Her Royal Highness ---- Cat

In ancient Egypt cats were held in the highest esteem. Many of us modern cats have not forgotten that and require royal treatment from our humans. Maybe it is because cats are more independent than dogs that people think we need less care. That simply is not true. Before you decide to bring a cat into your life there are a few things you should know.

1. The average lifespan of a cat is 13 – 17 years and 20 years is not that uncommon. That’s a big commitment.

2. Cats have an average of 3-5 kittens per litter and can have up to 8 or 9.  Cats also can have 2 to 3 litters a year so you can see that over population of cats is a serious problem. Spay or neuter your cat even if they are going to be an “inside” cat because accidents do happen.

3. Claws are important to cats. Please don’t declaw your cat. For more information you can read my blog  Declawing Cats on this site.  Cats need to shed their outer nails to get to the healthy nails beneath. You can help your cat keep their nails healthy by providing a scratching post. It really is a good idea because if they don’t have a nice scratching post to keep their nails in shape they just might substitute your favorite piece of furniture.

4. Cats won’t use a dirty litter box so it is important to make sure the box is cleaned often and fresh litter is provided regularly.

5. Many people think that cats need milk when the truth is that dairy products are harmful to cats. What cats need is plenty of water so keeping their water bowl filled with clean, fresh water is important.

6. Dairy products aren’t the only foods that are harmful to cats. Never feed your cats chocolate, coffee, tea or other caffeinated drinks, raw meat or fish, grapes, raisins, onions, garlic or Xylitol (artificial sweetener).

Instead, feed them a high quality food made especially for cats and feed them on a regular schedule.

7. Cats are fond of eating plants but there are hundreds of common plants that are toxic to cats. A few of the more common ones are holly, aloe, calla lily, Rhododendron and peace lily. If you are not sure the plants you have in or around your home are non toxic to cats, there are several places on line you can source.

Most cats do like cat nip and I personally suggest you grow a pot or two in a sunny window.

8. You may have gotten your cat from a friend or local shelter for a few dollars but the ASPCA determined that when you add up the cost of housing, feeding, and vet bills, having a cat in your life costs around $600 a year.

Cats make wonderful companions and I hope you consider adopting a shelter cat today but know that we are decedents of royalty and expect to be treated as such.

Meow for now,

Fo

P.S.  Blatant self-promotion.  Zeva asked me to remind you that PawPalsBoutique.com has a large selection of gift baskets especially designed for cats and the people who love them.  The Holidays are coming soon so make your list and shop early.

The Grass May Be Greener After All

A couple of months ago Zeva wrote a blog (Moo, I Mean Woof) pointing out some of the reason dogs eat grass. Most people think that dogs eat grass to make their tummies want to vomit but as Zeva so eloquently explained, vomiting is not the only reason and not even necessarily the primary reason.

The story is a little different for cats. We eat grass specifically to vomit.

You see, before cats found nice homes to live in where we get nice food served in pretty dishes, we had to go out and kill our dinner. We didn’t have the luxury of savoring every bite in a nice safe house. We needed to gulp down our dinner and get to safety before we became dinner for some other animal.

Instead of fancy feasts of pate liver or chicken or turkey, filet of beef or tuna, we ate birds or mice or other small animals that we were able to catch. Because we had to eat quickly, we ate fur, feathers and bones and, if our dinner contained any parasites, we ate them too. I know, that is really gross but, hey, some humans could brush up on their table manners. Just sayin’.

Grass doesn’t have much nutritional value but it does contain lots of fiber. Unlike dogs, cats don’t have the special enzymes that allow us to digest large amounts of grass. Without the special enzymes, when we eat lots of grass, the grass irritates our tummies and we throw up. I know, I know, throwing up is disgusting but it’s better than getting really sick from some of the stuff we ate.

I know, like me, most of you reading this blog live in nice homes where your humans feed you yummy food from a can or a bag. Personally I like canned food but I do occasionally have to settle for dry and (don’t tell my humans this) some of it is really delicious. Anyway, even though we don’t eat dinners filled with yucky stuff like fur and feathers, we do groom ourselves frequently. In the process of grooming, we ingest our own fur and like the fur we talked about earlier, it needs to get out of our systems.

So even cats who spend all of their lives inside, they need to eat grass some times. Since we live inside and don’t have access to real grass, we tend to munch on the plants we find around the house. Unfortunately, those pretty green things that sit in the window can be super dangerous to cats.

Because they are easy to grow, lots of houses have philodendron, pathos and jade plants. Aloe Vera plants are a staple in many kitchens because they are good for healing burns. The problem is that these plants are harmful to cats.

If you want your cat to be able to eat grasses to help their tummies that are actually good for them, there are lots to choose from. Personally, I LOVE catnip. It’s easy to grow and well, it’s cat nip. Then there are Bee Balm, Lavender, Thyme and Valerian. These plants that are pretty, smell really nice and are good for cats.

