Toy Review

I have been asked by PetSaleAve.com to review a new toy for them. It is called Lucky Catnip Fortune Cookies and it is made by Jake and Micah. The cookies - there are three - come in a cute little chinese take out box with paper noodles. Each cookie comes with its own fortune, but your really don't need a crystal ball to know that I'll be taking a long and peaceful nap in the future after I get done playing with a primo nip toy.

These toys are big enough (3.5 inches) for bunnykicking, but not so big as to be overwhelming. They come in appealing colors, and are filled with 100% primo organic catnip.

The fortunes are sewn onto strips that are attached to the side of the toy. The cookies are well constructed and the fabric stands up to all the biting and kicking that I inflicted upon them. Some of the other fortunes are "You purr is a gift to those who love you", and "Trust your intuition to scratch things". I did that too, scratching my ears most thoroughly before getting very involved in the aggressive end of the review.

I have to say I enjoyed these thoroughly. Despite having a night to dry out, the fabric is still slightly soggy today, so you can tell I had a good time.

You can find pictures of my play/review session HERE. As you can see I had a very good time. The paper noodles were quite entertaining as well.

The same company also make catnip sushi and wantons. I sense a theme here! They also offer contemplation/play mats, lucky cat collars (please remove bell), and some very attractive kitty bandannas. While their tag line reads "for super lucky pets!" they are themed more toward the feline crowd.

PetSaleAve.com has been, to date, largely geared toward dogs, so the inclusion of new cat products into their catalog would certainly be welcome. (This the company that referred me to Caitlyn's K-9 where I get my Party Collars. They also have model sign up form. I need to sign up!)

In short, after thorough testing by me, I find this product more than meets my exacting standards and I give it a five star rating!

Restriction

So...my Bean does these tackes things at her office, and usually she is very busy with these tackes in the spring when she spends lots of extra time at the office. Not NOW.

But because of some peoples she say should be publically flogged for waiting until very last minute to bring their tackes things in, she must spend extra time at the office this weekend, which is less time for me.

So she goes to office and I go outside yesterday and decide I should investigate storm drain to see if there are an Vishus Deers hiding down there, or, if not that, to see if I can find any mice or rats or bugs. So that what I do.

When she comes home, I see her pull car in, so I come out of storm drain. There is this man that lives down the road that has a chair with wheels on it, and I look and see him in street, coming back from store. He goes very slow, so I trot out on the street ahead of him.

Bean yell at me, get out of street, but I look at her and I look at him and why should I get out of street if it okay if he in it? and then I look back and suddenly out of no where a car is there and IT SCARED ME!

Well, I guess it scared her more because she say I nearly give her heart attack. So she not happy.

So today I on restriction and cannot go outside or use the computer, although I will sneak using the computer. I do not see why I should be on restriction today for something that happen yesterday and that is all over and done with. I was bad yesterday, yes. Today I was not bad, so I should not be on restriction.

Besides, I hear all sorts of animals on the roof and need to go check them out, not be stuck inside.

I do not get humans, because they do understand that what ever happen yesterday was done and over with yesterday and have nothing to do with today. They need to get their heads sorted out.

Wondering Wednesday

There was an article on Petcentric about Dogs and Cats getting lost and how humans who find apparent strays should not just assume that they are strays and should take steps to reunite them with their humans. This is all well and good, but with Cats, if they do not like where they are living, they will leave.

Cats are largely independent creatures and will not say in conditions they do not like. One of these conditions is overcrowding.

There are always stories of the old lady that lives in a house with 87 cats and I often read something, usually once a year, about one of these so called "Cat Ladies". There was a video recently about the lady in Moscow with 130 cats in her apartment! She say she want to help them but does having that many cats live in such crowded conditions really help them?

So I have been thinking...what is an acceptable number of pets? What constitutes a pet collector or a pet hoarder?

I do not think that there is a hard and fast number. If you take good care of your animals, they are all healthy and their is room enough for all of them to have their own area, then I would say you could have easily have more pets then someone you lives in tiny apartment in city, is not home often and cannot afford to take proper care of more than one. A family that is home more often then not will obviously have time to devote to more animals.

The other question involves level of care. Is food and water enough? Shouldn't a certain level of interaction be involved? Is a cat that is given food and water, lives in a house and ever goes outside, a pet if the cat never receives any petting or spends quality time with a human?

