Come Together

The Smithsonian claims that outdoor cats (feral and pet) are a serious danger to birds. They even seem to suggest (subtly) that TNR be abandoned and that TNR supporters are unknowingly killing birds.

Alley Cat Allies claims that loss of habitat and increased human activities are a far greater danger to birds than cats ever will be.


Both sides were posting on twitter in a way that made me, as a supporter of both organizations, feel a bit awkward.

My take? They need to work together. Alley Cat Allies should push hard for cat parents to keep their kitties indoor only, with a strong push at suburban areas where the Smithsonian claims birds are being killed most often. The Smithsonian, instead of trying to claim that TNR is ineffective (without any research to back this up) because it requires a 70% saturation in a colony, should actually make a push for strong TNR. Help people trap kitties, donate the time of the zoo vets to assist with the spay/neuter surgeries. Maybe the two could even have a cross-promotion where for every cat owner who signs a pledge to keep her cat indoors-only and makes a donation to a special fund (half going to TNR, half going to songbird rehab and research), people can attend a special event at the Smithsonian zoo to learn about big cats.

Essentially, it seems ridiculous to me that two organizations that care about animals can't find a way to come together and find ways to support each other and all animals.

Admittedly, this is part of a larger frustration with "opposing" sides refusing to associate with or listen to each other.  Imagine what could happen if good, small breeders stood with the HSUS and started supporting bans against puppy mills? If Peta listened to small farmers and found ways to improve the lives of animals on farms? As I said before, if animals can come together, why can't we?

First Ever Film By Cats

Departing from the holiday theme, I know I'm late on this, but I finally saw the Purina "Cat Diaries" today and it melted my heart with happiness.




We're still in the midst of a nasty cold snap in DC right now, but this warmed my heart.

Don't forget, with the cold snap, make sure to call your local animal control if you see a pet left in the cold. WHS listed a warning last night. Be careful out there! Also, if there's ice near you, remember to clean your dog's paws off when you come in--various de-icers can be uncomfortable or even poisonous for dogs so make sure you're the one cleaning it off and not your dog's tongue!

Stay warm!!

Welcome You Back with Electronica Cats

I've been absent as of late partially because of work and partially because I was busy outside of work. Last week was my birthday and amongst other awesome times and gifts, my brother gave me amazing cat toys that amuse Toby (and thus me, too) for hours on end.

My brother is pretty awesome. I'm hoping once I get out to visit him in El Paso that can maybe score a visit to the border patrol dogs who apparently are in high demand and just as awesome in real life as they seem via news stories. He also likes electronic music, from what I understand (I'm kind of awful at keeping up with people's music tastes).

So, in honor of him and tomorrow's National Feral Cat Day:
Cats playing electronica


Happy Friday.

Short Term DC Cat Fosters, please?

I usually try not to post from work because I respect my employer.

However...my shelter, Washington Humane Society, just took in 20 cats from an eviction. It's kitten season and we just got 20 more cats. We're open access, not no kill. Do you start to guess why I'm breaking my "don't post during work hours" rule?

WHS is looking for short-term fosters asap. You would not be fostering one of the new 20, we're holding those in the shelter for 7 days before even considering putting them in foster care. You'd have one of the 20 we need to move from the shelter to make room for those new cats. I love my shelter for being open access and for trying to desperately hard to find fosters when situations get tight like this.

Here is their blog entry about it: http://washhumane.typepad.com/blog/2010/06/feline-fosters-needed-asap.html

The coordinator has said that she's willing to "deputize" fosters because the need is so great right now. Please, if you're in the area and aren't already fostering, think about it. If you're unable to take any in (fostering, out of area, allergic, I respect your reasons), talk to your friends in the DC area, please. I can't take any with Toby still healing (vet said one reason for his thing might have been stress, like one commenter said) and Keen the way he is and it being a studio apartment but I have to at least go and ask people for help.

I'm certain that enough foster homes can be found if people just keep passing the word.

A Cat's Prayer

I came across a very sweet "cat's prayer" on the site of a cool FL rescue group

It made me laugh and think of the cats in my life. How the way we treat and raise our cats changes how they treat us. How the raising goes both ways.

Toby with his insistent looks that communicate better than words whether "WTF was THAT???" at his first accidental glance of a new foster kitty, "Food, woman. I want some gorram food now" or my favorite "YOU'RE HOME!!!! My PERSON is HOME!!!!!"

That last one is usually accompanied by a highly-held, twitching tail and crazy amount of face and flank rubbing.

The last two stanzas seemed particularly apt:

Please protect me from the inhuman humans
who would hurt and torture me for their own amusement.
I am accustomed to your gentle touch and am not always suspicious
nor swift enough to avoid such malicious acts.

