- Does Your Cat or Dog Need a New (and Unique!) Companion? Check This Out! http://t.co/2DrScZGq
- Winner Kara Laricks is from Overland Parj..Fashion Star’ goes over the rainbow http://t.co/SRNXQftq
- Some room for improvement..Siri, Y U No Understand Me? [INFOGRAPHIC] http://t.co/oWj2mT7Y via @zite
- Finding A Groom For Dying Celebrity Dog, Lucky http://t.co/cLiUIqvS via @zite
- Diamond Pet Foods Recalls More Dry Dog Food http://t.co/spmTWAb4 via @zite
It’s The Day To Talk Spay
On National Spay Day, we wanted to give you some reasons to spay or neuter your pet:
- > A dog or cat as young as 4 months of age can get pregnant.
- > Litter mates can produce a litter!
- > Cats typically enter their first heat between 4 to 6 months. A cat will usually have 2 to 4 heat cycles a year, each about 15-25 days in length. If breeding does not occur, these heat cycles will reoccur every 15 to 20 days and it is possible for these cycles to to repeat every 3 to 4 weeks. Based on these figures, one unspayed female and one unneutered male can be responsible for 420,000 kittens during their lifetimes!
- > Dogs typically enter their first heat between 4 to 6 months. These cycles last, on average, about 3 weeks and will usually have them every 4 to 7 months.
- > Dogs/cats spayed before their first heat have less than 0.5% chance of developing breast cancer (mammary cancer)
- > At least 50% of the overpopulation problem is non-neutered males. Females can’t do it alone.
So, as Drew Carey (and Bob Barker before him) says it the end of EVERY Price Is Right episode, have your pet spayed or neutered!
Information for this post from spayorneuter.com
Guest Post: House For Sale, Pets Not Included
In this post, Melinda Bartling, realtor with Keller-Williams, gives some tips on what to do with your pets when trying to sell your home.
Pets can be a dilemma when selling your home. Approximately 63% of the population
owns a pet, but the 37% that don’t own a pet oftentimes won’t buy a house that has one.
Some reasons why a prospective buyer might prefer to look at pet free homes include:
- Allergies
- Fear of dogs
- Thinks the house will be dirty
- Fear pet stains or odors might be hidden
If your home is on the market and you have a cat, put a note on the front door above the lock that there is a cat in the house. The note will help agents remember to close the door behind them.
If you have a dog that will be at home, it should be crated during showings. Allowing the dog to be in the laundry room with a baby gate may be a problem if a potential buyer wants to view that room.
Pets can be very territorial around strangers and may hiss, bark or bite prospective buyers or realtors showing your home. In one case, a seller’s dog was barking in the backyard, preventing people from going out there. They didn’t sell their house.
Another story involves the sellers who said the cat can go “in or out.” The cat was lurking at the front door and ran in when the door opened. The problem..it wasn’t the seller’s cat and did some major damage to the house after being locked up all day.
Pets are members of the family, but when trying to sell your home, take care that they don’t scare away a potential buyer.
Melinda Bartling is a realtor with Keller-Williams here in the Kansas City area. To contact Melinda, go to www.melindabartling.com
Movie Cats
There’s been a lot of focus on Uggie, canine star of the Oscar-nominated film The Artist.
Quite a few cats have graced the big screen too. Check these out:
- Spot the Cat was featured in Star Trek movie Generations
- Solomon the Cat starred in two James Bond movies, You Only Live Twice and Diamonds are Forever, as the pet of villain Blofeld.
- Orion the Cat starred in Men in Black
- The first feline movie star was Pepper, a gray alley cat that starred in silent movies with Charlie Chaplin and Fatty Arbuckle.
- Then there’s the Sphynx cat, Ted Nude-gent, who played Mr. Bigglesworth, pet of villain Dr. Evil in the Austin Powers movies.
Have fun watching the Oscars tonight!
Funny Pet Video of the Week
It’s resident blogger “Party” Mary going more than a little crazy trying to catch the mouse inside the iPad
Hail To the Chief!
This President’s Day, I thought it would be fun to share some Presidential pet facts:
- John Quincy Adams’ pet of choice was silkworms.
- Theodore Roosevelt ‘s Bull Terrier Pete almost caused an international scandal when he ripped the pants off the French Ambassador, Jules Jusserand.
- Woodrow Wilson’s tobacco-chewing ram Old Ike was one of the last farm animals to live at the White House. Others included Benjamin Harrison’s goat, Old Whiskers, his cow, Sukey, Taft’s cow Paulie Wayne, and Zachary Taylor’s horse, Old Whitey.
- President Warren G. Harding had an Airedale Terrier named Laddie Boy who used to sit in on cabinet meetings.
- The FDR Memorial in Washington DC includes a statue of his beloved Scottish Terrier Fala.
- Abraham Lincoln was the first president to bring a cat to the White House.
- Rutherford B. Hayes was given the first Siamese cat in the U.S. as a gift from the American Consul in Bangkok.
