NATIONAL CAT DAY

Today, October 29, is National Cat Day.  It's a day to recognize and honor the wonderful and wacky feline members of our world.

Some fun CAT FACTS:

1.  In North America, cats have become more popular as pets than dogs.  Nearly 73 million cats are kept as household pets vs. 63 million dogs.
2.  A cat can jump up to 5 times its height per jump.
3.  Outdoor cats have a lifespan averaging only 3-5 years; indoor cats can live to 16, or more!
4.  Cats are the mammals with the largest eyes.
5.  Cats have 24 more bones than humans.
6.  Cat's pregnancies last about 9 weeks.  Most litters have 4-6 kittens.
7.  Each side of a cat's face has 12 whiskers.  Cats use their whiskers to measure openings, indicate mood, and for general navigation.
8.  A fingerprint is to a human what a nose is to a cat.
9.  Want to call a hairball by its scientific name? Next time, say the word "bezoar"! (As in, "Why yes, there's another BEZOAR on my bed!")
10.  Cats sleep on the average of 16-18 hours a day.  Of their time awake, approximately 1/3 of it is spent grooming themselves.

(Cat Facts from DID YOU KNOW...)





Here are a few ways to celebrate National Cat Day:
(Reprinted in part from Baxterboo.)  

1. ADOPT A CAT. Do you have room in your home for a homeless kitty? Visit Petfinder.com to find available cats for adoption near you. If you can't adopt, encourage others to do so or sponsor one at a shelter. Consider fostering cats as an alternative to help several cats and kittens.

2. TAKE CARE OF YOUR CAT. If you are a cat guardian, guard them well with updated vaccines, quality food and yearly check ups. Also, if you haven't spayed or neutered the cats under your care (either house cats or feral) please do so to keep more cats from contributing to shelter populations.

3. PLAY WITH YOUR CAT. Cat behaviorists suggest playing with your cat at least 15 minutes a day for mental and physical exercise. This keeps cats in shape and emotionally well balanced. It can reverse problem behaviors! This is particularly important for indoor cats and cats that used to be outdoor cats. Cats need to experience the daily "hunt" to feel all catty inside. This includes stalking, catching and "killing" a cat toy. This technique is best created with fishing pole type toys. Well-exercised cats are less likely to exhibit behaviors that get them sent to shelters.

4. DONATE TO YOUR FAVORITE SHELTER. Cats and cat shelters have it rough. Because of severe cat overpopulation, nearly 7 out of 10 cats in shelters are euthanized. Consider getting involved by volunteering your time and money at your local shelter where your resources can really make a difference.

My husband and I are happy and honored to share our lives with our two wonderful cats, Boo and Bentley. We love them so much! They make us laugh and smile every day. They also keep us humble. It's pretty hard to start thinking TOO MUCH of yourself when you live with cats!

Boo Radley

Bentley Edmund Spencer

Do you have a special cat (or two...) in YOUR life?

PART 2: GETTING READY FOR BRODY

If you read my last post, then you know that my husband and I recently chose a Yorkie pup to add to our family.  I hope our darling Raggies, Boo and Bentley, agree that it's a good idea, LOL!  I've tried to tell 'em, but those scalawags just don't seem to be listenin'... !

Boo

Bentley (aka "Squeak")

Two lazeeeee Raggies...

Funny story: My husband and I had been gone a few hours this morning and when we came home, both kitties were sitting side-by-side in the kitchen, looking very serious and expectant.  Husband says (in his best "kitty voice"): "So, is today the day, Mom? Huh? Huh? We hear ya' talkin'!"  I craaaaaaacked up!

So I'm pretty rusty in the Dog Care Dept.  We haven't had a dog in YEARS... not since Sasha, the German Shepherd/beagle mix rescue that grew up with our kids. I also had NOTHING for a new pup.  (What does a new pup need?!  Well... LOTS of stuff!  Food, treats, chewies, toys, a carrier, dishes, harness, leash, collar, tags, a puppy play pen... you get the idea!)

Here's SOME of the stuff I've gotten... still waiting on a few boxes yet from Amazon and PetSmart!

And they better come soon because he is coming home Tuesday!

"How is he getting home?" you ask. Well, I am flying to MO to get him, of course!  ;o)

YES, YES, I know he could have been shipped.  His breeder has done that before and she had every confidence that he'd be fine.  My daughter had every confidence that he'd be fine.  But let me tell you, if you are EVER thinking of having a pet shipped, DO NOT google, "pets flying in cargo." Even my husband said, "We can't let him fly alone in cargo!  He's so leeeetle!"

So I got busy and found a flight from PIT to MCI (Kansas City, MO) and back in one day that worked for his breeder and wasn't too terribly, dreadfully awful (I leave PIT at 7:25 am and return to same at 8:00 pm)! Keep your fingers, toes and eyes crossed for NO DELAYS or problems, though... I don't have a minute anywhere to spare!

So that's the story! Little Brody comes home on Tuesday, 8/13/13, hand-carried and riding in the airplane cabin with me.  I am soooo happy and excited.   Lots of pics will follow... I promise!  STAY TUNED!

*Only 3 MORE SLEEPS!!!*

Bentley (aka "Squeak") Update

"WHAT?!  You lookin' at ME?!"

So my kitty-loving followers have told me it's time for an update on my adorable Raggies.  I am pleased and honored to oblige!