Now that you know why we eat grass and vomit on your carpet, keep the tuna and salmon pate coming and plant a little cat nip in the front window and I guarantee we will get along just fine.

Love

Fo

P.S.  While you're here, check out the largest selection of gift basket for CATS at pawpalsboutique.com

The Not So Great Outdoors

Hi Everyone,

Fo the cat here.  I had such a big scare recently. It was so scary that I think it cost me one of my nine lives.

The door to the outside of our house was accidently left open.  I was walking by and the sounds and smells coming in from the garden were so interesting, I followed my nose out the door and into big trouble.

It started out as a wonderful experience.  I loved feeling the grass under my feet and the sun on my back but remember I’m blind.  I wasn’t outside long when I realized I didn’t know where I was and I could hear other animals all around me. I panicked and ran and ran.  I don’t know how long or how far but it was suddenly night time.

Meanwhile my girl was at home crying because I was gone.  It was too late to come looking for me but early the next morning her Dad did come looking.  He looked and looked and then a nice lady told him she heard a noise coming from a grate in the street.

He looked in the grate and saw that was where I was hiding.  I was so happy when he brought me home again.

As much as I liked being outside at first, it is too scary and I will never, ever go outside again.  There are lots of dangers for cats outside but there is a way for humans to let us experience the outside while keeping us perfectly safe.

All they have to do is get a catio.  In case you hadn’t heard, a catio is an enclosed space that lets cats enjoy fresh air, exercise and simply sit in the sun and watch (or listen to) the birds and other animals.  It’s just an escape proof screened in box but with a little imagination, it can be a really wonderful place.

A catio can be small, fitting in a window, or a big, set in the yard or on a deck.  There are lots of ideas for catios on the internet.   If they are handy with tools a human can build one with a little bit of lumber and some chicken wire.  They can find plans on line or can buy kits that have all the material so they only need to be assembled.

For those who aren’t very good with a hammer, catios can be bought fully assembled.

Add a scratch post, soft pillow and water bowl and your catio can be a vacation paradise for your cat.

I have had enough of the outdoors for the time being so I think I’ll just sit in the window and soak up the sun.

Love,

Fo

Blatant self-promotion  check out the huge selection of cat gift baskets at our website pawpalsboutique.com  My favorite is Cat Nappin' because it comes with a super snuggly blanket that would be nice in a catio.

Too Many Toys?!?!?

It’s almost here!  The Holiday Season that is.  Lots of folks don’t like “the holidays” because they feel rushed and stressed out.  Not me, I love them.

 Sure, we work more time at the Studio making our gift baskets, but that’s fun. It’s fun because we are making gifts that make people and pets happy.  I ‘specially like my job when I’m testing new toys or filling the pet gift baskets with them.  I make sure there are lots of toys in them cuz from experience I know you can NEVER have enough toys.  And treats, you can never have too many of those either.

 Different pets like different toys.  Personally, I like toys that I can chase or play tug of war with.  Right now my favorites are the blue ball that makes a flashing light when it bounces and my tug toy made out of a fire hose.  I drop the ball at the top of the stairs watch the blinky light go all the way down.  If I get tired of going after it, I let Mom get it for me and put it back in the toy box.  The fire hose tug toy is really like two toys cuz it’s also a good carry around one.

 Since DixieLee came to live with us, we had to change the kinds of toys that we get.  She didn’t get the nickname Dixie The Destroyer for nothing.  She should work for a pet toy company.  If a toy lasts for more than five minutes with her, they can say it is indestructible.

 When she moved in she ate all my soft cuddly and squeaky toys, but that’s okay since they weren’t my favorites anyway. Now our toy box is filled with toys like Kongs and antlers.  We love antlers.

 I have to admit, I’m still learning what toys should go in our cat gift baskets.  Since we don’t have a cat that lives with us, I have to rely on the cat friends we’ve met on line.  Obviously I like social media. I have this blog, I sometimes write for the company blog, I manage the Laurel Mountain Basket Co Pet Division Facebook page and I have accounts with sites like 3MillionDogs.com and PetPav.com.  There are some really smart cats on PetPav.com so I get good advice from them.

 Cats love treats too so we make sure we put lots of treats in our cat gift baskets.  Cats seem to like shiny things and feathers.  They also like balls that they can hit with their paws and chase.  We have lots of different kinds of balls.  I like to put the little ones with a bell inside them in most of our cat gift baskets cuz those seem to be a favorite with our cat friends.  The best cat toy, I think anyway, is the one that looks like a mouse. It is soooo cute.

 Well, time to check the inventory to make sure we have enough toys for the upcoming Holiday Season. 

 Your Santa Paws Helper,

 Zeva

 P.S. Blatant self-promotion.  Holiday Special! 10% off any of our Pet Gift Baskets, now until December 20, 2014 so act today.  On line ordering, enter the coupon code “Yappy Holidays!”.