My Bean knows of a situation where a pair of humans have a colony of feral cats in their attic. They feel that because they feed and water the cats, and that the cats are inside, away from things that can harm them that they are helping them. But the cats do not receive regular health care from a professional (notice how nicely I sidestep that V word?) and they are not fixed, so they can produce kittens, which is how the whole colony got started. First they took in a pair, then the pair had kittens and then the kittens had kittens...

These, to me, are not pets and you are not really helping the animals. They live in fear of the humans and of the woofies that also live in the house and they will not come by the woofies or the humans. Also they fight amongst themselves, and often kittens are killed by the adult cats because the room is limited. This is a problem but these humans will not ask for help and local agencies will not step in as a it is a private residence.

On a similar note, there are the Infantis who own a Birman and a Main Coon, a Chausie, two cougars and a Siberian lynx. The cougars and the lynx live outside have enclosed cages and are allowed out of the cages and into the family's enclosed porch to play and interact with the humans. The two domestic cats and the Chausie all live inside the house. I think in this case, these animals are more pets than in the previous case.

What are your thoughts on this matter. What is an acceptable number of pets, and what is an acceptable level of care?

Because I know some of my readers have problems with my Xanga account, I put this also on my Blogger account so these readers can comment.

Worn Out Wednesday

Tuesday is trash day. Bean come home from work and bin is laying on side by curb where trash man throw. "You could have brought it back up the house," she say to me.

I sit down regally in the driveway. "No." I say.

For one thing, trash bin 16 times bigger than I am. For another thing, I not a golden retriever to fetch and carry for her. And for last thing, my porch is flooded and I not get my paws all wet.

She starts pulling it up the driveway. "Must I do everything around here?"

"Yes." She is slave, that what slave for.

So then she come in and change furs and feed me. Fancy Feast, Chicken in Gravy. I like things with Gravy, I like to lick all the grave up first. Then I eat about half the chicken. She doing things in bedroom so I go find out what is going on in there. I am aghast!

Photo

Plush brothers have taken over my sleeping chair! Okay, I have not slept on chair in many months, every since sleeping carpet vanish, but that beside point. What happens if I want to sleep there again. One or two plush brothers I can push off, but ALL of them? I simply cannot believe this!

She doing her chores and I follow her from room to room to room, keeping eye on her. "Why are you following me?" she ask. I jump up on counter. She decides maybe I want crunch food and gets bag. Not much in there. Since she going to Pet Supermarket I point out I only have TWO feather-butt mouses left with feathers still in their butts and she should get me more. But I don't eat crunch foods, just keep watching her with unblinking gaze. "What?" she demands. "Oh, you're waiting for greenies!"

I swear, I get stupidest human in whole herd for slave. Not that I had any choice in matter, that just how it work out.

Day not total waste though. I go over to MeowMix.com and sign up for Sweepstakes to win culinary adventure with celebrity chef Cat Cora, or one of over 1,800 other great prizes. I do not know if this is chef that makes Meow Mix Market Selects, but if it is, I must have talk with her. We can only get three varieties here and I want at least one for each day of week, and at least four fish ones. And no beef ones. I do not eat beef.

I also like their new website. It has fun and interesting facts on it. One of them is cats pulling Freya Goddess chariot, but they forget to mention that because of this, cats were almost hunted to extinction by humans before we had to use our power of bubonic plague to save the species. I blog about this before. It is because of this period of genocide and because of the one that come when Christians decide Black Cats are servants of Satan, that there are really not true black cats left. Almost all of use have white gene and therefore we have some white on us. Which then makes us Tuxedo Cats, does it not? So I go sign up for Tuxedo Gang Hideway.

So this lots of work for good cat-cat for one day. On top of that when she get done with her chores including the cleaning of the litter box, we play with mousies for a while. Then I REALLY worn out. So I must take nap.

Photo

This is my impression of the way human sleeps. See how I have my head on pillow. She even puts her paws like that. I have seen her sleep many times. That is now how good cat-cat sleeps however.

Photo

This is how good cat-cat sleeps with feet up in air and tummy exposed! (See our new golden retriever fleecie? I hope it gets cold soon so I can cuddle up in new fleecie!)

It also seems there was some trouble with the flashy box. It take pictures okay, but it having problem with the video. She trying to take video of me exercising with mousies, but it keep getting stuck or something. I dunno. She said she having bad technology day anyway. Guess things not good with work computer. Oh well. Anyway, I not get video up, you will just have to wait!

