All about cats

Liverpool, Tottenham and ... the cat

2012-02-13T07:38:00.000-08:00

Sometimes football gets much more interesting that the final score, don't you agree?

Cat Hugs Baby Kitten Having Nightmare

2011-08-02T06:28:00.000-07:00

How sweet!

Another unusual cat friend ...

2011-05-18T13:08:00.000-07:00

The cat and the owl best friends! They sure seem to enjoy each other's company ...

Spring cats

2011-04-21T07:05:00.000-07:00

Can you smell the flowers ... or the cats?

The loudest cat purr!

2011-02-22T08:00:00.000-08:00

A cat named Smokey is claimed to have the loudest purr in the world, almost as noisy as a Boing 737 coming in to land! Most cats purr at around 25 decibels but Smokey's averages 80 decibels, and when measured close-up her purrs reach 92 decibels!
For cat lovers, there is nothing more soothing than the sound of their cat purring with contentment ...

Dusty the "burglar" cat!

2011-02-17T07:07:00.000-08:00

A security night-vision camera has finally revealed that Dusty, the cat, is responsible for a 3-year crime wave! Residents wondered what was happening when various of their small items, from shoes to stuffed bears to towels to bathing suits ..., started disappearing. In total, more than 600 things have gone missing from gardens or homes in the Californian town of San Mateo. Dusty kept returning home with other peoples belongings. His record is bringing back 11 items in one night!

Larry the cat got a new job!

2011-02-15T04:47:00.000-08:00

Larry, a four-year-old former stray tabby, will be tasked with warding off a mischief of rats seen scuttling around the British leader's official residence. UK Prime Minister David Cameron is all set to welcome a cat into his official residence. The arrival follows weeks of speculation about potential pest control measures after a rat was seen outside No 10.

The cat and the Chinese zodiac

2011-02-05T07:59:00.000-08:00

There is a legend that explains how each animal in the Chinese zodiac was given their place in the 12-year cycle.
The Buddha invited all the animals together for a banquet, and each animal was assigned a year in the order of its arrival. When the cat heard the news, she notified his friend, the rat, and the two made plans to go together. But the cat overslept in the next morning, and as the rat did not bother to wake her up, she did not make it to Buddha’s meeting, so she wasn't given a year in the Chinese zodiac. This legend not only clarifies the cat’s absence from the zodiac, but also explains why cats hate rats - the rat betrayed the cat!

The year of the cat

2011-02-04T02:57:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was the beginning of the Lunar New Year of the Cat or Rabbit. The Vietnamese welcomed the Year of the Cat and the Chinese rang in the Year of the Rabbit. According to legend, the cat was left out of the Chinese zodiac because the rat tricked the cat into missing Buddha’s call for the animals to come and have a year assigned in their honor!
The cat is the fourth animal symbol of the 12-year cycle of the Vietnamese zodiac. Cats are smooth talkers, talented and ambitious, often succeeding in their studies. The Year of the Cat is said to be a stress-free year :)

Unusual cat ... friends

2011-02-02T06:52:00.000-08:00

There have been a lot of strange friendships among different animals. Here are some of the most unusual friends of a cat I've found. Simply amazing!

Cat and monkey

Cats and rabbits

Cat and pig

Cat and ... camel

Cat and lizard

Cat and bird ... come on!

More unusual cat friendship stories will follow ...

Is Lucy the oldest cat in the world?

2011-01-31T09:01:00.000-08:00

She is deaf and a little nervous when you wake her up by force. But it is only natural, being 39 years old! In human years her age is about 172, and her 63 year old owner from England can be proud of taking a very good care of her!
The cat was born in 1972 and was eating at a fish store.
Guinness is expected to give her the record of the oldest cat in the world.
In any case, we wish Lucy a very long and happy life, don't we?

Winter cats

2011-01-29T07:37:00.000-08:00

Well, most cats will definetely prefer taking long naps by the fireplace or on the hotest spot in the house during winter. But what about the outdoor cats?

Why cats use a litterbox?

2010-10-31T08:19:00.000-07:00

Small feral cats bury their feces to hide their trails from larger cats and other predators. Because it is easier to bury excrement in soft dirt, cats naturally seek out a sandy area to defecate. Burying feces may also be a sign of submission by smaller cats to larger cats in the wild. Most indoor cats bury their waste, possibly to display subordination to their humans.
Sometimes in multi-cat households, however, the dominant cat will leave waste uncovered to indicate his status.

Kitty Litter Cake!

The mysterious cat whiskers

2010-10-27T05:57:00.000-07:00

Whiskers, like hair and nailsdo fall out and are replaced.
Whiskers are two to three times thicker than the cat's hair.
Whiskers are rooted very deep in the cat's face, in an area rich in nerves and blood vessels.
Whiskers are roughly as wide the cat's body.
An average cat has about 12 whiskers on each side of the nose, which are arranged in four horizontal rows, a few on each cheek, tufts over the eyes and bristles on the chin. Whiskers may also be found on the cat's "elbows".
Whisker tips are sensitive to pressure.
Whiskers help the cat feel his way around.
Whiskers are so sensitive that they can detect the slightest directional change in a breeze.
Whiskers are also an indication of the cat's attitude. Whiskers point forward when a cat is inquisitive and friendly, and lie flat on the face when the cat is being defensive or aggressive.
Whisker help a cat judge whether or not he'll fit through an opening.
The longest whiskers belong to a female Maine Coon called Mingo, owned by Marina Merne of Turku, Finland. In July 2004, one of Mingo's whiskers measured 6.8 inches (17.4 cm)!

