A Few Of My Favorite Things

Hi, my name is Fo. I am a cat and I love feathers! Feathers are one of my favorite things to play with. To me, feathers are mystical. They feel so silky and they float and I'm told that feathers are very pretty to look at. I say “I'm told” because I am blind. I was born blind so not seeing isn't a big deal for me. Without my sight, I hear better than most other cats and although cats have a great sense of smell, mine is even better. My whiskers help me “see” where I'm going, so being blind hasn't slowed me down at all.

Catnip is another of my favorite things. Catnip is a plant in the mint family and there are about 250 different kinds of catnip. The one thing they all have in common is something called nepetalactone. Nepetalactone is what makes it so special to cats. Because it's the smell of catnip that cats react to, I really enjoy playing with catnip.

Not all cats respond to catnip but for those of us who do (about 50%), catnip is a fun, fun experience. When I smell catnip I love to roll on the floor, rub on the carpet and run around the house. I go, go, go and then, boom, time to crash. But, it's okay. Catnip is not harmful to cats and we know when we have had enough. Sometimes, after I rest, I like to go back and play some more with catnip and sometimes, I don't.

Catnip is best when it is fresh. I like it when my human girl brings me a new catnip toy. Lots of pet stores sell catnip inside toys or in little bags and just a teeny, tiny bit is enough. Catnip is easy to grow so if your human likes plants they can keep a pot growing in the window and you can sniff it anytime you want. If your humans grow catnip they can dry it and sprinkle it on the floor for you or your human can pinch off the leaves, put them in an airtight container and freeze them for later.

One other really good thing about growing catnip is that mosquitoes don't like it! When I told Zeva about catnip keeping mosquitoes away, she said she was going to get her Mom to plant some all around their pen to keep the bugs away.

It's good to know that dogs and people can benefit from catnip even if they don't have the same fun, fun we cats do.

I will be writing for Zeva's blog regularly so if you share your house with a cat or have friends that are cats, please let them know. I would love to meet them and hear all about them. I'd be interested in where they live and how they love to spend their days.

Love,

Your furry feline friend,

Fo

P.S.  If you haven't checked out the cat gift baskets at PawPalsBoutique.com you really should.  They put catnip toys in lots of the gift baskets!