The video stars Woody, a tabby cat in Japan who really, really likes his water! Throughout the three minute video, Woody repeatedly ducks his head under a running kitchen faucet and then licks up the resulting droplets that fall from his head.

It’s very cute and such a “cat thing” that it makes me smile just thinking about it. Our own tabby, Sage, also her own water quirk, though it’s probably more common. She pretty much only tolerates standing water in a water dish. She knows our schedule pretty well, as far as filling the food and water dishes, and will stake them out and wait for us to fill it with fresh water. She’ll then try and drink from the cup we use to pour water into the dish.

We’ve tried one of those automatic water fountains, but found it to be more trouble than it was worth. We were cleaning it daily because it just attracted gunk and growth, which it was apparently supposed to eliminate in the first place. Daily cleaning of a dish is easy with a plain one, but the fountain didn’t last too long and Sage just had to learn to deal again.

Does your cat have any water quirks?

Post from: Blisstree

Water-Loving Cat

There’s not much more information than that but I would have had to take a snapshot of it too if I had passed by!

As cute as it is, though, I wouldn’t recommend trying to recreate a similar shot. Even if your dog or cat get along with smaller “pocket pets,” it only takes a second for instinct to take over for things to take a tragic turn.

[image: flickr]

Post from: Blisstree

Silly Saturday: Cat, Rat, Dog Pileup

Three-year-old Lucky, a curious grey tabby cat, managed to squeeze through just six inches of open window in his owner, Keri’s, home office. The problem with this, though, is that the apartment was located 26 stories up and the ledge Lucky crawled onto wasn’t very wide.

A window washing team across the way saw the cat and started taking pictures — first they got Lucky on the ledge, then the fall, and then a very-much-alive Lucky on a neighbor’s patio 26 floors below.

The vet that was interviewed in the news story said that it’s actually a good thing that Lucky had such a high fall, because when a cat reaches its terminal velocity it actually relaxes, which helps keep injuries to a minimum upon impact.

Lucky had only a few minor injuries himself, and owner Keri said she’s keeping all windows in her apartment permanently closed from now on.

Post from: Blisstree

Lucky the Cat Lives Up To His Name

Coco Conundrum struggles to free herself from the grasp of Tru!

Rick says we need a family dog. I’m a cat person. I’ve never lived with a dog. Growing up, Rick had dogs. He says every boy should have a dog, and according to him, our son is missing out.

Truman says he doesn’t want a dog until his cats “die and go up to heaven.” He worries dogs would hurt his two cats. Our cats were strays. We’re lucky to actually see them in eyeshot of Truman. They are frightened of him, and yet he adores them. He begs me to catch one so he can hold it. When he does, the cat yowls and threatens to rip him to shreds.

If we got a dog, I would be the primary caregiver. I work from home and would be spending most of the day with the pup. I would have to walk him and feed him and make sure he is potty trained. Since I’m not sure how dogs work, I told Rick I wanted to buy some books and take a class before a dog joined our family. And I gave him a distant deadline – Truman’s 6th birthday. But that deadline is drawing near.

Sweet Little Probie needs a home.

The other day the humane society brought an adorable field-breed golden retriever on Rick’s show. Probie is 13 months old and very mild tempered. And he’s adorable. Rick sent me this TwitPic of him. Over the weekend we went to the shelter and visited Probie. He was very sweet with our little boy and Truman enjoyed playing with him. Since we were about to leave town I suggested we not make any hasty decisions. And so we’re waiting. And waiting. And I suspect someone will snatch up Probie before we are (I am) ready for a dog. Which would probably be a good thing. Still, I’m just not convinced I want a dog. And Truman seems lukewarm.

After a few minutes playing with Probie, Truman’s focus immediately turned to the cats. He was smitten. Unlike our strays back home, the kittens there had been around people since birth. They were rag dolls in my son’s arms. One even purred as he slug it around.

Rick rolled his eyes. He says it’s beginning to look like we may end up with another cat rather than a new dog. I think two cats are plenty for this household. Truman says he wants a kitten. And a lizard and a bluebird and a tree snake and a fish and a mouse.

We’ve got about six months before Truman’s birthday. I’m just not sure… What do you think? Can I grow to love a dog like I love my kitties?

Photo, JWJourney

Post from: Blisstree

Dogs vs. Cats – Which Pet to Get?

I’ve found that they love anything with a strong tuna smell and flavor. These fishball snacks are perfect for them, and the added bonus of some catnip makes it that much more appealing to them!

Feline Fishballs
from Carol P.

8 oz. can tuna in oil – drained
2 oz. cooked herring or other fatty fish – skin removed
3 baby carrots – boiled until tender, mashed
1 egg – beaten
3 T. grated cheese
2 T. whole grain bread crumbs OR rolled oats
2 T. tomato paste
2 tsp. brewer’s yeast
1/4 tsp. catnip

Combine all ingredients; mix well. Roll dough into 1″ balls and place balls 1″ apart on a greased cookie sheet.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown and firm. Allow to cool on wire racks.