Midnight Monday

I was sitting on nip mat this morning hoping that Bean would give me some nip. I am a real nip head sometimes. She know when I sit on nip mat, I want nip. However, she was getting ready to go to work and said she would nip me later. So now I unhappy panther until tonight when she come home.

In other news, the me-me went over really well on Pikapet. Many of the pets are doing it and everyone run around tagging other pets. So that is good because it gets to the pets to talking. Not many were doing updates. Petsplaces, on the other hand, delete my post. I guess they do not want pets talking. May disrupt things there. This now 4th post Petsplaces delete. I am now boycotting Petsplaces again, probably for another long time, not that they care. If I didn't like profile so much I would leave totally.

For those that worry bout me going outside, because I live as a wild kitty for a while, I very street smart. I know not to go by street when cars are on it and I will stop and not cross street if I see cars coming. Bean says I am the only cat she ever see, know how to cross street. I am also very careful with the other animals and generally don't confront unless it's like an amorous tom that just will not take the hint that I do not make kittens and leave me alone. Some of them, so pushy!

I get nip mat and nip from Catnipetc.com. All kitties should get their Beans to buy them the good Canadian nip from Catnipetc.com and get them a nip-mat too. They are very reasonably priced and do quick shipping. I highly recommend.

7-things Sunday Me-me

I get this Me-me from Forty Paws who just put out general tag and here are the guidelines.

The guidelines for this tag:

1. Link to your tagger and post these rules
2. Write some facts about yourself: some random, some weird, some just plain fun.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post and list their names (linking to them)
4. Let those 7 people know they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment at their blogs.

The challenge is to keep it interesting without making the reader think “Um, too much information…”

1. My left eye is droppy because I take claw in cat fight that leave big rip, all the way down to my nose. Bean has to clean my eye cause it get gunkle all the time, the tear duct doesn't work right. I also have scar down my face and on my nose from same cat fight.

2. My favorite treats are Feline Greenies. I will knock Bean down to get at Greenies if I have to.

3. I'd rather go outside to use the litter box. I can dig and dig and dig that way. Not enough stuff to dig in the indoor litter box. Bean says I should start excavating business.

4. I like to watch TV. Bean not much of TV person, so I will go next door to neighbor's house and watch TV with him. I do not like auto racing shows though, much too noisy.

5. I like to sit on Bean and have her read to me. Book we read now has cat named Mmrrr in it. I like stories with cats in them.

6. I like to go visit the indoor kitties down the street and the doggie next door, but I do not like them coming here. I do not like having other animals in my territories. I do like going to walk along the cannel with the other outdoor cats though. Sometimes we go get fish treats when people bring their boats in from fishing.

7. I have followed Bean to work twice and I've walked all the way to the top of the street to the Dog Bakery. That is VERY long walk. Bean says maybe she will get me stroller and take me to art and craft fair this winter, which is too much walking for me.

I now tag Sarah, Trixie and Misty on Pikapet, Snipper Dude, Big Dog Bruno and Lots of Pets on Petsplaces and Murphy on Petster for this Me-me.

T13 - Thirteen reasons to give me treats

13. I am cute and I am cuddly.
12. I do not smell as bad as the dog.
11. I wake you up in morning so you will get to work on time.
10. I kneed you when you not feel good and I kneed you when you do.
9. I am better than reality TV because I do not have commercial breaks.
8. Anything you feed me will not make you fat.
7. I will not break down on Daniels Parkway and leave your stranded for hour until triple-A gets there.
6. You will spend less on me in my lifetime than you will spend on your kids in one year.
5. I am honest, trustworthy and loyal.
4. I wil protect you from anything that is not bigger than I am, and sometimes from things that are bigger than I am.
3. I did not poop on the carpet.
2. I will always listen when you want to talk.
1. I may not like those toys you buy me, but nothing says "I love you" more than a treat.

Tale Lashings...

Well needless to say, Bean felt the need to dress meow up for the festive occassion of Meow Like a Pirate Day. You may find more pictures of Meow dressed like a pirate in my Dress Up gallery. Being part pirate herself, she is of course very familier with Talk Like a Pirate Day, which she will sometimes do at other times during the year as well.

Cape Coral, where we live, has a history of pirating in the surrounding island waters, with Black Ceasar being active in the Pine Island, Marco Island, Elliot Key and Sanibel Island area back in the earlie 1800's. Bean already celebrate Pirate Night on her blog earlier this year. They also have annual Pirate festival which run for weekend sometime in February or March every year.

