Catfish Catch?

Brett Hereford made an unexpected catch in a Montana lake recently.  While fishing, he and his family noticed something swimming in the middle of the lake. When they got closer, they noticed an animal struggling to survive.  What they caught was a Bobcat. Check out the article and video on dodo.com.  Wow! What a catch and release this was!

Cats Know Their Names (Duh!)

There are animal critics who say cats are so independent that they don't socialize like dogs and they don't know their names when called.  I've owned cats my whole life, and believe me, they DO know their names, they are social and they are very smart, albeit sneaky, conniving, mischievous and plan-worthy.  This recent article on flipboard.com highlights a study that was done that backs these comments.  Check out the full article. 

Grandpa Mason

Grandpa Mason, a Canadian feral cat, loved kittens.  He took care of them, trained them, cleaned them and played with them. When his owners thought his feral behavior and inability to get close to him meant he'd never be happy, the adoption of a litter of orphaned kittens broke his wariness.  The kittens, crawling all over him, filled him with joy.  From then on, kittens were his saving grace.  Last week, due to serious health issues and a declining quality of life, Grandpa Mason has to be euthanized.  For those who knew him, it was a tremendously sad day.  But the joy he brought them and his love for other felines is his legacy.  Read the full article from Huffpost.com. 

Hats From Their Own Fur

Three cats in Japan have custom made hats made from their own fur.  The pictures in the article represent their real feelings as to how they probably feel about wearing these accessories.  Check it out!

Pet Me. Bite You. Pet Me. Bite You

Ever had a cat that loved being petted and then decided they didn't want to be so they bit you only to turn around and demand being petted again?  This article describes some of the reasons why that might be happening and how to work with cats and not against them. 

Chester, Cinder and Charlie - Fuzzy Time Suckers (FTS)

Chester

Well, we did it.  On July 15 we adopted three kittens. Two boys two months old and a girl, four months old. We picked them up at RASKC, the Regional Services of King County in Kent.  They came home and as would be expected, were very leery of everything.  In fact, they hid for awhile.  And then their personalities began to emerge.

Within the first hour, Chester started sniffing around and came over to us. He cautiously wanted petted, and now he never stops asking.  He is the first to meet us when we get home. He is the one waiting outside the bedroom door when we get up to ask for food.  He is the one that gets into everything to see what it is all about.  And for a tiny boy, man does he have a loud mouth.  You know when he's there!

It took Charlie about a day or so before he'd let us pet him.  He won't run right to you, but he can be approached, petted and held, but not for long.  But when it comes to toys, watch out!  He is the most aggressive one.  He turns into a mini Hulk and bullies everyone out of the way.  After play time, he goes back to the meek and mild fuzz biscuit.  Maybe he's a tiny Superman going from a mild news fluff to a super toy shredder.

Cinder

Finally, there's Cinder.  She basically hid under the couch for four days. When you talked to her or tried to coax her to you, all you got was a hiss and hide mentality.  I kept talking to her every day, showing her that I was petting her cohorts and carefully reaching out to her.  When I gave her some turkey, she was ready to allow me to pet her.  Carefully, and on her terms which meant a few pets, chomping on my fingers that drew blood, a few pets and more bloodletting.  That happened for a day or two.  Now, she'll come to me and demand pets, but I haven't attempted to pick her up.  Those razor claws and wicked teeth might do some real damage.  I dread getting her into a carrier when it's vet time.  She is very smooth and glossy though.  She has let my wife pet her too, but no picking her up.  She has a strong personality and plays just as rough and is just as fast as the two boys.  She's slowly acclimating to our home.

Charlie

The three will be a welcome addition, and as furry tornadoes of destruction, poopers of unrealistic amounts and eaters of everything they see, they are loved.  I think they'll fit right in. 

Chester snoozing

P.S. After several attempts to ward off Chester from walking on my keyboard, climbing me, demanding pets and being intrusive and inquisitive, he has finally decided to sleep next to me on the chair.  Phew.  I got this writing done without much fuzz deflection needed!

Cat-Cloning

Sadly your cat dies.  You've been with them for years. You want them back, but you know that's not possible, at least not physically.  But what if you could clone them.  It would be almost like having them by your side again.  And maybe their personality and looks would be so similar it would be like the dear cat you lost. 