[image: flickr]

Post from: Blisstree

Recipe: Feline Fishballs

Every so often Molly takes out a bit of her anxiety on a nearby bundle of wires.

What goofy things do your cats do when they get nervous?

Post from: Blisstree

Molly the Cat Meets the Printer

I don’t know what it is with cats and boxes. If there’s an empty one anywhere in the house, and the cats can manage to squeeze themselves into it, they will!

We pulled out a few boxes that were left over from our move last fall and even though they’ve still got a few things in them the cats can’t resist it. They rub up against them, try to nibble at the tape and even though there is no room, they check every time they walk by to see if the contents are cleared out yet.

Post from: Blisstree

Cat Signals SOS

As you can imagine, I’ve seen a lot of humorous Youtube videos about other peoples’ pets. The one above of a Roomba-riding cat is one of the funniest, though, because I’ve never seen it done before and I know my cats would never do it themselves.

I don’t know how these people got their cat used to the little vacuum — ours freak out as soon as the linen closet door opens and they hear the wheels of our vacuum squeak across the tile. Getting one of them to actually sit still around a moving, noisy object in the first would be a miracle in itself.

Post from: Blisstree

Roomba Cat

Fennec Foxes are native to the Sahara Desert of North Africa and usually weigh up to three pounds. Their big ears are their most distinguishable feature and actually help to dissipate the heat, pretty handy when you live in the desert!

Oddly enough, the Fennec is the only fox that can be kept as a pet. Though it’d be a stretch to say they’re domesticated, there are breeders in the US and Canada and a pretty large owner community in both countries.

They’re usually pretty friendly toward other household pets and have a lot of energy. The legality of owning them varies by state and/or jurisdiction, though, and since they’re considered an exotic breed many vets will not treat them.

Fennecs require a lot of specialized care with their diet and natural habits, and will often hide food in caches around the house. They’re also said to not be able to be housebroken (ack!).

As cute and sweet as these little guys are I’ll just say it’s probably a good thing they’re not legal in my state!

[image: flickr]

Post from: Blisstree

Fennec Foxes as Housepets

She’s still alive, mind you. She’s almost 12 now, and ornery as hell. She tolerates only two people – Rick and me. She often hides when we have guests and sometimes sneaks out just to watch people creep around her house. If anyone tries to pet her or talk to her she growls or hisses. She’s always been that way. I think that’s one of the reasons I loved her so much, because she loved us and only us. Well, I think she loved us. Her love was always on her terms. She’s such a cat. I fretted about her when we left town for the weekend or if I went too long before changing her litter box. I bought her cat treats and I pestered her all the time because I just loved her so much.

Before I got pregnant we toyed with adopting a stray cat but Matisse was so freaked out we ended up giving the other cat to a neighbor. So when I did get pregnant, I worried how she would take to a new addition in the family. My worries were justified when we brought Truman home from from the hospital. Matisse was miserable mad. For the first few months we had Truman in a Pack-n-Play in our bedroom and Matisse would walk past it and hiss – even if Truman wasn’t in it. I was worried Matisse might jump in the Pack-n-Play and try to smother our little baby, but she didn’t even want to come anywhere close to him or the things he used.

Time passed and Matisse began to warm up to Truman to some degree. She gained a curiosity in him that was charming. She’d sniff him and then hiss and run off. When he began walking, he stalked her and she would run just out of his reach. When he cried, she would cry too – loud, frantic yowls. I’m not sure if she was worried or if the noise annoyed her. Probably the latter.

I changed too. I stopped smothering Matisse with kisses and began showering them on my son. And he responded with giggles, unlike my cat, who would whine and run away. And that crazy love I had for Matisse, honestly, sort of sucked under the tidal wave of deep emotional love I have for my son. It’s not that I stopped loving Matisse. It was just diluted.

In some ways, I think Matisse has grown to like Truman. She just doesn’t really want to admit it. She sits outside his bedroom door at night and won’t come downstairs until he is asleep. She loves watching him play. And sometimes, she doesn’t even yowl when we hold her down and he pets her.

I know now that there are things you can do to make the “new baby in the house” transition smoother for pets. It seems to me I knew this at the time but, I guess, I was in denial…worried that the alternative would be giving up Matisse. Luckily, we didn’t have to resort to such measures. (Like my neighbor did.) We’re all living somewhat peacefully now. (Never mind that Matisse is furious about Coco Conundrum!)

If you want tips, check out The Animal Health Channel’s pointers. If you’ve been-there-done-that, then let us know what worked for you, since I obviously have nothing else to offer on my own.

JWJourney

Post from: Blisstree

Introducing pets to baby can be stressful