they look nothing like a tree…until now. Shelley and Joe DelRocco  create custom cat tree houses handcrafted from real trees and embellished with silk leaves. These trees are purrfect for felines who feel the call of the wild. Make sure your humans check out these cool PetTreeHouses on Etsy

Walk Through The Web Wednesday 9/5

siamese cat on a leash walking through a garden

Hi There Furiends,
Fall has arrived here in the Inland Northwest. Our summer was waaaaay too short, we had so much smoke we were stuck inside for most of the time.  Ah well, if the weather says nice I still may get some kayak training with The Female Human!

Here are my finds for the week, enjoy!
Purrs & Head Bonks,
Siamese cat with blue eyes

A Cats Only Grooming Salon – Pilot Online

cat being washed at cat salon

Prepare to have all your cat grooming stereotypes blown away! There is a feline only grooming salon in Yorktown, VA.  The owners of Purricious Styles  say that cats are not as adverse to water as you humans may think (and of course, I wholeheartedly agree). What I do take exception to is that they also state they have special equipment like muzzle cones for “snippy cats”. Muzzles, snippy cats?? Hmmm. If your feline in residence is looking for a new do and you live in the area, you might want to call Purricious Styles 
and see about getting kitty a lion or teddy bear clip. As for me, I’ll just leave my handsome fur the way it is.

Headed to the Vet? Calm Your Cat With a New Feline Radio Station- Mental Floss

Siamese cat listens to music

We felines are not so fond of being shoved in a box, dumped in the metal moving machine and being taken to the place with white coats. I don’t know about the rest of you but all the members of The Tribe of Five loudly sing the song of their people all the way. If we’re singing anyway yu might as well turn on the radio to Calm Pet Radio. It not only provides music but it calms us down as well.

Cat Calm Radio plays music by David Teie, a composer who writes music targeted at cats’ preferences. His songs feature sounds that will be familiar and soothing to cats, like beats similar to the sound of suckling milk, played at the frequencies cats use to communicate with each other. Researchers have found that cats respond better to his cat-specific tunes than to human music. We didn’t need researchers to tell us this. The Female Human purchased the first album from Davied Teje called Music for Cats and we like it very much.

The online cat music station was launched in honor of National Take Your Cat to the Vet Day on August 22. “We’re one of the only radio stations to play species-specific music, designed to have a calming effect on your cat in the car, especially on trips to the vet,” the website explains. You can listen online here.  We opined about this music on our website FelineOpines.com and you can even see videos of our first experiences with our favorite mewsic.

The Best Cosplaying Cats of All Time – Gamebyte

cosplay black and white cat

If any of you are wondering, “What the heck is cosplay and what does it have to do with cats?” , allow me to explain. Cosplay is a strange hobby that many humans don’t want to admit they are involved in.  The short definition (according to Wickipedia) is, ” a contraction of the words costume play, is a performance art in which participants called cosplayers wear self-made costumes and fashion accessories to represent a specific character.” Okay, I’m fine with humans putting on silly costumes but when you take your feline and stuff him or her into a ridiculous costume and then take photos for all the world to see, well that’s another matter completely! 

I must admit that most of the cosplay cats in this article look pretty proud of themselves, but in case my Humans get any great ideas, thanks but no thanks, The Tribe of Five have taken a vote and it was a unanimous NO to cosplay and costumes of any sort.

This Collection Turns Your Existing Furniture Into a Cat Tree – Apartment Therapy

black cat on cat furniture

The Female Human is always griping about how scroungy our existing cat furniture looks, how expensive new cat trees are, blah, blah,blah. Well now some smart humans have come up with a way to turn existing furniture in cat furniture!

Often cat furniture is bulky, ugly and can’t fit into smaller spaces. Even though we felines love to sleep on your stuff (your bed, your computer keyboard, your face….) we still need a place of our own.  The folks at Catssup have come up with some purrfect feline furniture designs. Now you don’t have to buy a new piece of furniture, you transform your existing furniture into cat friendly furniture!  The people at Catssup say it’s space saving, easy to install and integrates easily into any human home.  This is what the designers of Catssup say about their furniture, “”Instinctively, cats are more comfortable with heights because it provides them with a secure vantage point to survey the world below. Unfortunately, many modern households are unable to provide vertical spaces due to limited interior space and the bulkiness of conventional cat trees.”. Well, I say tell your humans to get out their credit card and head over to Catssup right away!

These Cat Face Towels Will Make Washing Off Your Makeup WAY More Fun – Bustle

cat face towel with ginger cat face

If your female human spends every night washing off the stuff she put on her face in the morning, you may want to point her in the direction of these towels. Once again, our friends across the pond, who are always ahead of the game when it comes to felines, have created these fun face towels (or wash clothes as we call them in the good old U.S. of A.) These  Cat Face Towels from Firebox  are the cat’s meow for your bathroom.

kitty-coin-bank_29845Firebox is an online retailer based in London that offers all kinds of  unusual gifts, home decor, techie gadgets, food, and drink. There are quite a few fun things for cat lovers, Pusheen slippers, cat mugs and even a wonderful kitty coin bank where you can drop your savings to use to buy something special for your feline.