Autumn cats

2010-10-18T05:19:00.000-07:00

Rains, falling leaves ... and cats!

Cat body language - The ears

2010-10-14T06:16:00.000-07:00

Cats may or may not vocalize much, although they have a wide vocabulary of sounds. Their main communication is through body language. Besides using their tails as a communication tool (see Tales of the cat tail), ears, legs, posture and eyes are all talking, giving us and other members of the animal kingdom clear messages.

The Flat Ears: These are seen on the defensive cat. They flatten them to protect them from the impending fight.
The Rotated Ears: A cat who is aggressive and hostile will flatten her ears slightly and rotate them forward to show the backs of the ear as near as possible. The ears are in a position where they can be flattened quickly. The cat is ready to fight.
The Agitated Ears: The ears may twitch when the cat is in an agitated or anxious state. The signal given off by this action is magnified if there are ear tufts.
The Alert Ears: The cat's eyes and pricked ears point forward towards the source of the sound. If there is another sound to one side the ear nearest will swivel to point in the direction of the source of the sound.
The Relaxed Ears: They point forward and outward slightly. Our cat listens passively.
Ears swiveled sideways like a swing-wing fighter – on the offensive
Ears pressed backward onto the head giving the appearance of a snake – extreme defense (ears folded back to protect them from harm)
One ear forward and one back – ambivalence
Ears rotating like radar dishes – listening carefully in an attempt to find the source of the sound.

Is your cat fat or skinny?

2010-10-12T06:13:00.000-07:00

Keeping fat to a minimum is crucial to expanding your cat's life span, so it is important to visually and physically examine your cat. A cat's normal, healthy weight will vary depending on the breed, gender, and spay or neuter status. So here are some guidelines to determine if your cat's weight is normal.

Feel the cat's ribs. Ideally, there should be easily felt but not visibly sticking out. The ribs should be covered with a layer of fat, but not to an extent that would make it difficult to feel them. If you can see the ribs, the cat is too thin. If you can not feel them at all, the cat is very overweight.
Feel other bony prominences on the pet's body such as the the base of the tail, spine, shoulders, and hips. Anything more than light fleshiness indicates that your pet is above normal weight.
Look at the cat from above. The shoulders should be more broad and noticeable than the waist. The hindquarters should be broader than the waist. If the waist is significantly larger or very well rounded in comparison with the shoulders and hindquarters, the cat is overweight.
Look at the cat from the side. If the belly of a cat protrudes, the cat may be overweight. The area behind the ribs should be smaller in diameter than the chest.

Why does a cat go to the visitor who doesn't like cats?

2010-10-10T10:00:00.000-07:00

When one cat is threatening another, it stares and frequently moves in toward the other cat. So staring and moving toward a cat is a way of displaying aggression. Ignoring a cat is the opposite of aggressive behavior, so the cat sees this as "cat-friendly" and inviting.
Usually, the person - your visitor - who doesn’t like cats, won’t be doing this. Instead he'll sit quitly, without looking or talking to the cat, hoping to be ignored by the cat. The cat, therefore, sees the person's behavior as "cat-friendly" and practically inviting.

Are all orange cats male?

2010-10-07T07:29:00.000-07:00

Many of us have noticed that he majority of orange cats are male, but why? Well, the gene for the orange color is on the X chromosome. Since males have only one X, so will either be orange or not. Females have two X chromosomes, so can have another color on one of the X's, winding up with a non solid orange female cat. In other words, an orange female cat must have both an orange father and either an orange or calico mother, whereas an orange male only needs one parent to be orange or calico.

Why do cats rub against things and people?

2010-10-04T01:53:00.000-07:00

Cats engage in various rubbing behaviours as a form of communication, to mark territory and reinforce group identity.
Cats have scent glands along the tail, on each side of their head, on their lips, base of their tail, chin, near their sex organs, and between their front paws. They use these glands to scent mark their territory. When the cat rubs you, he is marking you with his scent, claiming you as “his.” Also, he is picking up your scent. Many cats will hiss at a well-known human who has recently stroked a cat that is not part of the home group because they feel threatened by the other cat’s scent.
Cats often rub the sides of their faces on things, like furniture or doorways, an activity called “chinning.” They do this because they have scent glands on their chins and lips, and they use these to override the scents left by other animals. Often, when a cat encounters a residual scent left by another animal, he will engage in a prolonged episode of chinning until he is sure that he has claimed the spot for himself.

Famous cat lovers

2010-09-29T06:07:00.000-07:00

Many famous people including inventors, scientists, artists, musicians, writers, political and military leaders, and humanitarians have been cat lovers. The following are just a few of them.