Do Vacations Drive Your Cat Crazy?
Cats generally like remaining in familiar surroundings, so it’s preferable to allow them to remain in their normal environment when you’re away.
If you’re thinking about hiring a petsitter, make time to show the sitter specifics about feeding (do you stay in feeding area when your cat is eating or do you distribute food and allow them privacy for their meal?) litterbox maintenance and play time. Give your cat a chance to interact with the sitter as much as possible to help build your cat’s level of comfort.
If your cat is prone to act less than friendly with strangers, but doesn’t aggressively pursue, advise the sitter to ignore the cat and go about their other duties. It’s been my experience that curiosity takes over and cats will come out after a visit or two to see what’s happening.
For cats that aggressively pursue strangers, owners should seriously consider boarding.
If your cat is accustomed to having people at home a lot during the day, consider leaving music or TV on to keep them company and minimize the sounds of silence.
Of course your cats prefer having you at home with them, but a little advanced planning can lessen your kitty’s stress until vacation is over.
Cool Cats Know How to Share the Love!
The Spirit of Bo, here to disperse lots of love on this special day designed for just that: LOVE! Wow! Do I miss just being around here, purring in the sunlight, greeting my human Karen at the end of every day, and pestering that annoying dog, Jessie. However, even in spirit, I can spread the love I feel. If you own a cat, you are in luck! Even though cats are typically thought of as aloof and fiercely independent, when they develop a bond with their human, the love they give out is undeniable.
For example, we are quite fond of bringing home “love offerings” as a symbol of our adoration for you. If we drag in a dead rodent or dead bird, while understandably gross at first, we prefer to honor that prize as a token of our love for you!
If your cat tends to follow you around, congratulations! You have a fan. Now, we are a particular and fussy sort, so don’t expect us to be right on your heels like those dogs of yours. No…we do things in our own time. So while you venture off into another room, we may slowly take our time and then follow you in there, finding a comfortable spot close to you to relax.
Ever hear of “cat kisses?” Well, if not….you are in for a treat. Sometimes you may find us staring at you intently, but adoringly, and then we will squint and briefly close our eyes. Consider yourself smooched at that point! Yeah…we love ya!
When your cat rolls over on his or her stomach exposing the belly, that is less a signal for a belly rub (although that is encouraged!), and more of a sign that we trust you. We don’t assume that position for just anyone, you know!
Happy Valentine’s Day! Go hug a cat. Okay…and a dog, too! Geez! Am I an equal opportunity cat blogger or what?
Thanks to petplace.com for helping me out here a bit, too!
Cat Naps: Take a Healthy Cue from your Cat!
Party Marty here, well-rested and ready to face the day….or at the very least, the next hour. Nap time is coming! Hey! I saw an article online today published through the Huffington Post. It indicated that a habit we felines have may benefit the human sort if you all simply figure out that we know better than you at times!
The National Sleep Foundation conducted a recent poll which revealed roughly 43% of Americans ages 13-64 rarely or never get a good night’s sleep throughout the week. In fact, those respondents, on average, noted they only get six hours and 55 minutes of sleep a night. Are you kidding me? How could I even survive on that????
Trust me. Sleep deprivation will catch up to you! You know what I mean. The clock says 3 p.m. and you feel as if you could crawl up under your desk at work and take a snooze. Of course, there’s that pesky boss of yours that would see to your immediate termination if you even considered such a move!
However, as we cats have known all along, a cat nap during the day is healthy! We sleep up to 15 hours a day, which is more than most other mammals. So, my advice to you is to sleep early and often and in any sun-soaked area you can find. The benefits of sleep include maintaining a healthy weight, improved memory, elevated mood and so much more.
Of course, I don’t suggest your cat nap take place in the lobby of your office building. That, my friend, would look rather strange. I say that businesses need to establish power nap rooms into which employees can retreat a couple of times each day to recharge, refocus, and renew! Imagine the increased productivity and positive moods at work as a result! Hmmmm….
Well…I am worn out over all this pontificating. Time to grab a pillow and find a spot near the window. Yeah…we cats rule. Notice how they are not called “dog naps?” If that was the case, you’d just be drooling all over yourself, and that would not be a good thing…especially in that business suit of yours!
Answer Your Cat’s Questions Day
Today is Answer Your Cat’s Questions Day, and I have to admit my guy Marty presented me with some interesting ones. Here’s his list:
- Why don’t all humans adore cats and have at least one living with them?
- Why don’t humans have tails?
- Why do humans get in boxes with water to clean themselves? Why don’t they just lick themselves like we felines do?
- Why do dogs go outside when they have to potty? Why don’t they use a litterbox like we do?
- When dogs go outside, why do they wear those long string things that their human holds?
- Why are there so many dogs around, and why do they wear clothes? Do they know how silly they look?
- Why can’t I have constant access to my food?
So, what are the questions your cat had for you?


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