In my later years when my senses fail me
and my infirmities become too great to bear,
allow me the comfort and dignity that I desire for my closing days
and help me gently in my pain or passing.
Hear this prayer, my dear friend, my fate depends on you.


Their fates do depend on us. We're their people. We've created a world where they can't easily live on their own. We are their source of food, love, entertainment, and care. Children grow up and stand on their own two feet eventually. Cats and dogs? They need us desperately until the end. A coworker suggested Keen was surrendered because his family couldn't bear the thought of watching him die (he is 15, most cats pass between 15 and 20, he has a few years left on him). I hope that wasn't the reason because, to me, a cat who has given you 15 years of love and affection, deserves familiar love and affection when it is his time to pass on from this world. Who else will he wait for on the other side?

Btw, the photo at the top is LeCat--a 14 year old previous foster who now is living the good life with an awesome woman in DC.

Capital Cats Make Waves Across the Pond

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7895280.stm
Washington Humane Society's Kittengarden (which sadly my Toby is too old to join) got a spot on the BBC!

In these classes, people learn how to work with their cats and make life fun and interesting while also safe for them.

The video does note a difference I've seen in books regarding American/British views on indoor/outdoor cats. In Britian, people are encouraged to let their cats roam and be as "natural" as possible. In America, especially in D.C., we encourage cats to be kept indoors.

Why? It's safer.
Outdoor kitties face a lot of dangers, especially in urban areas. Cats were not meant to run from cars or deal with catnappers (I have heard from respectable people that cats really do get, well, catnapped in the DC area, I haven't done research myself though so don't take that as pure gospel). It gets awfully cold and hot outside, too. Plus you run the risk of a neighbor just not liking your cat and doing something awful. Those are just the immediate large dangers.

There are also the microscopic dangers which can be more deadly. FLV is generally picked up by outdoor kitties or those who are exposed to outdoor kitties. Outdoor cats are more likely to get into fights and then catch infection through their wounds.

Science backs this up. At least in the United States, indoor cats live significantly longer (several more years) than outdoor cats. I want my Toby to live a long time and be around through different life stages. That's why I keep him indoors :)

Cat Cafes?

Apparently there is a trend in Japan (at least 8 cafes in Tokyo) where people pay $8-$12 an hour to sip tea and play with cats. The cafes require handwashing and often have previously-homeless cats as their resident cats.

I'm not sure what I think about this. On the surface it seems okay--it gives some cats a home and lets people interact with animals who for some reason or another, don't have one at home. On the other hand, I hope it doesn't encourage these people away from pursuing actually owning a cat because they know they can always just visit one.

It also reminds me of the rent-a-dog trend that started to take off in NYC a few years ago. What happens when these cats get older? Who will take care of the cat who gets sick? Yes, it's probably a better life than on the street but let's hope that these cats are loved and cherished even when they aren't so cute. Pets aren't robots and should be treated as more than just commodities.

I do like the idea of Arlington's Stray Cat Cafe. There aren't any real cats there, just paintings and photographs of strays, but their website links to an adoption site and the restaurant (along with its sister "The Lost Dog Cafe") supports adoptions. I've never eaten there so I can't say anything about the food, but for a place that came up when I was looking up cat cafes in Tokyo, it sounds pretty cool.

(For another photo of a cat cafe that won't display here, go to: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28862190/displaymode/1107/s/2/framenumber/5/)

Kitty Play Fight!

Meet Beatrice and Arthur--two Cinci cats who love to play.

Super Ad for Adoptions

I'm not a huge football fan. I like high school games with my old friends. And the few college games I attended were great. Somehow though, I have never gotten into professional football.

Because of that, I do not usually attend Super Bowl parties or watch the game. This year, I did flip back to check the commercials, looking for a Pedigree commercial I'd heard about first through HSUS's blog. The magic of the interwebz let me watch the ad on youtube, (Here is the ad in case you missed it during the game) and I genuinely liked it.

I want people to adopt cats, too, but adoption in general needs to be promoted. If all the dogs find homes more quickly, shelters will have more resources to spend on cats.

There tend to be more homeless cats than dogs for a two major reasons.

1. A feral breeding population. In the United States, we do not have packs of wild dogs roaming our cities. We do have legitimate feral cat colonies. These are cats whose moms or dads were house or barn cats, but ended up on the streets. These cats bred with other loose cats, the offspring were not brought back inside, and after a few weeks became feral. Feral cats are behaviorally different from homeless domestic cats, but they still breed together. If the female is a homeless domestic cat, those cats could have good lives if they were brought inside. They would be able to adjust to a home and people so easily, but their mom is homeless so they are. Or, even if their mom isn't homeless, a lot of owners whose cats have unexpected litters just leave the litters somewhere without caring that those kittens will likely either die from the elements, or if they do survive, lead harsh lives producing more litters of kittens to compete for resources. People have a hard enough time controlling their impulses to cut down on unwanted human pregnancies. It's not fair for us to expect cats to do better.