Ernest Hemingway, author, owned 30 Cats. His most unusual cat was a six-toed cat given to him by a ship's captain.
Sir Winston Churchill: Prime Minister of England [1874 - 1965], owned an orange tabby cat named Jock. He commissioned a painting of Jock, who slept in his bed every night and was even taken to all the wartime cabinet meetings.
Nostradamus: Seer and Prophet [1503 - 1566]. The French Astrologer had a cat named Grimalkin.
Abraham Lincoln: American President [1809], came into presidential office accompanied by Tabby, his son's cat. Tabby was the first of several White House cats.
Sir Isaac Newton (1643-1727) Scientist and philosopher, invented the cat-flap, likely so he wouldn't be disturbed by his cats' comings and goings!
Charles Dickens (1812-1870) Author. His cat, Willamena, produced a litter of kittens in his study. Dickens was determined not to keep the kittens, but he fell in love with one female kitten who was known as "Master's Cat". She kept him company in his study as he wrote, and when she wanted his attention she was known to snuff out his reading candle.
Albert Einstein (1879-1955) Physicist. Fond of animals, Einstein kept a tomcat named Tiger who tended to get depressed whenever it rained. One acquaintance recalled him saying to the melancholy cat: "I know what's wrong, dear fellow, but I don't know how to turn it off." Einstein was also quoted as saying, "A man has to work so hard so that something of his personality stays alive. A tomcat has it so easy, he has only to spray and his presence is there for years on rainy days."

... to be continued

Millionaire cats

2010-09-20T07:01:00.000-07:00

Some of the felines seem to be much more fortunate than the others! Well that's life.

A millionaire lawyer has left £25,000 for his beloved cats. Andrew Nimmo-Smith had around 30 cats when he died aged 85. And he has ensured their care with a donation from his £4.8million estate!
A Canadian man has left a fortune to his beloved cat in his will. 79-year-old Batchelor David Harper made his fortune by working hard and living frugally. In his will Mr Harper has made Red, the 3 year old tabby cat, the sole beneficiary of the $1.1million estate so that Red will be cared for for the rest of his 9 lives!
When British recluse Ben Rea died, he left $15 million to various cat charities, and to his cat Blackie!
Tinker was a stray, regularly visiting Margaret Layne, an old widow. In return for Tinker's loyalty, he was awarded a fortune. There is a $226,000 trust fund for Tinker, as well as a new home - worth about $800,000. Tinker has been joined by two lovely female cats, Lucky and Stardust!
Beryl Reid was an actress. She had a lovely $1.8 million cottage. She was also famous for her love of cats. So, when she died, her cats Hamish, Boon, Eileen, Coco and Tuffnel inherited. A friend was commissioned to look after them as they lived in their house!
Mary Burton was a church organist in Great Paxton, Cambridgeshire, Enlgand. She left her entire estate to the Wood Green Animal Shelter, provided her cat - a ginger tom - was well cared for. Fluffy, the ginger tom, received $60,000, plus the ability to live in the house and be well cared for. His diet was even specified: steamed cod, lean roast beef, milk, frexh pilchards and vegetables. Fluffy also requires plenty of sun and relaxation!
Brownie and Hellcat: These felines each received $415,000 in the 1960s when their owner, Dr. William Grier, died. Charlie Chan, another cat beneficiary of Grier, received $250,000!

Cat Heroes

2010-09-16T07:05:00.000-07:00

Yes, there are plenty of feline heroes out there. Cats have saved humans in various ways. Below are some of their amazing stories.

Hero cat saves 97-year-old owner from pit-bull attack!
Hero Cat Roused Sleeping Owner as Carbon Monoxide Filled Family's Home
Hero cat up for a cong
Hero cat apparently dials 911 to help owner!

and the list goes on and on ...

Cat heroes
When cats save your life

What about your cat? I'm sure all of our cats have their heroic moments!

Cat jokes

2010-09-15T06:56:00.000-07:00

A tom cat hijacked a plane, stuck a pistol into the pilot's ribs and demanded: 'Take me to the Canaries'.
What is a cat's favourite subject in school? HISStory.
What is a cat's favourite colour? Purrrple!
What is a cat's favourite car? The Catillac.
Where did the kittens go on their class trip? To a mewseum.
What does a cat like to eat on a hot day? A mice cream.
How do cats end a fight? They hiss and make up.
How do you know when your cat has been using your computer? When your mouse has teeth marks on it!

Famous/ celebrity cats - Orangey

2010-09-13T08:12:00.000-07:00

Orangey the Cat - an orange tabby - is the only feline double-winner of the Patsy Award, the animal kingdom's equivalent of the Oscar. Orangey won his first Patsy for his cinema debut in Rhubarb (1951), playing the eponymous baseball team-owning cat in the 1951 film. Ten years later, he won his second Patsy, playing "Cat" in Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961), a homeless feline described as a "poor slob without a name" by Holly Golightly (Audrey Hepburn), whom he visits. Other films that Orangey the Cat appeared in during his 15 year career, include The Incredible Shrinking Man (1957), Gigot (1962), and Village of the Giants (1965). Orangey's longest gig was a recurring role as Minerva the Cat in the TV series "Our Miss Brooks" (1952) from 1952 through 1958.