Check out this article about a couple who did just that, cloned their cat and note how similar the two actually turned out to be.  Very wonderful.

Piggy Addendum

My last post shared the sad news that Piggy was sick and then disappeared, presumably dead.  I found him yesterday.  He had died underneath the neighbor's broken down vehicle next door.  Sad though it was, it was nice to have closure knowing he wasn't somewhere out there suffering.  We were also able to bury him next to his three siblings and non-sibling cat.  He was the last of a legacy of fuzzes. 

Piggy is Gone

Our last cat, Piggy, has disappeared, and most likely died.  He has been sick for some time, but holding his own.  In the last two to three weeks, he appeared to be getting frailer, slower and was eating less and less.  We even went to the point of feeding him baby food, which he rather enjoyed for a bit.  Unfortunately, June 4, 2019, was the last time we saw him. 

He went outside and was relaxing in the sun on top of the picnic table like he always did.  However, he refused to eat anything that morning.  When we returned from work, he was gone and never returned. We surmise he either had some hiding spot he enjoyed or another family he visited and went there and died.  It is a sad time as he was the last of our six cats we had when we moved here four years ago. Four of the six are buried in the back yard. One ran away a few years ago, and Piggy didn't return. 

Piggy was so named for his tail when he was a kitten.  The tip of his tail curled like a pigs tail.  Even as an adult, there were times when it would do the same.  Piggy was known for his "I'm a tough cat" veneer as he would stand tall and proud on my wife's lap and look around as if saying "don't come near.  She's mine and I'm protecting her."  One of his trademark qualities was to "hush" her when she got too loud.  If she laughed loudly or yelled for something, Piggy would bound into the room, climb on her and tap his paws on her mouth to say "be quiet".  Other times he would run away because it was too noisy for him.

Piggy was also know for waking me up at night by walking on my head and meowing.  Usually it was because he decided he needed to go outside or be fed.  And as usual, I would get up and do as commanded, being the fool that I am. 

Piggy will be missed, the last of a legacy of four cats, all siblings.  Sadly, all have died within the last couple years.  All from the same litter, now all gone.  They brought us joy and laughter and memories of them will never be forgotten.  Rest now Piggy-pie. 

Baby, Puff, Bableliscious, Tunnel Fuzz

As a tiny kitten, Baby was the runt. When he was no bigger than a Twinkie, he ended up getting himself stuck underneath the porch and in between two 2 x 4'x face first. I had to crawl on my belly to reach him and coax him out by calling his name and reassuring him I was there.  That was the beginning of his "hole" experience in life.

Baby, from that day forward, loved small spaces, holes, tunnels, being underneath the covers and so on. When I held him he loved to be rolled into a ball and squished in my arms.  He'd bury his head in the crook of my arm and go right to sleep.  He'd crawl underneath the covers and lay between your legs or under your knees.  Anything that presented as a small space and he was there.

He was also a head banger.  Not in the rock-and-roll sense, but by bouncing his head off the wall when you would call and pet him and he was excited to see you and get some attention.  He would twist in a circle, bounce his face off the edge of the door or door frame and come back for more loving.  Then, when you called his name, he would "puff" up and look like a living cotton ball and turn in circles waiting for attention.

Baby, also answering to names like Bableliscious, Puff, Baby, Tunnel Fuzz and others, ended up puffing even bigger several months ago due to medical reasons. The vet said he was retaining fluid.  It was only a matter of time before it would affect him to the point where his quality of life would not be pleasant.  Eventually, he moved very little and became nothing more than a bubble of misery. On April 2, 2019 we had to take him to the vet and have him put down.  He is now buried alongside Flower, Schnei, and Sassy.  He was a good cat, a puff, a baby, a family friend. 

What Do They Do at Night?

Have you ever wanted to strap a camera on the back of your cat to see what they do when they leave your house? Well researchers have done just that.  They found out some interesting things about where they go, what they do when they meet another cat, (it's not always fight) and how their mannerisms are so different from when they're around humans. Check out this article with questions and answers.  You'll find it most intriguing.