First up, Bentley (aka "Squeak").  Born on 12/1/09, Bentley (a blue lynx mitted) is from Megailee Ragdolls near Raleigh, NC.  He came home at 3 months old, and he was 14 months old in these pictures and the video.

He is 100% gorgeous, and one of the two Raggie lights of our lives!  (His older brother Boo is the other one, and I'll do an update on him soon.  Getting good pictures of Boo is little trickier, though, because he HATES the camera, and runs away whenever he sees it.  And if I do a video of Boo, it will probably have to be of him sleeping!!!  Really!)

Anyway, Squeak is 11 pounds, 4 ounces, according to the vet's scale.  (But he looks much larger because of that soft, plush fur coat he wears!)  He is healthy, bright-eyed, quiet and sweet; and rarely meows.  The name of his game is PLAY*PLAY*PLAY, and he is an excellent "fetcher".  (Don't miss a short video clip of that HERE.)  Even people who are not cat-lovers (I can hardly even imagine!) comment on what a striking, stunning animal he is.

And a short video clip (less than a minute long) of my beautiful boy :

 

Other blog posts about Bentley can be found below.  

Enjoy, and thank you for looking!  

Welcome Home, Bentley!
Oct. 2010 Update
Bentley - one CRAZY Raggie!

Bentley - one CRAZY RAGGIE!

That is our one-year-old Ragdoll kitty, Bentley.  (But we usually call him "Squeak" because for the first year of his life he hardly ever meowed.  He just made this darling little *squeak!* every now and then!  NOTE:  He has since "found his meow" as we say, and can be almost as vocal as his big brother, Boo!)

And believe me, Squeak does the darndest things!   See for yourself...

This is Squeak on drugs the living room chair:

("Where's the remote???")

 

"Look, Ma, no (front) feet!"

Squeak on the floor...

This belly don't rub itself!

 

(Really???!)

Legs out front...



















Legs out back...  ;o)

On the downstairs twin bed...

Love the back feeties here!

On the king bed upstairs...

Yes, I agree... this is just WRONG!!!

The back view!!!  We call this Jabba the Fluff!






























So here's the story:   I walked into the downstairs bedroom a few days ago and did a double take.  I called my husband, "C'mere!  C'mere!  Quick!  You gotta see Squeak!  And, oh, bring the camera!"

After ALL those crazeeee poses above... what could POSSIBLY surprise me, you ask???! 

Well... let me show you...

Are you ready?

Are you sure???

OK...

BEHOLD....

Squeak???!  Is that YOU??!

YES! Do you believe THAT?!  I hugged him and kissed him and cooed, "OH, Squeak!  Look at you lying there like a... REAL CAT!!!!"  Awwww, my baby's gettin' all grown up!!!!   ;o)

Seriously... I had never seen him (before or SINCE!) position himself like that.  Legs tucked under, tail curling neatly around... so sophisticated, so TIDY, such a textbook "kitty" pose!  Good thing I caught it on camera... it may be a moment that history never repeats!!!

 

For more posts on my darling kitties, please look here:   Boo and the Ragdoll breed;    Bentley's Welcome Home story;   Update on Boo and Bentley.

           *THANKS!*

Boo and Bentley -- Update on "My Boys"!

YES, I am a terrible Raggie mom! HOW LONG has it been since I have given an update on my two sweet boys?! I know, I know, I've been dreadfully, terribly negligent, and I can only plead "crazeeee busy". Please forgive!

OK, so here goes:

Boo, our "seal bi-color", will be four years old on January 31, 2011. Hard to believe! He is SUCH a sweetheart. And just look at that face -- soooooooo cute, cute, cuuuuuuuute! I can hardly get enough of him!

Boo is also VERY vocal... always *complainin'* about something. Tooooo funny!

 

Bentley (aka "Squeak" -- because he rarely meows -- I think we've heard TWO true "meows" out of him his whole life so far. Every now and then he'll kind-of *chirp!* or *squeak*-- but that's about it!) is a "blue lynx mitted" who will be a year old on December 1, 2010. Whereas Boo is just so darn ADORABLE you can hardly stand it, Squeak is simply a striking, magnificent-looking animal.

They BOTH weigh the same right now -- 12.5 pounds! Which is kinda funny, because anyone who knows Ragdolls knows that they continue to grow and mature till about age 3 or 4 years old, so Squeak will likely (far!) outweigh Boo one day, because Boo is likely fully grown. And for a reference, when Boo was Squeak's age (10 months), he weighed about 9 pounds. Yep, that Squeak -- he's gonna be a "BIGGUN"'!!! That's OK, though, just more to snuggle and love!

Their favorite activities? Rip-snorting through the house at warp speed, then crashing and burning for a 4 hour nap on the bed or our favorite chair!

They also love mutual grooming... watching the bird feeder out the window... eating, of course (hey, it's one of MY favorite pasttimes, too!!!)... and OH how they love to *PLAY*! Quail feathers, feather wands, Da Bird, and those little furry mice (that Squeak "kills" and eviscerates in about 15 minutes flat) are their current favorite toys.

And have I mentioned that Squeak actually FETCHES, and he has since he was a baby?! Yep, just like a puppy dog! Sooooooo stinkin' cute!



OH yeah, in case you can't tell, I am totally smitten with these guys.  Spoiled little furballs, indeed!!!

  P.S.  In case you missed 'em, some of my other Raggie posts are here:  BOO'S STORY, CAT FANCY ARTICLE, and BENTLEY'S STORY.

Thanks for looking!