While most felines have an aversion to water, they do make great sailors. They are better for sea voyages than dogs, because they do not need to be walked. Felines have traveled the globe on ships, both current and in history and of course, there were those cats that became pirates as well.

Here is a brief run down of some of the more famous feline Pirates:

Blueboy - A Tonkanese that was known as the scourage of the carribean, rats would rather sink on a ship than jump onto Blueboy's. He so loved to play with his food. When he wasn't ratting, he was busy making kittens. Most cats in Carribean Islands can trace their roots back to this profilic Tom Cat.

Blackie Bart - This feline perhaps the most successful pirate of all time, with the capture of over 400 rats and over 50 pounds of loot.

Annie Boney - She stole a sloop and was just as apt as fighting rats as any tom. She especially liked to attach fishing vessels and steal their catches.

Merry Red - A friend of Annie Boney, she once fought a duel with a Tom that threatened her mate.

Calico Jacque - The queen was known more for her brightly colored coat and her numerous kittens than she was as a pirate. She got more of a reputation hanging around Merry Red and Annie Boney than she did on her own.

Basic Feline to Pirate Translator:


FelinePirateWhat it means
Meow!Ahoy!"Hello!"
Meow!Avast!Stop and give attention. It can be used in a sense of surprise, "Whoa! Get a load of that!" which today makes it more of a "Check it out" or "No way!" or "Get off!"
Meow!Aye!"Why yes, I agree most heartily with everything you just said or did."
Meow!Aye aye!"I'll get right on that sir, as soon as my break is over."
Meow!Arrr!This one is often confused with arrrgh, which is of course the sound you make when you sit on a belaying pin. "Arrr!" can mean, variously, "yes," "I agree," "I'm happy," "I'm enjoying this beer," "My team is going to win it all," "I saw that television show, it sucked!" and "That was a clever remark you or I just made." And those are just a few of the myriad possibilities of Arrr!


Coming up next...Drink Blood like a Vampire night!

Meow like a Pirate Day

Tomorrow is Meow like a Pirate Day. I find this out on Cat Blogsphere which is place where you can go and have your blog re-purrr-ted so that other cats all over the world can read it. I'm afraid this means that Bean will want to dress me up tonight though so she can have pictures. Maybe I hide in my little tent, so she cannot do this. I hate it when she want to dress me up.

When she was little her grandmother have Chihuahua dog which always try to bite her and so she not like Chihuahua's much now. Later when she get older she find out dog not like her because she used to dress it up in doll clothes. That would expain it. I think her parents should have told her that was wrong though and not let her do it. But they think it cute. How stupid. I would hope she would know better but....Oh well.

In other exciting news, I get Bean to buy me Xanga premium so I can get rid of advertisements on my blog and so that I can have special module so I can add links and and stuff. Also, picture of Bean's old Bulldog - Samson - get featured as one of Xanga's photos of the day. That was nice and unexpected.

I also get Blogger account so that I can reply to the cats that blog on Blogger. I will not blog there, but I put my links to my blog and to my profile pags so that my cat furrrriends can find me. I hope that some of the felines that sign up for Xanga so they can leave me messages will do same thing, so I can find their blogs.

The little tail grabbers are gone but they leave me artwork, which I put up in Artworks album at Xanga. They leave me more colorings, but Bean has been hogging scanner. Puuurrrhaps I will get to put them up tonight. The trade off was that I would put the colorings on my blog if they would not try to include me in their arts projects. That way I not get glitter glue all over my furs!

Anyway, get ready to Meow like a Pirate tomorrow!

Tornado

We have tornado yesterday but it not come here. Just the big lightning storm come here. The Tornado go up the river and then turned on Skyline Drive and went down there. 12 families - including some with pets - lost their homes because their condos got wrecked.

It flipped over four cars including a large work truck and knocked power out all over the city.

We did not loose power for very long. The lighting storm was bad enough though. Normally it do not bother me so much, but it was very close to house and there was lightnings all over. Bean had gone to laundrymat to wash her furs when it come and it was afraid she would get hurt. But she come home and was okay.

I like it better then Bean is here for the big storms so that I can protect here. Nasty tornado not get us when I around to chase it off!

I hope all the dogs and their peoples that lost their homes find places to stay.