2. Physically, cats are set up to breed quite a bit. Feline pregnancies are about nine-weeks and females tend to have two or three litters of kittens per year. Cats can become sexually mature at the age of four months. Mix these together and that's a lot of kittens being born, growing up, and bearing even more kittens.

I think there's a third reason, but it's based more on anecdotal evidence than science. People seem to give cats up more easily than dogs and less people are willing to adopt a cat. They don't understand that if given attention, cats can be just as affectionate and trainable as dogs. Toby sits on command and is learning to give a high five (velvet paw touch to my left hand). He loves to play fetch. He is not an anomaly in the world of cats. Yes, they do all have their own personalities and cats can be more independent than dogs. I would never leave a dog home for a weekend with bowls of food and lots of water. I have left Toby for a day or two with bowls of dry food around the apartment and multiple bowls of water (I do two bowls of water for each day I'll be gone, at some point I need to give in and purchase a fountain for him if I start traveling regularly).

So please, watch the ad and think about adopting. If you want a dog, think about a dog. If you don't lean either way, please consider a cat. They can be very sweet and there are loads of products out there for allergy sufferers.

Daily Dose of Cute

Buddy decided that his sister needed a bath. As you can see, Leona isn't sure what she thinks of this. Buddy and Leona are awaiting adoption at the Washington Humane Society Georgia Avenue Shelter (washhumane.org/adopt/adoptGA.asp) These cats are sweet and even more adorable in person.

Let's Get Along

In a time when we have negative campaign ads and vicious politics highlighting how little people get along with members of their own species, there comes hope from the animal world. Feuerstein and Terkel published the results of a study exploring the relationship between cats and dogs in Applied Animal Behaviour Science .

An old cliche about people who don't get along is that they "fight like cats and dogs." We categorize people as cat and dog people partially because we think cats and dogs don't naturally get along. Many people even use this as a criteria for who to date. When Ted in How I Met Your Mother states "I'm a dog person, I'm attracted to other dog people" and then is shocked to find out that his girlfriend loves cats, few viewers found his reaction odd.

I think they're both right. I'm a cat and dog lady. Cats and dogs can get along. It is not unnatural or abnormal for cats and dogs to form social bonds. Well, no more unnatural than training them to come to their names, sit for treats, or put up with a good brushing (my cat does all of those and is described by others as being dog-like because of this). Consider it animal bipartisanship.

Feuerstein and Terkel support this idea with their results. Their study showed that cats and dogs can become friends, especially when the animal's first meeting with a member of the other species is at a young age. Feuerstein and Terkel even found that dogs could understand a cat's body language, even when the meaning from a dog would be the complete opposite of that from a cat. Cats were able to do the same. The gender of the animals didn't matter at all in terms of how they get along.

Can this translate to human beings? Not all cats and dogs are able to get along with members of the other species. I doubt that there will be a day when all humans are able to get along with all humans. I do think that we can learn from cats and dogs how to understand behavior that seems completely opposite to us. Cats understand dogs best when they meet them at a young age. Let's work on this with kids. Let's introduce kids of all types and let them play in the sandbox together. Diversity works for dogs and cats, I bet it'll work with humans.

Walk for the Animals 2008

The third annual Humane Society Walk for the Animals raised over $97,000 to benefit The Humane Society of the United States and the Washington Humane Society's efforts to end pet homelessness, close puppymills, and conduct humane education outreach. Almost 2400 sponsors helped raise this money. The great thing is that the Walk raised so much, the sad part is that it's still below the Walk's goal of $150,000. However, although the Walk and activites were this past Sunday, October 5, donations will still be counted through November 7, 2008.

Want to give? Go to http://www.humanesocietywalk.org/ and donate.

What happened at the Walk? Humane education, great live music, Doga (yoga with your dog), doggie obstacle courses, catnip treat toy assembly, and of course lots of barking, tail wagging, people licking, and playing by the hundreds of assembled dogs and their owners. Yes, the owners wagged their "tails" as part of the pre-walk warmup. They also "pawed the air" and "kicked up dirt" as led by a certified fitness instructor.

The Walk is held every year near the National Mall and is a fabulous fundraiser that helps also raise awareness of the many issues facing animals through the nation as well as in the capital.